Norway ecotourism: Responsible travel

Norway Ecotourism: Responsible travel

At Norway Adventures, we’re passionate about preserving both Norway’s wilderness and cultural treasures. Our core mission to offer unique tours off the beaten track reflects our commitment to sustainable travel.

We’ll immerse you in the beauty of Norwegian nature, all while showing the best practices in ecotourism. By the end of your trip, we hope you’ll feel more connected to the natural world and inspired to help preserve it.

In 2022, after almost 18 years of sustainable and responsible travel practice, we officially became Eco-Lighthouse certified. We did this by documenting our company’s energy emissions, waste management, transport, third party vendors, and with our climate action plan. We stayed committed to improving, and in February 2025, we got re-certified.

Sustainable travel isn’t just about saving energy. It’s also about supporting nature and local culture. We’re deeply connected to the communities we visit, and on our tours you’ll get to taste local slow food, hear fascinating stories about the area and meet the people behind family-run farms.

You’ll stay in hotels and dine in restaurants run by locals, learning about their traditions, history, and daily lives – all while experiencing the region in an authentic, personal way.

Responsible travel Norway: Reducing overtourism

When large tour companies repeatedly highlight the same popular sites and routes, those locations can become overcrowded. This threatens nature and local communities by straining infrastructure and causing extra wear and tear on historic sites.

We take a two-pronged approach to designing ecotourism itineraries. First, we use our local knowledge to guide you to unique, off the beaten path destinations that remain largely undiscovered. At the same time, we recommend sustainable ways to experience the well-known highlights. For example, in Geiranger, rather than joining overcrowded excursions, we might suggest a public ferry ride through the fjord.

Our goal is to preserve the natural heritage of local communities while giving our guests a richer, more authentic experience. Why stand in line for a photo when you could wander through untouched landscapes for hours, meeting locals along the way and enjoying breathtaking views in peace?

Norway Adventures is a proud member of the Adventure Travel Conservation Fund

We are a member of the Adventure Travel Conservation Fund (ATCF), which means that we actively and financially support conservation efforts in several places across the world – not just Norway. We’re proud members of the fund. It’s our way of continuously giving back to the one thing we love dearly: nature.

We help fund initiatives focused on sustainability, habitat restoration, and wildlife and community protection. ATCF supports diverse projects, from rainforest preservation in Central America to wildlife conservation in Africa. Together with ACTF, we believe that travelers and the travel world in general have the power to protect and conserve.

Norway sustainable tourism: Conserving biodiversity and cultural heritage

In Norway, sustainable tourism and conservation go hand in hand. By featuring off the beaten track destinations, our tours help reduce the strain on overcrowded sites, protecting local plants, animals and Norway’s wilderness.

As a local company with staff living and working in the fjords, we build strong relationships with local providers, restaurants and innkeepers. When you travel with us, you support the local economy, helping communities preserve their culture, traditions and historic sites. At the same time, this approach increases the value of these resources in a way that’s far more sustainable than more destructive land-use practices.

Norway Ecotourism: Destination Stewardship and Leave No Trace

On back-country trips, we practice the seven principles of Leave No Trace. These principles are applied around trip planning, site selection, waste management and respect for natural resources. You’ll often see our guides gathering any trash they see along our hiking routes, “packing out” all our trash (including toilet paper!) from the campground. We even scatter logs and fluff pine needles after we break camp, so we leave the wilderness sites just as pristine as we found them. As they say, we “take only photographs, and leave only footprints.”

We love to build in time for groups to do small beach clean up projects as part of our tours. Please let us know if this is something you’re interested in.

Norway Ecotourism: Norway Sustainable Tourism Practices

As a part of our Eco-lighthouse certification, we pride ourselves on sustainable practices in our daily operations.

• We take good care of our equipment and choose to repair it whenever possible, rather than buying new.
• When choosing partners and suppliers, we prioritize eco-certification. Many of our recommended accommodations, activities, and restaurants are Norway ecotourism-certified or have another sustainability certification.
• We minimize driving for our guests by recommending driving routes that are scenic but efficient. Also, we provide options for public transportation, when available.
• We encourage our guests to reduce the carbon footprint of their air transportation by buying carbon offsets.
• When planning and packing for our trips, we do our best to reduce packaging and waste. Norway has one of the most efficient recycling plans in the world, recycling 97% of all plastic bottles. Many guests say they’re inspired to see how rigorously we clean and sort recycling.