More Travel Brands Remove Wasteful Materials From Services

More and more travel brands have removed plastic and other non-biodegradable materials from their services, whether it be hotel rooms or flights.

You probably already know Alaska Airlines moved away from single-use plastics last year, thanks to its heavily publicized initiative and partnerships with ocean conservation non-profits. Other airlines followed suit. United Airlines removed plastic straws from its flights, but then also started an on-board recycling program and teamed with Clean the World to donate unused amenity kits to people in need.

Delta Air Lines is doing something similar by donating old crew uniforms for other uses.

Across the pond, Ryanair pledged to eliminate all non-recyclable plastics from its flights by 2023.

As far as hotels, so many different brands removed single-use plastics and other wasteful materials from their services.

Hyatt only provides straws and picks on request as of last fall, and Hilton and Melia both made similar commitments.

Other organizations help travel brands and providers of all kinds remove plastic from the travel experience. Travel without Plastic is one such organization, targeting small and boutique 3- and 4-star hotels, helping them learn the best ways to remove plastic from their properties and what is needed to do so, whether that means replacing in-room plastic water bottles with glass carafes or switching toiletry miniatures in guestrooms with full-sized toiletries.

Beyond airlines and hotels, whole tourist destinations also join the cause. Starting last month, visitors to Peru’s natural and cultural protected areas, such as Machu Picchu, were no longer allowed to carry in single-use plastics. Also last month, San Diego voted to ban Styrofoam food and drink containers and the Washington, D.C., straw ban began, wherein businesses in the city will receive fines if they continue to offer plastic straws.