Cycling for Softies is a luxury tour operator providing gourmet cycling holidays in the wine regions of Europe. In the world of pedalling, there are all sorts of cyclists. Long-distance lovers. Speedy riders. Everyday cyclists searching for new ascents. And then there are those who love to simply meander at their own pace, enjoying leisurely riding and authentic lunch stops. Local wine sampling and gourmet dining. Those who cherish the downtime as much as the cycling itself. That’s why we created our holidays – slow tourism that immerses you in the region as well as being softer on the planet.
At Cycling for Softies experiencing the natural beauty of a region is one of the main components of our holidays. Climate change threatens to throw nature out of balance, which is why we have embarked on our carbon labelling project. By identifying the carbon we emit, we can understand and see clearly what needs to change to protect the environments we love. Partnering with ecollective, we’ve undergone carbon scoring on our own tours. Cycling is inherently a sustainable mode of transport, and our goal is to ensure all aspects of our cycle tours are sustainable. Read on to learn how we set about labelling our carbon emissions and our plans for the future.
Why We’ve Measured Our Carbon Footprint
We believe our clients deserve to know the impact their holiday has on the environment. That’s why we’ve measured the carbon emissions of our company, and why we’ve shared the total carbon footprint of each of our cycling holidays. On our tour pages, you’ll see a green number which shows the carbon footprint of that holiday. Almost everything has a carbon footprint, and we want to be transparent about ours.
How We Can Play Our Part
Measuring our carbon footprint and committing to reducing it is the most significant action we can take to reduce our environmental impact. We believe our tours are inherently green, and more sustainable than other types of holidays, however they still have an impact on the planet. This message is to tell you that each year, we are working to make sure each of our products has a smaller carbon footprint.
What The Numbers Mean
Thanks to ecollective, we know the average carbon footprint of a Softies holiday is 18kg CO₂e a day, or 126kg CO₂e a week. CO₂e means carbon dioxide equivalent, effectively lumping all greenhouse gases together to view emissions as a whole. On its own, 18kg doesn’t mean much, so here are a few examples for context. A week sailing in Croatia emits 735kg CO₂e, the equivalent of 6 Softies holidays. 18kg of CO₂e is the same amount of carbon as it takes to ship 11 avocados from South America. To have the equivalent carbon footprint as a flight from London to New York, you’d have to go on 27 Softies holidays.
Our Sustainability So Far
The average UK citizen has a daily carbon footprint of between 16 and 35kg of CO₂e, although this number varies widely depending on behaviour and time of year. From this, we can say that our holidays often promote a greener activity than staying at home. So many of our clients already opt for train travel instead of flights, and once they reach the region, they rely solely on pedal power.
Firstly, our head office runs exclusively on renewable energy, not to mention the cycle-to-work scheme we promote. This encourages our employees to commute on their bikes and reduces the environmental impact commuting has. Secondly, the businesses we work with are local and independent, valuing sustainability and ethical practices.
France in particular is known for its hotels and restaurants running on clean or renewable energy. All of our clients are encouraged to shop locally on our tours when possible, supporting small businesses and farmers markets. This helps support the local community and also reduces the food miles that supermarket products carry.
Importantly, we’re also proud supporters of various charities dedicated to sustainability. Mossy Earth is a fantastic organisation which focuses on reforesting and rewilding the natural world. Helping to offset our carbon footprint, we contribute to several of their projects, with the largest being the protection of the Southern Carpathian wilderness. World Bicycle Relief is a charity that provides sturdy Buffalo Bikes to communities across the world, providing mobility and empowerment to people. These bikes help conquer the challenge of distance, allowing children to attend schools, farmers to go to market, and security to many who make long journeys every day. In 2024, Cycling for Softies raised £9,200, funding 76 bicycles which will change the lives of over 380 people.
We’re proud to have received the Green Tourism Silver Award, recognising the sustainability that lies at the heart of our cycle tours. We will be evaluating what steps we can take next on our journey to becoming even more sustainable. Our next port of call is to review switching our vehicles in our destinations to electric vehicles. This is just one of the ways in which we are looking to reduce our impact on the environment, making our cycling holidays even more sustainable.
Looking Ahead
We’re just at the start of this journey and are excited to see what we can achieve over the coming years. We know that even making small tweaks will add up to make all the difference. We’ll keep you updated and would love for you to follow us on this journey.
