Green Week special: Saving Antarctica

Yesterday I told you about the poll we held on the Friendly Planet Travel Web site that let you choose the destination of the next Friendly Planet Travel tour. And, as you already know, Madagascar was the most popular destination of choice, followed closely by Antarctica.
While Antarctica is growing exponentially in popularity, it is precisely the country’s desirability as a tourist destination that makes it so vulnerable to environmental damage. Tourism infrastructure, support facilities for people, and potential oil spills from ships all contribute to the problems facing this fragile spot on the bottom of our planet when people start exploring.

Yet, it is this infrastructure which makes it possible for us to realize our dreams of visiting this remote and fascinating place. Without the facilities, how can we tour there? It’s quite a delicate problem that requires a great deal of care in finding a good solution.
As you might have heard, in an effort to protect the delicate environment of Antarctica, the Obama administration is imposing mandatory limits on the size of cruise ships sailing there and the number of passengers they’re allowed to bring ashore. Of course, in the name of environmental sustainability, this is a move that we fully support at Friendly Planet Travel.

Because of the high level of interest from you, we’re exploring Antarctica as a new destination for 2010. But with the country’s future in mind, we’re researching how best to arrange the program so that we cause the least amount of harm while providing the best experience for our travelers.
We care deeply about the environment, and when finished, our program will definitely be one that provides a great experience for our travelers with the least amount of impact on the pristine land they visit.
Because while we want you to have the best experience as possible, we also want your grandchildren and their grandchildren (and so on and so on) to have the chance to experience the same. If we all do our part, we won’t be the last generation to experience the splendor that is Antarctica.