A big part at TruTravels is to encourage others to be eco-conscious, travel sustainably and to spread the love of travel! Whether it comes from products we buy or places we visit, choosing alternatives that do good for the environment can make a big difference in the long run.

We have found some amazing eco-friendly travel apps (which are all free)! They are easy to use so come & join us in making small changes to travel sustainably!

NO. 1 REFILL MY BOTTLE

In Asia, the climate is hot, and the water from the tap is not safe to drink. Meaning, we tend to resort to buying bottled water to stay hydrated. Many Asian countries don't have the resources or funding for recycling, which means single-use plastics just get thrown away in the streets or the sea!

How do we get around wasting all this plastic? 'RefillMyBottle' has the solution! This awesome app shows you the closest drinkable water refill points to your location, which are usually free & often cheaper than buying a new bottle! Whether you refill a plastic bottle or you have your metal re-usable one. Have a go at cutting down the amount of plastic you use and do your bit to help the environment (and save money)!

NO.2 GIKI

Giki is your perfect shopping buddy! This app has an incredible knowledge of over 250,000 products, rated on how eco-friendly or ethical they are. For example, if you scan a bottle of sunscreen, it will show how many badges Giki has awarded this product. For things like no harmful chemicals, recyclable packaging, animal testing, and even if it contains sustainable palm oil. What's better, if the product hasn't been rated very eco-friendly, it gives suggestions for similar products that have less of a negative impact on the environment.

NO.3 ECOSIA

Ecosia is the search engine that plants trees! Sounds too good to be true, right? It works in the same way that Google or Yahoo might do. However, they donate 80% of their profits to give back to the planet. Every time you use their search engine to look up anything online, companies will pay for their adverts to come up in the results. They then use this money to replant trees in many destinations all over the world. Such as Indonesia, Colombia, Peru and Brazil, to name a few. Check out their tree-planting updates here!!

NO.4 FAIRTRIP

The app which shows you where the best places to shop, eat, stay and visit, which have a positive, social and economic impact. It helps us to travel differently and change the world while you do it. Each listing has to meet the criteria of being authentic, local green, social, and fair, and you can use it wherever you travel!

Why use this app? It's done all the research for us, so we don't have to spend hours looking at where are the best spots to visit in terms of fair tourism. Every time you book through the app, 10% of your booking goes towards charity projects in developing countries.

NO.5 MY LITTLE PLASTIC FOOTPRINT

If you've ever travelled across Asia, the amount of plastic you might see is very eye-opening! Countries often don't have the money or resources to deal with the amount of plastic thrown away efficiently. Unfortunately, the crippling impact this has on the environment, and marine life can be harmful. Not to mention, the damaging effect of turtles swallowing straws!

Instead of being part of the problem, let's be part of the solution! My Little Plastic Footprint gets us to look at the amount of plastic we use and see how we can personally reduce it. Whether you want to lead a plastic-free lifestyle, minimise waste in the sea, or within your home. This eco-friendly travel app is a necessity!

There you have some great travel apps that will help you to make some eco-friendly choices when you are on your travels. Join us in making eco-friendly choices. There are no excuses now ;)