| Green Travel Market Green Travel Market is an innovative service linking tour operators with sustainable tourism suppliers and destinations. Changes in the travel trade are turning towards more socially and environmental responsible ways of doing business. More and more tour operators prefer to work with suppliers who work in a more sustainable manner. In recent years there have been many projects and initiatives aimed at minimizing the negative impact of tourism and creating products that instead make a positive contribution to local economies, cultures and the environment. Examples include car-free resorts in the Alps, eco-labelled accommodation, eco-tourism to support vulnerable protected areas, visits to indigenous tribes in a respectful way, etc.
On Green Travel Market you will find a complete range of tourism products: attractions and activities, eco-lodges in the tropical rain forest, four-star hotels in historical city centres and sustainable destinations as well as incoming tour operators from all over the world. In addition to this, Green Travel Market offers a wide array of services to help you to integrate sustainable products into your packages. Our specially assigned matchmakers can help you reach new markets and create new, exciting tour products. Yours sincerely, Métilde Wendenbaum Green Travel Market is supported by the EU LIFE Environment program and the ECTAA (group of national Travel Agencies' and Tour operators' associations within the EU).
|
| Some of our
best products! VISIT - More than a thousand eco-certified hotels, campsites, holiday houses and B&B's.
Since 2001, 12 of Europe's leading tourism eco-labels have been united under VISIT (Voluntary Initiative for Sustainability in Tourism). At present you can find VISIT eco-labelled accommodation in Austria, France, Scotland, Denmark, Sweden, the Netherlands, Switzerland, Luxembourg, Spain, Latvia and Italy. The VISIT labels comply with the VISIT standard for tourism ecolabels in Europe: they guarantee a high level of environmental criteria and a strong verification procedure including independent on site visits of the certified tourism services. More than 1. 000 certified hotels, campsites and holiday houses are being promoted under the motto "Caring for the environment... is caring for the visitor". Many of the eco-certified accommodation holders would like to cooperate with tour operators. |
| Some of our
best products! ECEAT, small-scale, environmentally friendly accommodation in rural areas
NEWS - Publication: "Sustainable Tourism, The Tour Operators' Contribution"
The Tour Operators' Initiative for Sustainable Tourism Development (TOI) was formed when a group of tour operators from different parts of the world joined forces to develop and implement these tools. TOI is voluntary, non-profit, and open to all tour operators. TOI enables its members to respond to international agendas while creating a platform for developing ideas and projects to addre ss the environmental, social, economic and cultural aspects of sustainable development. The Initiative has four key areas of action: sustainability reporting, co-operation with destinations, supply chain management and communication. Since the launch of the Tour Operators' Initiative in 2000, TOI has been collecting 'good' examples of how a tour operator can effectively integra te the principles of sustainability into its various areas of operations. These examples, all of which came from individual member of TOI, have been bundled into in a report: "Sustainable Tourism, The Tour Operators' Contribution". This report guides tour operators around the range of different options that they can choose from. You can download it from the Tour Operators' Initiative's web site. |
The Green Travel Market was created
to provide you, as a tour operator, with
information about the growing number of
"green" and "fair" products
currently available. All of the products
presented on this site have been screened for
sustainability: they support the protection of
valuable areas of natural beauty and the
environment and / or contribute to the social
development of local populations and the
protection of their culture. Moreover, the
products promoted on the Green Travel Market
comply with the high quality and handling
standards that both tour operators and their
clients are used to. 
ECEAT offers 1.500 accommodation
sites at organic farms and environment-friendly
guesthouses and B&B's in rural areas
throughout Europe. Most of these places are an
ideal base for walking, cycling, riding,
bird-watching and water sports. The European
Centre for Eco and Agro Tourism (ECEAT) was
started in 1993 to promote sustainable tourism in
rural Europe. The benefits derived from
sustainable tourism directly encourage farmers
and owners of other types of rural smallholdings
to maintain natural landscapes and the local
cultural heritage. 
Being able to guarantee a
clean and safe environment is critical to a tour
operator's success. Are you sure that you have
all the management tools and experience to design
and conduct tours in a way that will minimise any
negative environmental, social and economic
impact they might have? 
Registration in Green Travel Market is easy and for free.
Read more at www.greentravelmarket.info and register your company. Registration provides direct access to our database with dozens of first-rate sustainable tourism products from all over the world.
Free copy of the European Tourism Eco-label Manual
Tour operators that register at the
Green Travel Market will receive a free manual on Tourism
Ecolabelling in Europe. This useful book is full of
information about indicators for sustainable tourism in
destinations, ecolabels for tourism, the European VISIT
standard and the VISIT ecolabels. Successful examples of
tour operators promoting more sustainable packages are
given as well as tips on how to market "green"
packages.
Did you know? Consumer research in Germany says that:
- more than 30 % of tourists prefer certified environmental accommodation.
- around 1/3rd of tourists prefer to use public transport to reach their destination.
- 20% of tourists would like tour operators and destinations to clearly indicate environmental quality products in their catalogues.
Some of our best products!
Lake Issyk-Kul, mountain nomads in Kyrgyzstan
Kyrgyzstan is an exiting, up-and-coming destination in the heart of Central Asia. This beautiful country has much to offer: spectacular mountains up to 7.000 meters high, unique wild walnut-fruit forests, a traditional nomad culture and the Lake Issyk-Kul (UNESCO Biosphere reserve) - the second largest alpine lake in the world, surpassed only by Lake Titicaca.
The Issyk-Kul region offers various adventure possibilities: walking, cycling, climbing, skiing, rafting, windsurfing and horseback trekking through some of the world's highest mountain landscapes.
Local communities offer visitors the possibility to directly experience the uniqueness of their (nomadic) way of life. Tourists can stay in yurt camps, traditional mobile dwellings still lived in by the shepherds and participate in their daily life. Other accommodation types such as home stays and comfortable guesthouses are also available. A minimum quality standard is guaranteed by the Kyrgyz Community Based Tourism Association, which develops, co-ordinates and monitors tourism activities.
More than 20 incoming tour operators - several of whom have more than 10 years of practical experience - are ready to assist you in developing the right tour for your clients.
Some of our best products!
Car free resorts in Austria
The 'Network for Soft Mobility in European Tourism' (NETS), is a cooperation between destinations, transport services and environmental organisations who are working together to create high quality car-free destinations. Special offers have been developed in more than 10 (winter) holiday resorts in the Austrian Alps, such as Werfenweng, where tourists arriving by train can use free local taxi services run on low-emission vehicles.
Some of our best products!
Fair Trade in Tourism
Fair Trade
in Tourism South Africa (FTTSA) is an independent,
non-profit initiative established by the World
Conservation Union (IUCN) to promote equitable and
sustainable tourism development in South Africa. 
FTTSA certifies tourism establishments with a special Trademark if they adhere to a set of criteria that includes fair wages and working conditions, fair distribution of benefits, ethical business practices and respect for human right , culture and the environment. FTTSA's core values are: fair shares, democracy, respect, reliability, transparency and sustainability.