5 Ways to Be an Eco-chic Traveler

Almost 100% of Americans (91%) take an annual vacation-a week or two to get away from it all on a tropical island, in the mountains, on the beach, or just away from the hustle, bustle, and stress of our daily lives. Be just as aware of what you are doing on vacation as you are when you're at home when it comes to being eco-chic. Take small steps and fit them into your vacation routine to be an eco-chic traveler.

5 ways to eco-chic your vacation

Don't change your linens and towels during your stay. You don't use a new towel and change your bed sheets everyday when you're at home, so don't do it on vacation either. If you're only away for a few days or a week, then use the same towels and linens during your whole stay. If you're away for more than a week, then have your sheets changed once a week and change your towels out once a week too. By taking this small step, you're saving up to 40% of the water used in a hotel per day. You're clean when you dry off with your towels so they aren't getting dirty with one or two uses!

Stay in a green hotel or engage in eco-tourism. There are green hotels popping up all over the world. These hotels run an eco-friendly operation--using chemical free cleaning products, asking you to reuse towels and linens throughout your stay, using energy efficient appliances, light bulbs, and more to meet green standards. There are also eco-tourism efforts taking place in destinations that are not overcrowded and focus on local culture and environmentally friendly practices.

Use e-tickets. Use e-tickets instead of checking in at the counter and getting a paperboard ticket. Even if you print the e-ticket from your home or office computer, the regular paper is more easily recycled than the paperboard tickets. This saves the airlines money, which saves you money, and saves paper too.

Use timers for your lights at home and shut lights off in your hotel. Don't leave lights constantly burning in your home while you're away. Use timers so your lights come on for a few hours each night and then shut off again. When you leave your hotel room, shut off the lights. It's just like a room in your home--if nobody is in the room, then turn the lights off. Seventy-five percent of energy used in a hotel is from the bathroom light being left on when nobody is in it.

Carry on your luggage. If you can, pack one carry-on bag rather than checking your bag. This not only saves you time waiting in line to check your bag and then waiting for your bag to come out in baggage claim, you'll also save 70% of the energy used to operate the luggage carousel. This also causes you to pack only what you need, which can save 350 million gallons of jet fuel for every passenger who packs ten pounds lighter.

You don't have to change your whole life to help make a difference. It's the small steps you take that add up to a big difference.