Our Climate Smart Commitment

At Rick Steves’ Europe, we believe that international travel is a powerful way to better understand and contribute to the world we live in. But every international flight emits damaging carbon into the atmosphere, contributing to the climate crisis. 

What can we do?
Staying home isn’t the answer. It's possible to mitigate this environmental toll by supporting climate-smart initiatives in developing countries, where the need – and the potential for change – is greatest. Starting in 2020, Rick Steves' Europe is investing $1 million a year out of our profits in a portfolio of carefully selected nonprofits that fight climate change through government advocacy and on-the-ground work. Our goal: to pay our fair share of the environmental cost that our travelers incur, and to do so in a way that empowers communities throughout the developing world.

We’re paying a self-imposed carbon tax, so that each of our 30,000 annual tour members can enjoy the peace of mind that they are traveling climate-smart. For comments or questions, contact us at climate@ricksteves.com.

Rick's Vision

A round-trip flight to Europe emits roughly as much climate-changing carbon, per passenger, as six months of driving. At Rick Steves' Europe, we take about 30,000 people to Europe each year on our tours. Standard accounting… Read more

Good Global Citizenship

At Rick Steves' Europe, we consider ourselves travel teachers. We are in the business of providing the skills that empower people to have a lifetime of fun, affordable, and culturally broadening trips. And just as travel… Read more

How and Why

When carbon is emitted into our atmosphere, it creates a "greenhouse effect" that traps heat between us and space — heating up our planet. Every person and every business contributes to this problem, and Rick believes… Read more

Our 2020 Portfolio

Just as travel changes someone's life for the better, we want our initiatives to have the same effect. That means targeting climate-smart projects that provide leadership and educational opportunities to the… Read more