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Code Green

Code Green is all about travel experiences that will challenge, change and inspire you. It s about making a connection with people who lead very different lives to you, and connecting in a sustainable way, so that the same opportunities will be there for the future. Code Green draws together almost 100 responsible travel experiences from across the planet, all linked by three defining principles; tread lightly on the environment, immerse yourself in the culture and have a positive economic benefit for the local community. Buy Code Green holiday last minute wales

Overview Loved to death

By Tony and Maureen Wheeler catering holiday self wales

Loved to death. These days it s a phrase that more and more travel possibilities get tarnished with. We scratch our heads and wonder just when Bali s Kuta or India s Goa morphed from quiet surfer escapes or laid back hippy hangouts into international resorts of wall to wall shops, restaurants and package hotels. Cities the world over worry about how they re going to cope with ever increasing flows of tourists. holiday wales walking

Late afternoon at Kuta Beach

At Lonely Planet sustainable and responsible have always been parts of our vocabulary. In our early days, those key words had yet to be irrevocably linked with tourism. But looking back at our earlier books it s pretty clear that we realised from the start that making a connection to the places we visited was a vital part of the sage message we wanted our guidebooks to carry, right down to how they are produced. family holiday wales

Today, more than ever, we re utterly convinced of the incredible importance of travel. It s only through travelling, through meeting people that we begin to understand that we re all sharing this world. We are all coming along for the ride, despite the barriers which governments, religions and economic and political beliefs often seem to build up between us. holiday riding wales

With information on this website and in our books, we hope to inspire you to try a new, far more rewarding, way of travelling. So how do we make that ride not just a quick fairground twirl, but something that we can enjoy for our travelling lives and pass on to our children and future generations By changing our travel habits and thinking differently about how, where and why we travel. Responsible travel means assessing our impact on the environment and local cultures and economies - and acting to make that impact as positive as possible. We re including more information in our guidebooks and on this website on how you can personally travel more responsibly. adventure holiday wales

Responsible tourism has incredible potential to have a positive impact on some of our most pressing global issues: peace and poverty, not to mention the influence it can have on biodiversity conservation. As a company, we have committed to ensuring all our staff travel is carbon neutral by paying to offset the carbon emissions of our airline flights through the pro-environment projects of climate-care. holiday park south wales

Camel rides on beach at sunset

By 2020 it s estimated that 1.5 billion people will be travelling each year. It s not hard to understand how each one of us needs to consider our personal contribution (as Lonely Planet does) to sustaining the natural and cultural wonders of our planet so that future generations can enjoy the same life-changing adventures we have shared. cottage holiday wales

Today there s no way of avoiding the importance of travelling responsibly. With the information on this website and in our books, we hope to inspire you to try a new, far more rewarding, way of travelling. holiday in wales

Tony and Maureen Wheeler Founders, Lonely Planet Publications. holiday wales

Thorn Tree Making Pain-Free Books

Lonely Planet works hard to reduce waste in the production and distribution of our books. This means more than just sourcing environmentally friendly paper. Many of the steps we take may be invisible to the untrained eye but, as travel publishers, we realise the world is a fragile place and that environmentally responsible production is the only real option. We ve already put some really great initiatives in place, and we ll be continually looking for ways to improve, but so far, here s what we re doing: cottage holiday in wales

Reducing Excess Stock

• We have gotten smart with our forecasting, to ensure fewer copies are left over at the end of an edition s life. Some of those left-overs are donated to charities, although the time-sensitive nature of the information in our books means they are not that useful to schools and libraries. caravan holiday in wales

• Our detailed forecasting system and flexible printing schedule means Lonely Planet has a returns rate which is well below the industry average. camping holiday wales

• We have designed our global distribution system to minimise the number of times a book is moved. This has lowered the amount of carbon emissions involved in distributing Lonely Planet titles. accommodation holiday wales

Responsible Travel Home

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Using Smart Design

• Lonely Planet guidebooks use a standard series design (template) which minimises waste in book production. catering holiday self wales

• Paper is sourced in a format to meet this design, so waste associated with trimming standard stock sizes is reduced. holiday wales walking

• In order to reduce the weight of our titles and thus distribute them with less environmental impact, we use the thinnest paper possible. We rigorously edit and format our content to get the maximum amount of information on every page. family holiday wales

Responsible Travel Home

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Sourcing Kind Paper

• Lonely Planet is committed to using Ancient Forest Friendly Paper (AFF) that is 100% Forest Stewardship Council plantation timber approved. This means we use paper products that aren t produced from ancient forests. Overall approximately 80% of the paper we use is AFF paper. adventure holiday wales

• We work with suppliers to further improve the environmental credentials of our paper. We work with Greenpeace s Markets Initiative group to ensure: holiday park south wales

• The virgin fibre is produced from plantation forests which have Forest Stewardship Council accreditation. cottage holiday wales

• The paper process is a closed loop so that the environment around the mill is protected. holiday in wales

• The paper is whitened using chlorine-free bleaching techniques. holiday wales

Responsible Travel Home

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Keeping up labour standards with our suppliers

• Lonely Planet believes the people involved in producing our books should be well treated. We have signed documentation from all our major suppliers confirming their compliance with local, national and (where relevant) international laws relating to: caravan holiday in wales

• Minimum age requirements for full and part-time staff camping holiday wales

• Working hours, leave and redundancy entitlements accommodation holiday wales

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• Environmental protection and minimum wage and salary requirements (where relevant). catering holiday self wales

Vanessa Arrington has spent the last six years covering Latin America as a foreign correspondent with The Associated Press. She has lived in Bolivia, Colombia and, most recently, Cuba. She is currently taking a sabbatical from her career, travelling the world and exploring other interests. She relaxed in Cyprus after the Russia-Mongolia-China adventure, and is now doing volunteer work (and taking short showers) in India. holiday wales walking

• Trans-Siberian Railway

• What to Read on the Trans-Siberian Railroad

Lonely Planet Publications image gallery

: Explore Iceland Tiny town Olafsfjordur has a standoff with Ytrararfjall mountain (Graeme Cornwallis) From the Midnight Sun to the Northern Lights with some hot mud in between. family holiday wales

The country with the chilly name is rapidly becoming one of Europe s hottest destinations. Much of Iceland s popularity is due to its natural features, which include glaciers, hot springs, geysers, active volcanoes, portentous peaks and vast lava deserts. holiday riding wales

In addition to its expansive landscape, Iceland has a rich history and folklore tradition. However, this appeal is tempered by the most expensive prices in Europe. That doesn t mean it can t be visited on a shoestring, but it does mean that budget travellers will have to work a little harder. adventure holiday wales

Every year after 31 August, someone puts on the brakes and Icelandic tourism grinds slowly to a halt. Outside the capital, many hotels, hostels and camping grounds close; bus services are severely reduced or stop completely until May or June the following year; the interior highlands become inaccessible; and even the puffins fly off and the whales swim away. But Iceland s amazing scenery never shuts down. If you re prepared for short, dark days and icy weather, there are still plenty of bus tours from Reykjav k, and extra wintry delights to see, such as the ethereal Northern Lights. holiday park south wales

Bluelist

Check out what other travellers are saying about Iceland. Got a recommendation of your own Bluelist it If you want your list to be considered for the Iceland book, use the keyword highlight . From the pages of the Lonely Planet Bluelist book Emerging Countries From Lonely Planet Bluelist 05-06 blue star blue star half star grey star grey star cottage holiday wales

174 votes Bluelists by travellers Best Places to Get Lost (Temporarily, at least!) By: nboulos 27 Feb 06 blue star blue star blue star half star grey star 136 votes Dream adventures- An eco-charter must do list! By: UnderseaExplorer 11 Jan 06 blue star blue star blue star grey star grey star 128 votes World Senses - Touch holiday in wales

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• Digging out after Dean
• US Passports - Application Pending...
• Sake-philes Unite!
• Spark it up
• Burning Man heats up
• On the road all over again
• Whiteout in Black Rock City
• Burning Man - the second coming
• Burning Man Boot Camp
• On fire in Nevada

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Digging out after Dean

Posted Thursday, September 13, 2007, 11:23 PM by Lonely Planet Thank God, thank the Virgin of Guadalupe, thank whomever you wish, nobody died at the hands of Hurricane Dean... Now the hard part: rebuilding a town ripped to shreds. family holiday wales

At the height of the storm, much of Mahahual, a tourist town about 300 km south of Canc n, Mexico was underwater. The other coastal areas, including the tourist town of Xcalak, are fine. There s a bit of wind scour, but they are up and running and the beaches and reefs are still in good shape throughout the Costa Maya. holiday riding wales

Two inland ruins, Dzibanch and R o Bec, are temporarily closed. They should be opening up in the next week or so, according to authorities. The first person I came across in Mahahual (weeks after the storm) was Aura. She was selling Corona t-shirts near the beach. She used to have a great spot, just a block or two from the port that brought in up to three cruise ships a day. But now that port is underwater, and most people think it will be at least a year, maybe two, before it gets rebuilt. In short, the people of Mahahual, who depended on tourist traffic to stay alive, are royally screwed. adventure holiday wales

But Aura has set up her little t-shirt stand again, looking expectantly at the horizon for any ghost ships that might roll in and businesses remain optimistic, many expecting to reopen within a week or two. holiday park south wales

So now could be a good time to travel to Mahahual, buy a t-shirt, some conch stew, and look out over that great blue sea. Hurricane relief can be sent through www.playa.info. The Red Cross is not operating in Mahahual. - Greg Benchwick Labels: Breaking travel news, The Americas Join the Discussion: 0 comments cottage holiday wales

US Passports - Application Pending...

Posted Tuesday, September 11, 2007, 4:06 PM by Lonely Planet When I moved to California, I didn t know my junmai from my daiginjo. To me, sake was simply a warm contrast to my cold sushi, served in sweet little cups. Today, while not as educated about Japan s 1400 breweries or the world s countless sakes as I d like to be, I love all things sake. And until about a year ago, I was ignorantly happy with my delectably clean and dry Shiratake Junmai Ginjo, or some sweet, milky Nigori. holiday in wales

But then, last year the manager of my favorite Japanese restaurant asked if I was going to the upcoming Joy of Sake sake-tasting event. Not to be missed, she insisted. Oh, how right Gina-san was. The next night, I walked into the Moscone Center, was given a glass and a booklet of the sakes available for tasting, and was changed forever. Tables lined with bottle after bottle of sake - hundreds of them, each with a small dropper in a full sake cup for gathering a few precious drops into one s tasting glass. holiday wales

It was tremendous. I approached timidly. But once I learned that many of the sakes were not available in the USA, I knew what I had to do. I opened the brochure, tasted and took copious notes until I was thoroughly enlightened, and called a cab. cottage holiday in wales

This month the Joy of Sake event is on again. The largest sake-tasting event held outside of Japan provides a rare opportunity to sample award-winning sakes in peak condition. The three-city tour kicked off in Honolulu in August, and is coming to San Francisco and New York for only one night each. Over 300 sakes will be available for sampling (again, including over 100 not available in the United States), and some of the best restaurants in the Bay Area will be serving up sake appetizers to both complement the sake and to help imbibers maintain. caravan holiday in wales

So if you find yourself in San Francisco or New York and the time is right, experience the Joy of Sake. To quote Gina-san, it is not to be missed. The Joy of Sake San Francisco: 13 September 2007, Hilton San Francisco New York City: 27 September 2007, The Puck Building Tickets are $70-90. To order, visit the website or call 888-739-1007. camping holiday wales

Have you been at Burning Man this year or in the past Share your Burning Man experiences here. Labels: Burning Man, Festivals and events, Nevada, The Americas Join the Discussion: 1 comments accommodation holiday wales

Burning Man heats up

Posted Tuesday, September 04, 2007, 3:48 PM by Lonely Planet Last night, between visits to the festival s English, Irish and German pubs, I checked out some of the more interactive entertainment on offer. The best, apart from the roller disco of course, was a game called Dance Dance Immolation. holiday last minute wales

Labels: Burning Man, Nevada, The Americas Join the Discussion: 3 comments catering holiday self wales

On the road all over again

Posted Monday, September 03, 2007, 7:33 PM by Lonely Planet It is a sacred text to some, an old scroll that was made into a book that today is read all over the globe, the inspiration for countless pilgrimages, for quests for meaning, a way of life. holiday wales walking

So consider your refuse bin and imagine the future of housing. Beth Kohn is getting down and dirty in the Southwest States researching the USA guidebook. Flying saucers. Earthships... Wonder what the hell she ll do next Stay tuned. family holiday wales

54th Sydney Film Festival

Posted Wednesday, June 06, 2007, 9:39 PM by Lonely Planet From pulsating Latin American documentaries to slick Korean gangster pics, innovative Aussie flicks and broody Eastern European dramas the Sydney Film Festival s 2007 program promises the best in world cinema. Starting this Saturday Sydney-siders will pack their thermos, don their most interesting pair of glasses and head into the dark for 17 days of back to back movie-going. holiday riding wales

Our resident Lonely Planet film buff Ghita just back from Rotterdam Loebenstein says don t miss Red Road an exceptional and artfully constructed psychological thriller. She also gives props to Fresh Air, a charming Hungarian film about a stuffy mother-daughter relationship and Syndromes and a Century, an enchanting Thai film that twists itself ever so slightly into peculiar and almost mythical forms. For a bit of Icelandic action Children and Parents lends a minimalist lens to the intertwining relationships between a set of children and parents. adventure holiday wales

Music documentaries to look out for include The Dixie Chicks Shut Up and Sing which has had a great response wherever it has shown and the Oz hip hop flick Words From The City. Sydney Film Festival: 8-24 June 2007 Been to any festivals this year and have your own film recommendations Let us know. Labels: Asia and Pacific, Festivals and events holiday park south wales

Thai-ing up loose ends

Posted Tuesday, June 05, 2007, 5:21 PM by Lonely Planet I recently spent two-and-a-half-months traversing the length and breadth of Thailand while on assignment for Lonely Planet. Yes, it was one of the most unique experiences of my journalistic career. But here s a nasty surprise for all you aspiring guidebook writers out there: Vast stretches of my work week were often mind-numbingly dull. Nevertheless, I still managed to acquire a few priceless nuggets of international knowledge along the way, some of which you, dear reader, are about to become the lucky beneficiary. cottage holiday wales

1. Sex tourists are often good for a laugh

In the majority of Thailand s most infamous red-lights districts, such as Bangkok s Patpong, it s actually quite likely you ll encounter a greater number of camera-toting tourists than the Dirty Old Men of Southeast Asian lore. Interested in taking a disturbing go-go bar field trip you ll be able to dine out on back home If so, pay a visit to the popular-again Bangkok alley known as Soi Cowboy, or to its nearby neighbour, a building known as Nana Plaza. Both are located in Sukhumvit. holiday in wales

2. Osama bin Laden has been fully embraced by the free market

This one is weird. I first noticed the trend three years ago in Malaysia, where I saw a pre-teen boy in a day market wearing an Osama T-shirt. In Thailand, I spotted Osama masks, stickers, posters and banners. 3. The dark side of the Full Moon Party (and I m not talking about the overdoses) The legendary dance party, which takes place on Ko Pha-Ngan whenever the moon is full, has been a famed backpacker milestone for years. Yet travellers have lately been expiring during the FMP at a surprisingly rapid clip. In April, an Israeli tourist was stabbed to death during a bar fight. In early 2005, an overloaded Samui-bound speedboat capsized, leaving seven dead. And what s up with all those drunk people napping in the ocean ! Please, friends: Look alive out there, kay holiday wales

4. In Thailand, train travel is free

Okay, not really. But it s mighty close! I beg of you, Thailand-bound backpacker: Get off the VIP bus circuit at least once during your journey, head to the nearest train station, and go somewhere. Anywhere. Just like travelling in Thailand, the journey will be a ride you ll not soon forget. Dan Eldridge has just finished researching the Thailand chapter for Lonely Planet s Southeast Asia on a shoestring. He s now heading home for a nice cup of tea. cottage holiday in wales

Labels: Asia and Pacific caravan holiday in wales

Loving the alien

Posted Sunday, June 03, 2007, 5:18 PM by Lonely Planet Otherworldly aliens dwell among us, at least in Roswell s many souvenir shops. If you ve ever thrilled to The X-Files, the incident at Roswell, New Mexico is already filed away in your top secret memory banks. In 1947, as Cold War hysteria sent Americans into a tongue-tied tizzy, a mysterious object crashed at a nearby ranch. No one would have skipped any sleep over it, but the military made a big to-do of hushing it up, and for a lot of folks, that sealed it. The aliens had landed! camping holiday wales

International curiosity and local ingenuity have transformed the small city into a thriving extraterrestrial-wannabe zone. Downtown, bulbous white heads glow atop the street lamps, a fast-food chain takes the shape of a celestial spacecraft and the windows of the local music store have little space-dudes jamming on electric guitars. Inside the popular UFO Museum, pale elongated beings with huge eye sockets turn up everywhere. Aliens pop out of Christmas stockings in the gift shop and a huge silver-sequined flying saucer could be a back-up disco ball for the galactic in crowd. accommodation holiday wales

The crash heard round the world has even given the city a new logo- a spaceship with an outer space-friendly slogan: Visitors welcome. Beth Kohn is hovering through the Southwest States researching the USA guidebook. Alas, Beth didn t see any flying saucers, but stay tuned - next stop Earthship, Taos. holiday last minute wales

- Tom Hall, in London

Labels: Europe, London, Rail Travel Join the Discussion: 0 comments catering holiday self wales

Our man in the mountains will be missed

Posted Tuesday, July 24, 2007, 10:22 PM by Lonely Planet Lonely Planet author Clem Lindenmayer s body has been found after he went missing in the Gongga mountains in China, three months ago. holiday wales walking

Clem spent much of the last two decades exploring the world s mountainous regions and wild landscapes, from Switzerland to Tasmania and Patagonia. He felt a special affection for rugged beauty and although a real mountain man with a love of wilderness, flora, fauna and foreign languages, he came with the requisite hodge-podge of past jobs. After working as a dishwasher, telex operator, translator and assembler of exhibition stands, he eventually teamed up his passion for outdoor activities with research and writing for Lonely Planet. His experience walking and trekking saw him write and contribute to many Lonely Planet titles. family holiday wales

It was no surprise that Clem eventually made his way to, and fell in love with, China. Periods of lengthy travel were interspersed with courses in Asian Studies and Mandarin. Having previously crossed mountain passes and wild tracts on almost every continent, his intention to one day trek across the Transarctic Mountains in Antarctica was taken seriously. Unfortunately his curiosity came to its conclusion in the Gongga mountains - a rugged area in the West of Sichuan province, China. Clem had been missing for three months, the discovery of his body a terribly sad ending to a life filled with adventure and discovery. holiday riding wales

Clem will be missed by his wife, Romi, his family, as well as all the Lonely Planet staff who had the opportunity to work with him. adventure holiday wales

In 2001 Chile s Ministerio de Bienes Nacionales (Ministry of National Resources) officially remapped and marked the Dientes Circuit, applying names to features according to the simple principle of usage. Names that had been tentatively given to lakes and passes in previous editions of this guidebook (simply so that readers could identify them more easily) were taken up as official nomenclature. New names were given to a number of key features on the circuit that had remained nameless - from Paso Australia to Laguna Zeta - but Bienes Nacionales also added a Cerro Clem and Montes Lindenmayer. I swear I had nothing to do with it - fame just creeps up on you when you re least expecting it, I suppose. holiday park south wales

- Clem Monty Lindenmayer, p257 Trekking in the Patagonian Andes. Labels: Asia and Pacific, Inside Lonely Planet, Trekking Join the Discussion: 17 comments cottage holiday wales

Tour de France

Posted Monday, July 23, 2007, 8:55 AM by Lonely Planet This time it s for real. Today around 200 of the world s best professional cyclists tackled Stage 15 of the Tour de France, covering almost 200 km over five mountain passes through the Pyrenees, the hardest day of this famously tough three-week bike race. holiday in wales

This evening (Monday), I was glued to the TV, watching the Tour de France big boys do their stuff, as exactly one week ago I pedalled, puffed and panted over those same mountain roads. I was with a group of friends from Britain and about 7000 other cyclists from around the world. We were taking part in the Etape du Tour, a chance for non-professionals to get a taste of the real thing. And it was just a taste. Last week, most of the Etape riders took between 8 and 11 hours to cover the route, most stopping at least for a few minutes to refuel along the way. Today, the Tour riders did it in five and a half hours - non-stop of course - riding UP those 15% gradients that drag on for 20km or more, almost as fast as we came down them. And (to get technical for a moment) where we were using compact chainsets giving gears like 34 x 28, the tour riders seemed to cruise along in 38 x 23. And where we were exhausted at the end of our ride, the Tour de France teams do it again, day after day for three weeks. Respect. Utter respect. Or, as they say in France, chapeau . holiday wales

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