Riviera Travel has announced a series of environmental, social and governance (ESG) initiatives.
The pledges, highlighted in a plan named ‘Doing the right thing’, start with immediate effect and cover four pillars: sustainability, managing carbon footprint, operating ethically and charitable contributions.
The operator plans to reduce guests’ carbon footprint by 20 per cent by 2028 – to be measured on a per customer, per night basis – across all holiday categories.
This will be achieved by increasing rail travel options on existing holidays and utilising greener energy sources on its ships. It will also halve the use of plastic and paper by 2025, a statement said.
Elsewhere, Riviera has implemented an ethics policy and sustainability checklist, covering measures such as labour standards, human rights, animal welfare and renewable energy.
All suppliers will be asked to agree to, and implement, these measures when working with Riviera.
A new partnership has also been established with the charity Practical Action, a global development organisation that works with communities on the frontline of climate change.
Riviera Travel ‘doing the right thing’
Riviera Travel CEO Phil Hullah (pictured above) said: “The team at Riviera are committed to sustainable, ethical and responsible travel.
“With the launch of our new plan, we will start the next phase of our journey, the aim being to ensure that Riviera, our partners and our peers do the right thing in every way we can.
“We have chosen Practical Action as a new charity partner due to their alignment with our values and the impactful and exciting projects they have in the pipeline.
“Although we do not claim to have all of the answers, or to be the finished article yet, our ESG initiatives and aims are statements of where we hope to get to in the future.
“We are excited and determined to deliver on all of them and plan to work collaboratively and openly with others in the industry to bring about wider change.”
Riviera Travel recently relaunched its website, with enhanced functionality for both travel agents and guests.
The operator has also released its tall-ship ocean cruise programme for 2025.