Traveling Green in Switzerland—5 Must-Dos

1) Walk on the Wanderweg 
With more than 30,000 miles! of marked walking trails, Switzerland is supreme for travelers who like to tour on foot and take in the local beauty
2) Partake in a Thermal "Bad"
Hot mineral springs are numerous throughout Switzerland. Enjoy the healing waters while soaking in the indoor and outdoor baths.
3) Use Public Transportation
Take advantage of Switzerland's efficient and prolific public transport—trains, buses and gondolas abound— no excuse for not traveling green in Switzerland.
4) Eat Organic Food
Biodynamic and organic farms are plentiful in Switzerland. Visit farms and vineyards directly or purchase products at farmer's markets and health food stores. And don't forget the chocolate!
5) Explore Natural Health
You will find copious natural and alternative health care in the hills and valleys of Switzerland. Ayurveda, anthroposophy, massage, naturopathy, homeopathy, herbs and more.

Green Earth Guide Calendars with Full-color Photos

New, just in time for the holidays!
Now you can explore the Green Earth Guide sites from your own home with full-color photo calendars—companions to the award-winning Green Earth Guide: Traveling Naturally Guidebook series.
Six different calendars are available:
(see calendar cover photos at left)
Ireland
Italy
France
Spain
Switzerland
Vermont Organic
To conveniently order online see the Google Checkout box on the right side of the blog. Calendars are $ 14.95 each plus $ 5.00 s/h. If you are ordering multiple calendars, the shipping costs are $5.00 up to three calendars. Over 3, please add an additional $1.50 per calendar.

COMING Next Week! Green Earth Guide: Traveling Naturally in Switzerland

The newest in the Green Earth Guide series will be published within the week! Buy it early and often!

Green Earth Guide: Traveling Naturally in Switzerland is written for the twenty-first-century traveler with a conscience. The Swiss Guide is the third in the award-winning Green Earth Guides series to Western Europe.

As in the Green Earth Guides to France and Spain, author Dorian Yates covers where to eat, sleep, shop, relax, do yoga, and sightsee in Switzerland with a focus on local and organic foods, public transport, low-carbon recreation, alternative health services, organic vineyards, and ecological businesses. Written in a friendly, accessible style with personal anecdotes, how-to travel tips, and practical information, Yates helps travelers leave a small footprint wherever they venture in Switzerland.

Green Earth Guide: Traveling Naturally in Switzerland is available in print and Kindle editions.

Green Earth Guides also offer information about traveling green in general and covers how to offset the carbon emissions of your transatlantic flight. Green Earth Guide has informational maps and includes black and white photographs of some of Switzerland’s green highlights.

If you are conflicted about the greenhouse effect of your flight, prefer herbs and vitamins to pharmaceutical drugs, would rather eat local and organic foods, want to practice yoga on your trip, and hope to find cheap bicycle rentals, this is the guidebook for you. 

Fans of the Green Earth Travel Guides include:

Winner Best Guidebooks—Treehugger Best of Green Awards 2010

Nell Newman, President of Newman’s Own Organic, “Green Earth Guide is a must-have for food lovers and supporters of organic agriculture.”

Van Jones, author of The Green Economy, “... Green Earth Guide is full of invaluable resources about how to travel on any budget with an eco-conscience....”

The Carbon Fund says, “If you have an appetite for travel, a modest budget, and a carbon-conscious heart—look no further. Green Earth Guide .......is your perfect travel companion.”

Other books in the Green Earth Guide series:
Green Earth Guide: Traveling Naturally in France
Green Earth Guide: Traveling Naturally in Spain


GREEN EARTH GUIDE: TRAVELING NATURALLY IN SWITZERLAND
by Dorian Yates • ISBN-13: 978-1-45632-363-9
• Price: $15.95 • Pages: 220 pages, paperback, 6x9
AND Kindle Edition
• Pub Date: November 22, 2010

BYO(E)B to Paris: That is Bring Your Own Empty! Bottle to Use at the New Water Fountain in Paris

In an effort to curb the obscene amount of plastic bottles generated from bottled water consumption, Paris’s public water company, Eau de Paris, has introduced an experimental water fountain gushing with the bubbly - not champagne - but sparkling water, or “Eau gazeuse”. Before you get too excited dreaming about free-flowing Perrier, note that this is public tap water with carbon dioxide added. Fair enough, as that is how most seltzers and club sodas are made. The Paris water supply comes from both groundwater and river sources which are then filtered and processed producing clean water.

This is wonderful for the environment as the French are known for their high consumption of  bottled water. Part of Paris’s Climate Action Plan drafted in 2007 is to increase tap water use and decrease bottled water use. Critical, as the water utility estimates that somewhere in the order of 500,000 cubic feet of plastic water bottle trash is generated in the city every year.

Paris has over 950 public water fountains around the city. The new fizzy water fountain is in the Reuilly Garden (Jardin de Reuilly) in the 12th arrondissement out by the Bercy,  Austerlitz and Lyon train stations. Situated on the site of a former freight train station, the park is now home to a variety of plants including roses, bamboo, heathers, as well as playing fields, a central lawn covering over an acre, and a reflecting pool. The new water fountains have six taps offering both bubbly and plain water - avec and sans gaz.

If you find yourself in Paris, walk or catch a Metro to the Jardin de Reuilly to sample the new fountains, but make sure you bring your own bottle, or two. The closest metro stops to Jardin de Reuilly are Montgallet and Dugommier.