About GTG - Good Travel Guide

WHO WE ARE

We are committed to responsible tourism because we are worried about tourism becoming increasingly unsustainable. This harms our planet and of course the travel destinations. Therefore we want to motivate travellers and entrepreneurs to change their unsustainable behaviour through this Good Travel Guide.

So many tourists contribute to the climate crisis by spoiling the most beautiful places on earth through a lack of respect. Although tourism will never be entirely sustainable, travellers and businesses can become more responsible.

Some destination and businesses leaders do their best to respect their local community and their environment, to make their destination a better place. It is our aim to present them to ‘green travellers’ like you because they deserve it.

The Good Travel Guide is committed to offer free webpages to certified destinations and businesses and to feature the certified travel offer in these destinations.

OUR VALUES:

The Good Travel Guide is a trade mark of Green Destinations BV, The Netherlands. Green Destinations BV is a different legal entity from Stichting Green Destinations, which is a foundation administering the GD destination awards & certification program.

The Good Travel Guide is committed to offer free webpages to QualityCoast and GD-destinations from Silver level and to feature the certified travel offer in these destinations. Together with Green Destinations, we share the same G.R.E.E.N. values with a meaning that is easy to remember:

Genuine
Supporting the authentic celebration of culture, tradition, and local life.

Responsible
Behaving respectfully to the local community and to local values; avoiding exploitation of people, nuisance, and impacts on residents.

Economically sustainable
Supporting local crafts and businesses and trying to avoid international outlets.

Environment and climate
Limiting the carbon, water and waste footprint of travel by reducing air miles and avoiding large cruise ships; or offset travel CO2..

Nature and scenery
Helping to protect scenic views, landscapes, natural habitats, and wildlife.

GET FEATURED WITH US:

The destinations and businesses featured in this guide are all certified, awarded and recognized for their sustainability.

Are you going to be one of them too? Get in contact with us!

SPECIAL FEATURES OF OUR DESTINATION PAGES

Comparison Table of Destinations and Certified Businesses
The comparison table demonstrates the performances of the destination and business on different aspects of sustainable tourism. It provides travellers a quick overview of the sustainable tourism choices, and also an easier way to select the most suitable choice. The comparison includes its sustainability, health & safety, accessibility, nature choice, art & culture, beach & swimming, cycling, and hiking. A fixed standard is set to assess the destination and the businesses, which then will result in very good (bright icon) and good (fade icon). An “x” is shown when the standard is non-applicable or if it isn’t performing well in this category.
The standard used in the destination comparison includes the score of the sustainability report, the GTG website of a destination, and the indicators report. Moreover, external sources are also used as a tool for the comparison, for example, the EEA bathing water quality and the Blue Flag beaches. For certified business comparison, we use their Good Travel Seal sustainability report and their Scorecard.

Please click below for more detailed explanation.

The Good Travel Map
Some of the destination pages in this guide have a map showing the range of responsible activities or accommodations on offer. These interactive maps display attractions, business and travel products that do not compromise sustainability. Businesses certified for sustainability are shown automatically, including ones certified by the Good Travel Seal.

GOOD TRAVEL GUIDE PARTNERS

We developed partnership with like-minded companies to reach our GREEN and sustainable goals.

Sustainable First is a platform that shares truly sustainable tourism initiatives and links them to the SDGs, as well as a sustainable tourism news section. The platform is led by Mafalda Borea & Bernard Metzger. Here are a few examples of projects featured that they are bringing to the spotlight in Kenya, Thailand and Tanzania.