How to avoid greenwashing as a travel brand: the ultimate guide to sustainability comms

If you’re wondering how to avoid greenwashing as a travel brand, the answer is surprisingly simple: say less and prove more. Sustainable travel communications should avoid exaggerated claims and focus on backing every statement with credible evidence.

For brands asking how to avoid greenwashing, transparency, third-party validation and measurable action are far more effective than broad sustainability promises. The brands that withstand scrutiny are not necessarily the most sustainable, they are those that are the most transparent. In an industry such as travel, where the very act of partaking creates environmental impacts, honest communication beats perfect messaging every time.

Why is sustainable travel PR harder than most sustainability communications?

Understanding why the challenge of sustainable travel PR is much harder than most is central to how to avoid greenwashing in travel communications because brands are promoting an activity that inevitably has an environmental footprint.

Travel brands are promoting an activity that inherently has an environmental footprint. Most sustainability communications centre on reducing harm from a product or service, but travel is different. Even the most eco-conscious holidays involve transport, accommodation, food consumption and resource use, creating a communication challenge from the start.

As such, travel brands must walk a fine line between promoting travel experiences and acknowledging the environmental impacts associated with them. Consumers are increasingly aware of this contradiction. According to Booking.com’s 2025 Sustainable Travel Report, 69% of travellers want to leave destinations better than they found them, while 73% want their spending to benefit local communities. Travellers and consumers are no longer content with vague and overused sustainability promises; they want evidence that brands understand the impact of tourism and are actively working to reduce it.

The challenge for PRs is not convincing people that travel has no impact, it is demonstrating that brands are taking credible steps to manage and reduce it all while generating positive outcomes for destinations and communities.

What counts as greenwashing and what doesn’t?

To understand how to avoid greenwashing, travel brands first need to understand what greenwashing actually looks like in practice.

Greenwashing happens when environmental claims exaggerate, oversimplify or misrepresent reality. In contrast, honest discussions about sustainability challenges do not. While many travel brands worry that opening up discussions around sustainability could expose them to criticism, most accusations of greenwashing stem from poor communication rather than genuine sustainability efforts.

In the travel industry, greenwashing typically involves using marketing messages that create the impression of environmental responsibility without the necessary operational changes or support for those claims. This can take many forms, from describing a property as “eco-friendly” or a resort as “sustainable” without explaining why, to making claims about room amenities that cannot be substantiated with evidence. It may also involve highlighting a single positive initiative while overlooking larger environmental impacts or relying on carbon offsets to imply carbon neutrality without addressing actual emission reductions. The scale of this issue is significant. The European Commission found that 53% of environmental claims contain vague, misleading or unfounded information, while 40% lack supporting evidence.

Why does avoiding greenwashing matter more than ever?

The simplest answer to how to avoid greenwashing for travel brands is to make sustainability communications specific, evidence-based and transparent about both achievements and limitations.

Because regulation and public scrutiny are increasing at the same time.

The era of relying on broad sustainability aspirations is coming to an end, and regulators, journalists and consumers increasingly expect organisations to back up environmental claims with evidence and accountability. In the UK, the Competition and Markets Authority treats misleading environmental claims as an enforcement priority because of the potential impact on consumer trust

The reputational risks are equally significant and, in this day and age of always-on technology, a sustainability initiative that earns positive media coverage one day can quickly snowball and become an example of greenwashing if the claims behind it cannot withstand scrutiny. This is true of all industries, but for travel brands specifically, in which sustainability is increasingly seen as a point of differentiation, trust may be the most valuable asset of all.

Which travel brands have been called out for greenwashing?

One of the biggest misconceptions about greenwashing is that brands are criticised for talking about sustainability. In reality, criticism usually arises when environmental initiatives and plans are overstated. There are several recent examples that illustrate this challenge:

KLM’s “Fly Responsibly” campaign faced criticism in the Netherlands after the campaign’s messaging was accused of creating a misleading impression about the environmental impact of flying. Similarly, Ryanair also faced scrutiny over claims that it was Europe’s lowest-emissions airline, with questions raised about whether the claim could be sufficiently justified.

More recently, the travel agents Cruise Circle and Cruise 1st were put under the microscope after they described LNG-powered cruises as an “eco-friendly” and “green alternative” without providing adequate context about wider environmental impacts.

The problem that played out with all of these examples was not the sustainability initiatives themselves. Instead, the problem was that vague environmental language created an impression that the evidence available could not fully support.

What does PR-proof sustainability communication look like?

PR-proof sustainability messaging is specific and transparent about both progress and limitations. The strongest sustainability communications avoid vague marketing language and focus instead on verifiable facts, data and certification.

This specificity matters because it gives journalists and stakeholders something concrete to evaluate and draw upon rather than having to interpret vague sustainability jargon.

When making a sustainability claim in a pitch or press release, you should always ask yourself: if a journalist asked for evidence tomorrow, could you provide it?

How can travel brands build a sustainability narrative that withstands scrutiny?

The most credible sustainability narratives that successfully avoid greenwashing focus on progress rather than perfection.

Many organisations still treat sustainability communications as an opportunity to showcase success stories. However, the more effective approach is to demonstrate an ongoing journey that can be supported by action and transparent reporting.

The strongest sustainability narratives begin by acknowledging the problem. In the example of travel, that is, tourism inevitably creates environmental and social impacts. Those brands that recognise this reality, rather than shy away from it, come across as more credible than those presenting sustainability as a challenge that has already been solved.

From there, organisations should clearly explain where they can have an influence, whether that be transport choices, accommodation, waste reduction, biodiversity protection or community investment. Evidence should then take centre stage in communications with a focus on initiatives that have already been implemented and the outcomes those actions have already achieved, rather than relying on future aspirations.

Equally important is honesty about limitations because every organisation has areas where progress is still needed. Brands should strive towards continuous improvement to demonstrate a sustainability strategy that is not a one-off and is continually evolving and responding to new challenges and opportunities.

Transparency is the best defence against greenwashing

Travel brands do not need to convince audiences that travel is impact-free. Instead, they need to demonstrate that they understand their impact and are taking meaningful and verifiable steps to reduce it.

Ultimately, how to avoid greenwashing comes down to transparency, evidence and a willingness to communicate progress honestly rather than chasing perfect sustainability claims.

More from us

At PHA, we help brands communicate complex issues clearly, credibly and with confidence. From sustainability messaging and reputation management to media relations, content and digital PR, we work with organisations to tell authentic stories that stand up to scrutiny. For travel brands, that means building trust through transparent communications rather than relying on claims that can’t be substantiated.