All of the team here at Designer Travel have taken on the challenge of making a real difference when it comes to our amazing planet.

As a 2024 TTG Sustainable Travel Ambassador in training, I have signed up for a clear, defined mission: to actively contribute to creating a travel industry that prioritises sustainability. This involves advocating for eco-friendly practices, supporting local economies, and ensuring that tourism benefits everyone involved.

By championing responsible travel choices wherever possible, I hope to encourage and inspire more people to at least consider travelling more responsibly and sustainably, helping people understand the big impact making even just a few little changes can really make.

Designer Travel have also created our 'Little Steps...Big Impact' story, told through the eyes of our baby elephant "Moyo" - which means heart in Swahili.
You can read Moyo's story here.



Designer Travel and Sustainability.

Here at Designer Travel we are committed to doing whatever we can to help look after our amazing planet.

As one of the UK’s leading travel homeworking businesses, we are committed to working with partners who put sustainability at the very heart of their business, both in terms of strategy and, more importantly, in terms of demonstrating implementation.
We as an agent will do everything, we can to keep our customers informed of industry-wide sustainability policies allowing customers to make informed decisions about all of their travel choices.

Designer Travel are committed to: -

• Keeping up to date with regular training opportunities to learn more about suppliers who have proven sustainability credentials. Bringing policies to life and exploring what operator and supplier policies actually mean in practise.

• Producing our own customer communication documentation that can be sent out electronically to all customers, featuring handy tips on how everyone can make a difference to the environment they are visiting along with how to make a difference when they return home.

• Working hard to reduce the amount of paper we use in all parts of our business. This means, that we will use electronic communications wherever possible and when ever it suits the most important part of our business – our customers.

• Recycling. We know just how important it is to re-cycling as much as we possible can. We will strive to source consumables that are officially recognised as being recyclable. We will recycle in both of our Head Office buildings in Ramsbottom with every team member playing their part within their home environment.

• Improving our water efficiency. Both at our home locations and Head Office properties we will make a conscious effort to reduce our use of water and minimise waste.

• Helping to protect natural environments and the wildlife in the destinations that we trade with around the globe. We will only promote wildlife experiences that are endorsed by the locals

Our natural world – Advisory policy on animal encounters and attractions 2024
Our planet is an amazing place. We, like many other businesses, want to do whatever we can to make a positive difference when it comes to our planet. Some actions taken may be internal and only affect our team, others may have the ability to affect a wider audience – our customers, our suppliers and ultimately the destinations we travel to.

Our goal is to do as much as we can to “leave nothing but footprints whilst making magical memories”.

Our business has an advisory policy on animal encounters and attractions of any kind. We hope you will find our policy interesting (we have also included recommendations to several different websites that may be useful) and that it provides you with some food for thought.

Wild animals are by their definition – wild. This means any encounter with wild animals should be considered carefully and only once you are fully satisfied your experience will not be detrimental to the animal, you or the environment.

Visiting Do’s..

Try to visit animals 'where they should be'. There are few greater pleasures in life than experiencing an animal encounter when animals are in their natural environment. Often referred to as INSITU – here conservation is in place in the animal's habitat.

Conservation often takes place in EXSITU – here the animals are likely to be in a realistic but protected environment.

Visiting Don’ts

Try not to be tempted to visit animals that have been tamed to cope with human interaction or any animals that are kept in captivity in an environment that does not resemble their “home turf”.

Riding

There are very few recognised animal facilities that would encourage riding on animals. Research has moved a long way from the times when it was perfectly acceptable to accept a lift on an elephant or a trip on a camel. If you wouldn’t do something in the wild then why consider it when an animal is in a captive environment?

Feeding

Animals know what their diet should contain and most healthy animals will be well-versed in finding their next meal. Whilst feeding a baby animal, or its mother come to that, might be viewed as “cute” it may also provoke a reaction from an animal that you are not expecting and may encourage a reliance on human visitors. Please don’t be tempted to interfere with nature.

Responsible Tourism

Be a responsible tourist. Do your homework in advance about any adventures you are planning so that you know your experience will provide the very best results for you as the visitor but equally great results for the destination you are travelling to.

Social Media

We will never knowingly promote animal attractions where animals “perform” for the general public or offer animal encounters that involve invasive human interaction.

Useful/interesting websites :
https://www.bornfree.org.uk/ - an organisation dedicated to protecting wild animals in their natural environments
https://www.wwf.org.uk/
https://awionline.org/content/what-you-can-do-wildlife
https://www.worldlandtrust.org https://www.wcs.org

The World is an amazing place, let's try and keep it that way!