Green Traveller's climate smart holiday in West Sweden

"The feeling of space"

They travelled by train from London to Gothenburg and stayed that night at Hotel Eggers, before setting off to explore the region in order for Sarah to write a Green Traveller’s Guide to Climate Smart Holidays in West Sweden and for Richard to produce a video about the trip.

The first stop on the round trip in an electric car was at Erikson Cottage, where they made pizza in a wood fired oven, paddled SUPs and swam in the little lake before spending the night in a glass cabin.

The next stage of the journey was to Inforest. On the way there they passed the pretty wooden town of Hjo, and when they arrived at Inforest Richard and Sarah went cycling in the surrounding forest.

The following stop was at Lugnåsberget Ekohotell outside Mariestad, where they visited the Qvarnstensgruvan millstone mine before heading off to Kinnekulle for a hike along the Biosphere Trail and a visit to the manor house and gardens at Hellekis Säteri & Trädgård.

On the way to Dalsland they stopped at Läckö Castle where they ate at the Hvita Hjorten restaurant. Once in Dalsland they enjoyed a hike along the Pilgrim Path and had a go at paddling and making food outdoors at Swedish Country Living, before heading off to Håverud for a final stop at Dalslands Aktiviteter. They spent their last night in West Sweden in one of the celebrated glass cabins from the “72 hour cabin” study.

• Tell us a bit about who you are?
  I am a writer and videographer who has specialised in sustainable travel and tourism since the late 1990s. Twenty years ago, while I was the eco travel correspondent for the Guardian newspaper, I set up the website greentraveller.co.uk to provide information for travellers on how to have a greener holiday through words, photos and film. I live in an old farmhouse in Somerset with my wife and two little green travellers.
  
  
• What did you like most about Gothenburg?
  The feeling of space. We strolled around the parks and gardens, including the wonderful palm house at Trädgårdsföreningen, and experienced how easy it is to travel around this open city by tram.

• What were the highpoints of your journey around West Sweden?
  Meeting the owners of the five businesses that are part of the Smart Holidays project. Naturally they were all very enthusiastic about their own unique businesses, but they were all genuinely committed to the project and saw low carbon travel as a necessity not just a luxury or a gimmick.

• What was your experience of our and the other companies’ sustainability work during your visit? Can you give us a few good examples? Was there anything that was particularly impressive?

Fundamentally I was impressed by the quality of the accommodation – there has been a tendency in the past for tourists to consider that they need to compromise on creature comforts to stay in an eco-friendly establishment, but here are 5 excellent places to stay catering a range of budgets that provide wonderful service (including excellent food) all with a low carbon footprint.

• Finally – is there anything else people absolutely shouldn’t miss when they’re travelling here?
  For anyone interested in castles, Läcko Castle is a must. I’d also highly recommend the visit to the Lugnåsberget millstone mines. I’d also highly recommend soaking up the view of the lake from the outdoor bath at Swedish Country Living, plus I’d highly recommend staying in one of the glasshouses – at Dalsland Activities or Erikson Cottage.