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The Alternative Consumer
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The Alternative Consumer provides product reviews, green news and info to the next wave of smart consumers - fresh thinkers who consciously style their lives with their health and the health of the Earth in the forefront of their mind; chic, savvy shopper
Recent Posts Tagged With 'eco travel'
California Camping the Eco Way
Near the interior of California’s mid-region, among the Giant Sequoia trees—some of the largest on Earth—that made it famous, is tucked Sequoia National Park. Established as the second national park in the U.S. in 1890, the mentality here is ...
WWOOFing
It’s a bright, cool morning in the valley between Portela de Unhais and Pamphilosa da Serra when the barking of eight dogs wakes us up. The windmills perched on the ridges above have been spinning since around six, pumping energy down into the va...
Hand Powered Portable Washing Machine
This hand powered portable washing machine is an extremely eco-friendly product providing a cheaper alternative to hotel laundry service if you travel and can’t find a green hotel, enjoy camping or need a break from trekking to the laundromat o...
a new electric scooter hits the pavement
Well, it’s not a Segway. In fact, it doesn’t even look as cool as a Segway (my vote is not to opt for the detachable front basket, despite its practicality). But it’s new—and it’s about five times cheaper—than the original “ultimate” ...
bearing the burden: 4 wildlife-focused tours for fall
There’s something strangely intriguing (and respectfully frightening) when in close proximity to a bear—one of nature’s most mesmerizing mammals. From a distance, they appear soft and slow, but up close, the reality of their strength and strate...
land’s end intros eco-friendly backpacks
Land’s End is making your next hike, bus trip back to school, or monthly jaunt to Vermont a little greener with their introduction of a new line of eco-friendly bags, backpacks, lunch packs and totes. The new line is made of recycled plastic ...
mixing vision and voluntourism @ machu picchu
A trip to Machu Picchu, the stone-stacked “Lost City of the Incas” that towers 8,000 feet above sea level in Peru, is an once-in-a-lifetime experience within itself. A 13-day tour that traverses Lima to Cuzco (with plenty of archeological site v...
making a clean break
This month, dig around your local bookshop for the newest in green getaway roundups, “Clean Breaks,” just published by the ever-inspiring Rough Guides. Defined as “an inspirational vacation that benefits you, local communities, and the planet,...
Cacao Pearl - a luxury eco resort that gives back
This week, a surprising eco endeavor was announced in the travel arena: the world’s first non-profit, green resort community, which will be built on a 124-acre private island on the northern tip of the Palawan Biosphere Reserve in the Philippin...
Canadian Rockies cook up greener transportation
Across the nation, 22 Fairmont Hotels & Resorts – like The Fairmont Chateau Lake Louise in the Canadian Rockies – are heating things up in the kitchen. Planted against a backdrop of towering firs and turquoise waters, the chateau offers an i...
guilty pleasures - spa getaways
Inspired by the need for a real vacation, I uncovered a few fantastic places that I’d like to share with you. For me, there’s nothing better than healthy spa treatments for relaxation and rejuvenation, when experienced in an exotic locat...
discover the forest - Where the Other You Lives
The USDA Forest Service has created an interactive Website and a series of PSA’s intended to inspire tweens (kids 8-12) to re-connect with nature by getting out from in front of the tv and game console and experiencing our national parks and ou...
San Diego welcomes its first LEED certified hotel
An undeniable mix of West Coast calm and night life buzz, San Diego is a destination that’s worth the trip. And luckily, it just became even more desirable, thanks to the certification of the city’s first LEED-certified hotel, the Hotel Indigo Sa...
dust in the wind - to what end?
Are off road vehicles and the use of deserts as playpens really worth the environmental impact? Aside from disturbing the natural habitats of wildlife and contributing to erosion and noise pollution… Siting research from the University of Ut...
biodegrade thyself - eco burial tips
Looking for a green cemetery? Eco friendly casket? Green burial? Don’t want to spend 25K on a gold plated body bucket like Michael Jackson’s (above)? Like it or not, one day, we’ll all be dead and gone. Not to sound morbid, ...
