Have you ever wondered how luxury travel can mean responsible travel? Welcome to a Luxury Gold journey. Through our MAKE TRAVEL MATTER® Experiences, with your Luxury Gold journey you can make a positive impact on the planet, its people and wildlife, and the communities you visit.

Our MAKE TRAVEL MATTER® Experiences were developed in 2020, in consultation with travel industry experts and set within the framework of the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (UN SDGs) In our How We Tread Right sustainability strategy we set out the goal of including at least one of these experiences on 50% of Luxury Gold journeys by 2025.

We’re pleased to say that we are way ahead of target, with these exclusive immersive experiences now available on 100% of Luxury Gold itineraries, as detailed in our latest Impact Report. We’ve put together a selection of our MAKE TRAVEL MATTER® Experiences to show you want we are talking about.

Enjoy MAKE TRAVEL MATTER® history with Marta in Italy

When you meet Marta, a fourth-generation weaver preserving this ancient craft in Umbria Italy, you’ll be amazed at her dedication and passion. You’ll also be enjoying one of the first ever MAKE TRAVEL MATTER®Experiences that came into existence for The Travel Corporations family of brands. With meaningful experiences always part of the offer, guests enjoyed meeting Marta so much it was an inspiration behind formalizing the experiences.

A recipient of a TreadRight Foundation grant, Marta’s workshop, the Laboratorio Giuditta Brozzetti, specializes in the medieval Umbrian tradition of loom-weaving. Your visit here supports UN SDGs 5 & 11 – Gender Equality and Sustainable Cities & Communities. The workshop, a highlight of our Ultimate Italy Luxury Gold journey, also actively empowers women and girls through its education and training programs. Through their safeguarding of the unique patterns they’re contributing to the protection of Umbria’s cultural heritage.

Discover the journey: Ultimate Italy

Read more: How We’re Setting the Gold Standard for Sustainable Luxury Travel

Discover a world of sustainable dining at Sweden’s Fotografiskia Restaurant

Phot credit: @fotografiska.food on Instagram

Some MAKE TRAVEL MATTER® Experiences are simply delicious – pair fine dining with helping the planet and what’s not to love.

At the Fotografiska Museum Restaurant in Stockholm, Sweden, savor a delectable and innovative dinner crafted with sustainability in mind. In fact, this establishment holds the prestigious Michelin Sustainability Emblem. Every step of the culinary process is carefully thought out with sustainability in mind, and even the aprons have a part to play – made from an absorbent cotton fabric, when heated they release the CO2 back for use in the bistro’s hydroponic plant garden. Through this dining experience Fotografiska aims to encourage a more mindful and eco-friendly world. Prepare to be dazzled, while also doing your part – this experience supports UN SDG 12 – Responsible Consumption & Production.

Try this on: Timeless Scandinavia

Read more: Alternative dining and CO2 absorbing aprons: welcome to Fotografiska

Save the Kiwi in New Zealand

Get up close and personal with wildlife as you go behind the scenes at a Kiwi hatchery in Rotorua. Meet the National bird of New Zealand, hear why its endangered and see first-hand the efforts to restore the population. The hatchery has expanded to become the world’s biggest and most effective facility for hatching kiwis. By successfully incubating and hatching brown kiwi eggs, it has significantly contributed to the North Island kiwi population. In support of UN SDG 15 – Life on Land, this MAKE TRAVEL MATTER® Experience helps to fund the Hatchery and directly contribute to kiwi conservation.

Discover this on: The Long White Cloud

Bookmark for later: This New Zealand Forest Retreat Combines 5-Star Luxury with Sustainability

Reveal nature’s glitz in St Moritz, Switzerland

A highlight of the Swiss Alps, St. Moritz is renowned as a playground for the rich and famous, with its opulent ski resorts, upscale shopping and gourmet dining. This Alpine paradise offers a sophisticated blend of breathtaking natural beauty and high-end amenities, making it a premier destination for those seeking an exclusive and indulgent escape.

Guests on a Luxury Gold journey have the opportunity to step away from the glitz and glamor whilst in Switzerland. Meet a local nature guide and choose between a hike or a conservation talk to learn the work they do in raising awareness and preserving the natural environment, in this most picturesque of landscapes. This experience supports UN SDG 15 – Life on Land.

Take the tour: Majestic Switzerland

You may also enjoy reading: Dine, Sleep, Do: How to spend a chic 24 hours in St. Moritz

Embrace South Africa’s past and future

From the iconic Table Mountain in Cape Town to wildlife-rich Kruger National Park, South Africa boasts stunning landscapes, vibrant cultures, sensational cuisine and a complex history. To get deep into the country’s fascinating past, and meet its future, guests will enjoy a visit to the Amy Foundation, during their visit to Robben Island.

On this MAKE TRAVEL MATTER® Experience you’ll see how the lives of vulnerable young people are being transformed through a variety of empowering programmes. This experience furthers UN SDGs 4 & 10 – Quality Education & Reduced Inequalities, both through its actions, and through eduction and awareness.

For unforgettable dinner table conversation, you’ll also join Christo Brand, a former prison guard of Nelson Mandela, for lunch at the Amy Foundation. A global icon of peace and equality, Nelson Mandela dedicated his life to fighting against apartheid in South Africa, and few knew him better than Christo.

 Discover this on: Spectacular South Africa

 Read about this special relationship in depth: Meet Christo Brand, former prison guard to Nelson Mandela

Sip French wine, in harmony with nature

Photo credit: @chateaulacoste on Instagram

Described as a ‘futuristic wine producer,’ a visit to Château La Coste in Puy-Sainte-Réparade, France will tantalize more than just the taste buds. In 2009, the wines of Château La Coste were labeled “Organic Agriculture”, a label which recognizes respect for the land as well as the methods, in perfect harmony with nature. The estate is also a showcase for the most fascinating sculptures and modern art installations.

On this MAKE TRAVEL MATTER® Experience you’ll sample the estate’s organic wines, learn all about their viticulture and visit their one-of-a-kind contemporary wine cellar. Your tasting experience supports SDG 12: Responsible Consumption and Production.

Take a sustainable sip on: Ultimate Southern France

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Join the Warrior Women in Canada

Jasper National Park in the Canadian Rockies is a pristine wilderness paradise renowned for its majestic glaciers, turquoise lakes and abundant wildlife. Here you will meet the First Nations Warrior Women, to discover the history of the lands since time immemorial.

Share an evening by the fireside on this exceptional Luxury Gold journey. Over a home cooked barbecue dinner share in storytelling, drumming and songs and immerse yourselves in Indigenous culture. The experience addresses SDG: 10 by reducing inequalities for minorities or underrepresented people.

Meet the Warrior Women on: Majesty of the Rockies

For an in depth read: Uncovering Indigenous history with Canada’s Warrior Women

Enjoy the flutter of wings at Parque das Aves in Brazil

Photo credit: @parque_das_aves on Instagram

Nearby the thundering Iguassu Falls on the Brazilian side, we invite you to join a MAKE TRAVEL MATTER® Experience at the colorful Parque das Aves or Bird Park. An integrated conservation center for birds of the Atlantic Forest and is home to 120 species of birds, including hummingbirds, hawks, toucans and parrots. Through your visit you are contributing to supporting the future of these species, and enhancing UN SDG 15 – Life on Land.

See the birds for yourself: Classic South America

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Our Impact Report at a glance

Protecting our planet, its people and wildlife has always been at the heart of our journeys. And we’ve made some big commitments as part of our 5-year sustainability strategy How We Tread Right, across climate action, sustainable food production, responsible consumption, diversity, equity and inclusion, and animal welfare.

Today we’ve released our third annual Impact Report, so you can see how we’re progressing against our goals and how we are making a difference. Here’s some of our progress at a glance:

Goal 1 – Achieve Net Zero by 2050: Invested $1,880,553 from our Carbon Fund in 13 decarbonization projects and said ‘no to more stuff’ – replacing branded merchandise with donations to nature-based solutions – preventing 6.5 million car-driven miles worth of carbon emissions from entering the atmosphere annually.

Goal 4 – Increase use of local and organic products in our supply chain by 2025: Offered one local dining experience on 100% of our itineraries, where key ingredients are sourced within a 30–50-mile radius.

Goal 6 – Eliminate as many unnecessary single-use plastics from our operations and itineraries: Removed all single-use plastics related to Covid-19 measures from our operations + worked with supplies to utilise water tanks to refill reusable water bottles.

Goal 7 – Include at least one MAKE TRAVEL MATTER® Experience on 50% of our itineraries by 2025: We have at least one MAKE TRAVEL MATTER® Experience on 100% of itineraries, with 36 in total across the collection.

Goal 10 – Complete 30,000 volunteer hours by 2025: Our teams completed 10,862 volunteer hours in 2023 – helping us reach 83% of our goal.

Food is not just about great taste and nutrition. It can also tell a story of history and heritage in the most vibrant, flavorsome and captivating way. You’ll discover this and more when you dine at Salmon n’ Bannock, the only Indigenous-owned and operated restaurant in Vancouver.

Coming together at the gathering place created by proud Nuxalk Nation’s member Inez Cook, you’ll savor traditional and authentic Indigenous foods and flavors, passed down by elders. As the founder and owner of Salmon n’ Bannock, and the author of children’s book ” The Sixties Scoop”, Inez Cook is an incredible educator and an advocate for Indigenous people in Canada. This is her story…

Dine at Salmon n’ Bannock, a MAKE TRAVEL MATTER® Experience, on: Majesty of the Rockies

The story of Inez Cook

Inez Cook was born in Bella Coola B.C., a proud member of the Nuxalk Nation, one of the first Nations of Canada. When she was just one year old, she was forcibly taken from her mother by the Canadian Government and given to a white family to raise in Vancouver. 

Cook was one of an estimated 20,000 Indigenous children stolen under the Sixties Scoop, a government policy of cultural assimilation and systematic erasure beginning in the 1950s and lasting until the 1990s. There were also cases of child welfare services selling Indigenous children for tens of thousands of dollars to white adoptive parents across Canada. To this day, the true number of victims remains unknown as many forced adoption records were destroyed or disappeared. 

While Cook says she is one of the lucky ones who had a loving adoptive family, she said she always felt out of place and had no information about her biological family while growing up. She knew she was adopted but did not know she was born Nuxalk, or that she was stolen from her parents in Bella Coola. 

You may also be interested to read: Uncovering Indigenous history with Canada’s Warrior Women

The inspiration behind Salmon n’ Bannock

As Cook grew into adulthood, she felt a strong yearning to learn about her Indigenous heritage. Food became the major catalyst for her reconnection with the Nuxalk Nation. As she worked in different food industry jobs over the years, she realised there were no Indigenous restaurants in the whole of Vancouver, and dreamed of opening her own restaurant. 

One day, Cook drove past the sign of Indigenous-owned Kekuli Cafe in Kelowna that read “Don’t panic…We have bannock!” (traditional Indigenous bread). That sign inspired her to make the decision then and there to open a restaurant that would pay homage to her Indigneous heritage. 

Cook wanted to create a space that represents Indigenous foods, traditions, and culture with pride. She wanted to build a gathering place where people could come together to share food and stories. In 2010, Cook achieved this dream, opening her restaurant, Salmon n’ Bannock. 

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The Salmon n’ Bannock menu

After months of research and learning about First Nation cooking techniques and native ingredients, Cook built a remarkable menu. She wanted the restaurant to showcase traditional methods like smoking and preserving food. She also wanted to use Indigenous foods and dishes that First Nations people traditionally hunted and harvested. Her menu includes foods like bannock, bison, wild sockeye salmon, game meats, maple syrup, wild boar, and Ojibway wild rice. Cook would use seasonal and foraged ingredients and even bought wild huckleberries from a First Nations elder who carried a gun in case he needed to scare off bears while foraging.

Cook says she learns more about Indigenous dishes and foods every day at Salmon n’ Bannock and that the restaurant does not represent any one First Nation. Instead, it’s a thoughtful and authentic menu of Indigenous food. It’s also a celebration of Cook’s heritage and identity – a proud Native woman. 

A must read for food lovers: Mind the culture gap: The chefs who make worlds collide through food

Indigenous dishes with modern influences

Cook then took the traditional ingredients and dreamed up modern twists. Take pemmican, an important Indigenous food, traditionally made with dried meat and berries. Cook has revived this dish by making a delicious, rich Pemmican Mouse. It’s made with smoked and dried bison mixed with sage-blueberries and cream cheese, and paired with their perfectly toasted bannock.

She also transformed wild sockeye salmon into the Urban Salmon Burger, served with signature bannock, lemon aioli and house made pickles. Salmon is spiritually significant for many Indigenous people as it represents the Circle of Life in the way it is born in freshwater, lives in saltwater, then returns to freshwater to spawn and die. Cook marinades and smokes the fish using dry white sage, a sacred herb used in smudging practices in important ceremonies. Freshly baked bannock bread is then symbolically split in two to form the bun for the salmon. The breaking of the bannock shows that everyone is welcome at the table here. 

You may also enjoy reading: Why journeying through the Rocky Mountains will stay with you for a lifetime

The beauty of Bannock

Bannock, which plays a starring role in this aptly-named restaurant, is a traditional Indigenous food with a complex history entwined with colonialism. Scottish fur traders first introduced a version of bannock to Canada, however, Indigenous peoples adopted bannock and it’s made differently all over the country. Bannock plays an important role in Indigenous cultures and is an essential dish at potlatches, a traditional ceremony and feast for First Nations communities. 

In British Columbia, bannock is known as the “Aboriginal staff of life” and cultural knowledge and stories are often shared over a basket of bannock. It’s a cultural tradition and a staple comfort food made in many different ways. At its most simple, it’s a mix of flour, water, baking powder and salt, and it can be fried, baked, or cooked on an open fire. It can be pillowy soft and deliciously crumbly. 

Cook has her own fond memories of bannock. She used to make it at summer camp as a child, cooked over the fire and drizzled in corn syrup. Today, Cook’s signature bannock embraces the diversity of this dish. She serves it scone-like with butter and berry jam and as crackers with salmon mousse. She whips it into a bun for a wild samon burger, and as bread topped with mushrooms, melted brie, sage-blueberries and bison gravy. Cook says that Indigenous people all made some kind of bread, pre-colonialism, and today she makes bannock to reclaim this Indigenous dish. She wants her food to be seen as a proud declaration of Indigenous food and culture.  

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How the restaurant helped Inez Cook find her family

First Nations totem poles stand tall in Vancouver’s Stanley Park

As more First Nations members began visiting the restaurant to try out the food for themselves, Cook was questioned by Nuxalk peoples on her authenticity. After sharing her biological mother’s name – Miriam – with a Nuxalk woman, Cook’s uncle soon showed up. He told Cook he’d been looking for her for a while and had promised her mother Miriam he would find her one day. 

Sadly, Cook’s mother had passed away before she could meet her, however, Cook’s uncle gave her restaurant a Nuxalk blessing and invited her to her community for an emotional three-day potlatch. There she reunited with her Nuxalk Nation and was able to meet hundreds of relatives. She also received her regalia and traditional Nuxalk name, Snitsmana, which means “protector of the sacred dance, and lively”. Through this experience, Cook was able to learn about the culture and traditions of the Nuxalk. She felt she could embrace her Indigenous roots, all while gaining a sense of belonging and new understanding about herself. 

You may also enjoy: How We’re Setting the Gold Standard for Sustainable Luxury Travel

Educating through food

The Inukshuk statue in Vancouver’s English Bay. This symbol was used by the Inuit people to mark the location of essential resources, such as hunting grounds.

Over the last 12 years, Salmon n’ Bannock has remained Vancouver’s only Indigenous-owned and operated restaurant. It’s one of the best establishment’s on the city’s dining scene, and exclusively hires Indigenous and First Nations staff. Her team includes members of Nuxalk, Carrier Sekani, Cree, Haida, Long Plain, Muskoday, Ojibway, Pinaymootang, Squamish, Tsimshian, and  Quw’utsun Nations and Indigenous groups, along with a Maori employee from New Zealand.

Cook also uses the restaurant to educate and advocate through food. In 2018, she and Jason Eaglespeaker published “The Sixties Scoop”, a children’s book that shares the truth about Canada’s genocide. Cook says she never learned about this at school when she was growing up and believes the best way to educate future generations is by teaching children. 

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Indigenous food sovereignty

Cook says we still have a long way to go in fighting misinformation and achieving food sovereignty for Indigenous communities. She says that some foods, like wild game, still have to go through several strict regulations before they can be served. With over 600 Indigenous nations across Canada, she says it’s absurd that Indigenous people are not allowed to serve their traditional food. Cook says there needs to be commercially approved kitchens in all Indigenous communities so health inspectors will approve them of serving these foods. 

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Indigenous land acknowledgements

Cook also campaigns for airlines to include a proper land acknowledgement in their pre-touchdown announcements when arriving into Canada. She also wants the “Welcome to Vancouver” sign to include the recognition that the city is set on the unceded territory of the Coast Salish Peoples. They were the original inhabitants for 9,000 years before the Europeans landed here, and they never ceded or signed away their land. Cook says that land acknowledgement is a small but significant step towards showing respect for Indigenous people and righting past wrongs. 

Read more about Canada: The Most Beautiful National Parks in Western Canada

Breaking bannock – the spirit of Salmon n’ Bannock

Food is something that has always brought people from all cultures together. This is particularly true for Cook, for whom food has led her to reconnect with her family and culture. She dreams of the day that Indigenous restaurants are no longer a rarity in Canada and wants Indigenous food to become part of the common dialogue – as regular as going for burgers, sushi or tacos. She envisions her restaurant being a place where people can learn about Canada’s First Nations people, by sharing stories and traditions through food. 

So when people come to her restaurant to break bannock, they’re not only tucking into a beautiful meal – they’re helping to preserve and celebrate Indigenous cultures.

Would you like to experience Salmon n’ Bannock? You’ll visit this fantastic restaurant on our Majesty of the Rockies luxury guided tour on a MAKE TRAVEL MATTER® Experience, where you’ll break bannock over a delicious Celebration Lunch made with traditional ingredients and flavours.

Even in the luxury space, travel should not cost the earth. When it comes to sustainable luxury travel, we’re proud to lead the way.

As the new year approaches, we took the opportunity to talk with Shannon Guihan, TTC’s Chief Sustainability Officer and Head of TreadRight, our not-for-profit foundation. Here she shares how we’ve led the industry this year and takes a look ahead to 2024. Plus we announce a new project set to make a big impact towards our goal of net zero GHG emissions by 2050.

The year that was

Focussed on change though action, we’re constantly adapting our sustainability journey at Luxury Gold and our sister brands at The Travel Corporation. Exactly one year ago, we announced a reset of our Climate Action Plan and, as part of this reset, we accelerated our original climate action commitments.

A major undertaking, we committed to reach net zero GHG emissions across the value chain by 2050. “We were the first in the industry to have all three targets (short-term, long-term and net zero targets) validated by the Science Based Target initiative (SBTi), an organization that ensures our targets are aggressive enough to do our part for the planet,” Shannon explains.

“Another industry first, we established an internal Carbon Fund to invest in our net zero transition,” she continues. Luxury Gold contributes a dedicated amount annually to the Carbon Fund, alongside its sister brands within The Travel Corporation portfolio, this is then allocated to projects that will reduce our emissions in line with our Climate Action Plan. “Currently, we’re investing in 100% renewable electricity across our USA offices, solar power for our Australian offices and biofuels across our European coach fleet.”

Read ore about sustainable luxury travel: Slow and sustainable: The expectations of the luxury traveler in 2023 and beyond

Sustainable luxury travel in 2024

“Moving ahead, you’re going to see us really dive deep into our travel experiences to ingrain sustainability even further,” Shannon tells us. “Our itineraries already incorporate all of the work done to date into the guest experience. Many adaptations guests won’t notice, and that’s our aim – a seamless integration of greater sustainability performance, but guests can trust that as we are always evolving our approach.

“This is in addition to the gradual reduction of the carbon footprint through investment in our own infrastructure and assets and technology, all while  not passing that cost on to our guests, which is really important.”

MAKE TRAVEL MATTER®

“Our MAKE TRAVEL MATTER® Experiences are a really wonderful way to identify pre-vetted experiences, ones that we know really benefit a community through either environmental or social justice,” says Shannon. “These are really interesting because they are immersive impact experiences that really get you into what makes a place tick, and quite often how that place is navigating with care the challenges the world faces today’. Ensuring you leave a positive impact in the places we visit, we are continuing to build these experiences and for 2024 we aim to have at least one MAKE TRAVEL MATTER® Experience on every Luxury Gold journey.

Bookmark for later: 4 incredible MAKE TRAVEL MATTER® Experiences you can enjoy with Luxury Gold

Investment in carbon reduction

“Investments into carbon reductions is going to be the big trend across the board in 2024, there are more and more technological solutions coming online and investments are needed so that these solutions scale,” Shannon says.

According to the World Economic Forum, ‘new technologies are key to achieving arguably one of the greatest challenges for humankind, the transition to net zero.’

“Some ways we have invested to date include ensuring that at our offices we are nearly at capacity in our ability to produce renewable energy. Looking ahead to next year we are heavily focused on our Scope 3 emissions, these are those produced by our partners and suppliers.

“There are several ways we can reduce our scope 3 footprint, such as by favoring electric and or biofuels, and by changing our routes such that we are on the road a little bit less and staying in places a little bit more. We can also greatly reduce these emissions by saying ‘no to more stuff’.”

You may also enjoy reading: How your travels with Luxury Gold help conserve nature for future generations

Say “no to more stuff”

We’ve recently discovered that the branded merchandise we give away at TTC produces 2,500 tones of carbon emissions every year. So, from today (7 December) we will launching a new project, saying ‘no to more stuff.’ Luxury Gold’s Sustainability Officer Gemma Myhill tells us more.

“Focusing on the non-essential carbon emissions that we emit as a business; we identified that 2500 tones of emissions go into the branded merchandise that we give away every year. This is the equivalent to 6.5 million car driven miles worth of carbon emissions that could be completely removed from our ecosystem.

“Instead, we can donate the money we would’ve used for merchandise designed to give away into projects that focus on nature-based carbon solutions to climate change. So, we asked ourselves, do we actually need more stuff?  And the answer is no.”

The projects

Credit: @greenwaveorg on Instagram

“The nature-based solution projects we have chosen to support are Project GreenWave’s Kelp Climate Fund and Rainforest Rescue’s Daintree Project,” Gemma tells us. “There are two existing partners of our not-for-profit foundation, TreadRight. The fact that we already have strong relationships in place to leverage is a testament to how much sustainability is engrained in our core.”

GreenWave trains and supports ocean farmers in the era of climate change. Donations will be made to their Kelp Climate Fund which enables Kelp farmers to play a climate-positive role with their ocean farms, including carbon and nitrogen removal and habitat restoration. Each donation will fund the planting of 40lbs of kelp, which will help capture carbon and restore marine ecosystems.

To learn more about sustainable luxury travel, our sustainability strategy and journey to Net Zero, read our Climate Action Plan.