Short or Long Trips: What's More Efficient?

Many people choose to do multiple short trips to destinations within a close proximity of each other, rather than the same destinations in one trip. However, longer trips to multiple countries seem to be more environmentally friendly than shorter trips to different destinations in the same of surrounding countries. Not only will it be more environmentally friendly but it will be more cost effective.

Let’s say you are planning a trip to South East Asia and you want to travel to multiple countries such as Vietnam, Cambodia and Thailand. It is more environmentally friendly for you to travel to all three in one trip rather than visit them in individual trips and head back to your home country each time.  Obviously if you are in the UK you have to fly to South East Asia and there is no getting around this, but you can still make it as environmentally friendly as possible by planning your trip well.  

Due to the amount of energy needed to take-off and land an aeroplane, flights produce the most emissions during these stages of flight, so when thinking about flights make sure you try and book a direct flight to your destination. Doing this will not only reduce your emissions, you will save time by not having to wait at airports for lay-overs. If connecting flights are unavoidable, always book through the same airline. 

Once at your destination, find out if there is a train or a coach transfer rather than flying to your next stop as this will reduce the amount of greenhouse gases produced. Trains tend to have lower carbon dioxide emissions per passenger than coaches, but this is only due to the increased size of trains. Both produce less emissions than aeroplanes so either is a good alternative.  

This still applies to trips where you can start your trip via train, boat or car. For example, if you’re travelling around Europe, it is more efficient for you to do a longer trip and see multiple countries and cities via train and coach than flying to each country individually. If you’re travelling from the UK, try to use the Eurostar to start your journey rather than fly to your first destination as the Eurostar produces near to no carbon dioxide per passenger.  

It may seem like a long trip is a lot of commitment but it has its benefits! With a longer trip you can see more sights, meet more people, experience many different cultures and cuisines and more photo opportunities. Gap years are supposed to be fun and challenging and you should learn a lot about yourself while experiencing different cultures. The key to a good long trip is in the planning. If you are concerned about planning a trip there are many gap year travel companies that take groups around these countries to visit the prime locations.

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