Sustainability Project & Low Carbon Tours

Calculating Carbon Footprint

Wed, 26 Feb 2025 17:00:22 GMT

Updated Sustainable Tourism Strategy and Carbon Footprint Calculation

At the beginning of 2025, Skafur-Tour took a significant step towards even more sustainable tourism by updating its sustainable tourism strategy for the years 2025-2030. With this update, we have developed a completely new carbon footprint calculator, which enables more efficient and accurate calculation of the carbon footprint of low carbon footprint trips and comparison with other Skafur-Tour

products.

A "carbon footprint" in Urkin Piilopirtti, Tampere.

The new calculator is, to our knowledge, the first CO2 calculator created by a travel agency for calculating the carbon footprint of its own trips. This innovation establishes Skafur-Tour as a pioneer in sustainable travel planning. With the

calculator, we can take into account all emissions produced by the traveler, such as waste, transportation, emissions from activities and accommodation services, and emissions from dining.

In calculating the carbon footprint, we use a tool developed by the Finnish Environment Institute (SYKE) and the emission coefficients provided by the STF Hub (Business Finland). The new tool helps us calculate the carbon footprint of waste management and transportation during the trip. Additionally, we have created our own criteria for ecological accommodations to distinguish lower-emission accommodations in our products.

We calculate the emissions from dining using the emission coefficients of the CO2 calculator from Unilever Food Solutions, which have been created separately for vegetarian, fish, chicken, and meat dishes. For activities, we are continuously developing the calculation method to also consider the use of motor vehicles and animals as part of the experience.

With the new calculator, we can provide our customers with more accurate information about the carbon footprint of trips and help them make more sustainable choices. Additionally, Skafur-Tour experts can deploy the calculator to be used by other companies, promoting a more sustainable tourism industry in Finland.

Skafur-Tour's commitment to sustainable tourism and reducing the carbon footprint is a strong indication that the tourism industry can be part of the solution in combating climate change. Our updated strategy and new carbon footprint calculator are concrete steps towards a more sustainable future. A future that we desire to be part of!

Skafur-Tour has obtained Sustainable Travel Finland label!

riitta@skafur-tour.fi (Riitta Kiukas) — Mon, 05 Sep 2022 16:13:02 GMT

Pioneer Work for Sustainable Travel

Sustainability has been one of our core values since day one in 2014. In July 2022 Skafur-Tour was certified by Biosphere and today we are glad to tell you we have also obtained the Sustainable Travel Finland label.

Skafur-Tour is mainly creating tailormade tours to Finland from all over the world for individual travelers and small groups. We co-operate with sustainable travel portals like Responsible Travel and FairAway as well as individual tour operators sharing our values.

In our opinion, a tour operator is best able to influence on ecological sustainability by increasing the duration of the tours, creating low carbon tours and paying attention not only on the quality of the service but also to the environmental actions of their service providers. Social responsibility is shown by trusting on local guides and making our guests familiar with local culture. Experiencing, not sightseeing.

Skafur-Tour sertified by Biosphere Sustainable

Sun, 10 Jul 2022 16:48:11 GMT

Our long-term commitment to sustainability has now been certified by Biosphere Sustainable.

Our long-term commitment to sustainability has now been certified by Biosphere Sustainable. Biosphere is a certification tool promoting the culture of sustainability, under the principles and objectives of the United Nations Biosphere Sustainable. The system is aligned with the 17 Sustainable Development Goals of the Agenda 2030 by the United Nations, engaging employees in a common project and being positively valued by their customers.

The certificate means commitment to continuous improvement of sustainability also in the future.

Practical tips for travelling in Finland

riitta@skafur-tour.fi (Riitta Kiukas) — Thu, 23 Jun 2022 08:27:53 GMT

Based on the frequently asked questions we have collected some tips for your summer tours in Finland.

Water

Tub water is drinkable all over Finland. You just need to have one refillable water bottle with you. Water is not a scarce natural resource in Finland but for warming it up energy is needed, so please keep this is mind when taking showers.

We do not drink lake water but you can swim in it unless there are cyanobacterial blooms (mainly in July-early August). Please check the situation here https://www.ymparisto.fi/en-US

Climate

We have continental climate which means it is very cold in winter and on the other hand it can be hot in summer. “Cold” means temperature under -15 degrees Celsius (down to -40). “Hot” means temperature over +25 degrees Celsius (up to +34). Weather forecast can be found https://foreca.com

Fire

Do not make open fire anywhere else but at official campfire places where also firewood is normally available. Do not cut any trees without a permission by the landowner. In case a forest fire warning has been given, it is not allowed to make any kind of open fire (orange or red warning at https://en.ilmatieteenlaitos.fi/warnings ).

Garbage

We recycle our garbage in Finland. Most accommodation has separate bins for plastic, cardboard, eco (compostable) and other garbage.

Waste stations can often be found next to shopping malls and supermarkets. All plastic bottles used are PET-bottles meaning they are recycled. In every grocery store there is a bottle refund automate. When making picnics in nature always carry back all garbage you have carried in.

Every man's right

Public access rights, or so-called everyman's rights, refer to the right of everyone in Finland to enjoy outdoor pursuits (=incl. picking berries and mushroom) regardless of who owns or occupies an area. You do not need the landowner's permission, and there is no charge. However, you must not damage the environment or disturb others while exercising public access rights. Read more: https://www.ymparisto.fi/en-us/nature/everymans_rights

Ticks and mosquitos

There are ticks in summer, more widely in coastal areas and archipelago. It is recommended to check yourselves after moving around in nature. You can see where ticks have been observed and also other information https://www.punkkilive.fi/en?gclid=CjwKCAjwy_aUBhACEiwA2IHHQAKxCPTZFR7gt9rAqWPyyap77X2VA2orfZhLbOLxzq68DQy1bH6hpxoC3QgQAvD_BwE

Mosqitos (June-July): There are mosquitos, which bite and can case an itchy rash. Please reserve mosquito spray or cream with you and hydrocortison cream for the bites. The local mosquitos do not spread any dangerous disease.

Elk flies (August): Although their life cycle depends on deer, they may on rare occasions bite humans, producing responses ranging from unnoticeable to highly allergic. Initially, the bite may be barely noticeable and leaves little or no trace. We recommend to wear a hat with a net during berry picking tours.

Snakes: common adder is the only poisonous snake. They tend to avoid people as well as other wild animals.

Tipping and VAT

There is no tipping culture in Finland. We have minimum salaries and all salary costs as well as value added tax is always included in prices.

Calculating Carbon Footprint

eero.kiukas@skafur-tour.fi (Eero Kiukas) — Mon, 20 Jul 2020 06:47:23 GMT

What is a carbon footprint and how can it be used to compare our tours?

The calculation of the carbon footprint of low carbon footprint trips aims to take into account all emissions produced by the traveller. These include waste/waste management, transportation/travel, emissions produced by activity and accommodation services, and emissions from dining. However, calculating the emissions of activities is often challenging, as we do not have access to the entire

production chain of the activity. Emissions before reaching the destination, such as the flight from the traveller's home country to Finland, are not taken into account in the calculation.

A "carbon footprint" in Urkin Piilopirtti, Tampere.

How is a carbon footprint calculated?

Calculation of the Carbon Footprint:

The carbon footprint of waste management and transportation/travel during the trip has been calculated using the Y-HIILARI tool developed by the Finnish Environment Institute (SYKE, 2019).

For waste management, an estimated amount of (1) kilogram of bio-waste and (1) kilogram of mixed waste, as well as 375g of plastic waste per traveler, has been calculated for each day of the trip.

For the carbon dioxide emissions of transportation and travel, the STF Hub's carbon footprint calculation coefficients and the "Business Travel" tab of the Y-HIILARI tool have been used, from which the emissions for traveling by bus, train, taxi, and

private car can be calculated. (The tool can also calculate the emissions of flights.)

Carbon Dioxide Emissions from Accommodation Services:

The normal value for the carbon dioxide emissions of accommodation services is calculated according to the business travel table of the Y-HIILARI tool (SYKE, 2019), where the average price for single accommodation in summer (1.4.-15.11.) is €70 or in winter (16.11.-31.3.) €110, and the environmental impact coefficient is 0.5 (CO2 eq kg/€), resulting in a total of 35 CO2 eq kg emissions for one night's accommodation in summer.

However, this does not support the distinction of lower-emission accommodations in our products, so we have created the following criteria to calculate corresponding values for ecological accommodations:

We use an environmental impact coefficient of 0.4 for accommodation services that have taken concrete actions towards sustainability and have otherwise directed their operations to reduce their carbon footprint or other negative environmental impacts.

The accommodation service has a certificate for its work.

We use an environmental impact coefficient of 0.3 for accommodation services that have taken several concrete sustainability actions and actions to reduce their carbon footprint and have already reduced their negative environmental impact in their

operations or operate according to sustainable tourism criteria. The accommodation service has a certificate and an STF label for its work.

We use an environmental impact coefficient of 0.2 for accommodation services that have been designed from the beginning to operate with as low a carbon footprint as possible or as carbon reserves and operate according to sustainable tourism criteria in all their activities, continuously striving for a smaller carbon footprint. The accommodation service also has a certificate and an STF label.

We use an environmental impact coefficient of 0.1 for accommodation services that do not have actual buildings or where accommodation is in nature, and they operate according to sustainable tourism criteria and continuously strive for a smaller carbon

footprint. The accommodation service also has a certificate and an STF label.

Emissions from Dining:

Emissions have been calculated using the CO2 calculator of Unilever Food Solutions (2020), into which vegetarian, fish, chicken, and meat dishes have been entered separately according to recipes found online. Separate averages have been calculated for the emissions of different diets, which are used as coefficients for each meal. For products that only include vegetarian meals, only the average for vegetarian meals (0.78 kg CO2 eq) has been used. For other products, a separate average for a mixed diet (1.12 kg CO2 eq) has been calculated. This has been done by calculating the average of the averages of all

different diets.

For activities that use motor vehicles or animals as part of the experience, we have not yet found a calculation formula, so currently, the carbon footprint is only calculated for products where the activities are carried out by human muscle power,

resulting in practically no calculable emissions. We are developing the calculation method for activities during 2025.

Comparison of Product Carbon Footprints:

The calculation of carbon footprints has been done only for Skafur-Tour' s own products and their internal comparison.

As a comparison value, we use the daily carbon footprint per traveler (total product emissions divided by the number of days), which is reported in carbon dioxide equivalent kilograms (kg CO2 eq).

At the beginning of 2025, the carbon footprint of low carbon footprint trips must be less than 25kg CO2 eq / person / day according to the updated calculator.

Sources:

Finnish Environment Institute (SYKE), Y-HIILARI Carbon Footprint Tool (2019)

retrieved on 14.7.2020 from [25](https://www.syke.fi/fi-

FI/Tutkimus__kehittaminen/Kulutus_ja_tuotanto/Laskurit/YHiilari)

Unilever Food Solutions (2020) retrieved on 14.7.2020 from [26](https://www.unileverfoodsolutions.fi/teemat-ja-ratkaisut/tyokalu/co2- laskuri.html?gclid=CjwKCAjwr7X4BRA4EiwAUXjbt4EZSCTLmyulaEz5wv5CvYmO_F JfJqsaCeCdFPb5q7X-bIgkbau8cBoCyeUQAvD_BwE)

STF Hub – Business Finland (Visit Finland) (2024)

Comparing a tour:

*vegetarian diet changed to meat diet

**vegetarian diet changed to mix diet and all transportation done by car

***vegetarian diet changed to meat diet and all transportation done by car

****all ecological accommodations changed to a not ecological accommodation

*****petrol car with 1 passanger

Tips for more sustainable travelling

eero.kiukas@skafur-tour.fi (Eero Kiukas) — Thu, 16 Jul 2020 12:00:35 GMT

How can I travel sustainably?

This is a question many of us wonders when going on a holiday. The climate crisis has taught us to be more environmentally aware of our everyday choices, and travelling is no exception. However, sustainability is much more than being ecological. In this blog post we'll give you some tips how to travel sustainably, especially here in Finland.

Slowing down is a good way of increasing sustainability while travelling.

The most important sustainable choices are made before your arrival. By choosing Finland as your travel destination you choose a safe destination with well organized and sustainably managed tourism sector.

Another choice you make is the way of arrival to your destination. Flying is often our only option, when trying to maximize our time in the destination. Try to find a direct flight as close to your destination as possible, or consider starting your holiday from another place to minimize the effects on climate.

For example, you can fly to Helsinki and continue your holiday by train from there, this way you get to see a lot more on your holiday while increasing sustainability (see our Lapland by Rail holiday tour )

Next thing to do is to choose the length of your holiday (if possible). Longer stays are more sustainable and you can try to connect two or more destinations to make a longer trip (see our Roundtrips ). Longer stays also help you slow down a bit. This can mean slower moving but also changing to a slower way of moving. It also gives you more time to get to know the locals, their culture and customs - and of course, to relax.

Slower moving can be done by cycling, paddling or hiking (see our Low Carbon Tours )

After your arrival to Finland, there is still things you can do during your holiday:

Use a reusable water bottle, the tap water here is totally safe and it tastes good
Recycle your waste, and if there is no waste bin near, store the waste in your backpack until you find one
All bottles are recyclable here and you even get some money back when returning them to grocery stores
When buying groceries try to find local products, here in Finland we use white and blue labels, usually with our flag on it
Prefer small local businesses, restaurants and cafés instead of big corporations
Choose vegetarian or vegan meals, in Finland we have pure and high quality ingredients as well as really nice vegetarian and vegan options in almost every restaurant
Our cities are easy to walk, so choose to bike or walk instead of other transportation
Respect local laws and regulations as well as local culture and people

We are a local operator and our job is to make it as easy as possible for you to travel in Finland, in a sustainable fashion. So, feel free to contact us for any further information on how to make an impact while travelling here. Also, take a look at our Sustainability Plan and Social Responsibility Strategy to see how we support sustainability in our operations as well as travel planning.

New Sustainability Plan

Thu, 25 Jun 2020 07:13:18 GMT

Planning our sustainability for the future

Since the day we started our business, we've been eager to follow sustainable guidelines in our tours and travel planning. The importance of showing our guests the beauty of the Finnish nature and the authentic culture of this distant land have been key factors in our operations.

We have always tried to be clear in the descriptions of our tours and to make sure our sustainable actions are shown on our site. Now, we are determined to improve our sustainability and to show it transparently to everyone. This is why we have written a new Sustainability Plan .

In our country home Erkkilä, we aim to grow more of our own food and use more extensively wild food.

Our sustainability plan is a commitment for even more sustainable travelling and travel planning.

In our own operations we are ambitious to reach carbon neutrality by the year 2025. This is done by:

Increasing renewable energy
storing carbon dioxide in carbon sinks
reducing our carbon emissions on a daily basis.

In tour planning we aim for a higher level of sustainability by:

using more ecological transportation
preferring human-powered activities
choosing more sustainable accommodation
providing meals that are locally produced and prioritizing vegetarian and vegan food

"In our own operations we are ambitious to reach carbon neutrality by the year 2025"

Introduction to our Sustainability Project

Thu, 11 Jun 2020 14:58:43 GMT

What is Sustainability?
Sustainability in tourism is a broad subject. It can be divided into smaller categories which helps in understanding the different parts that all need to be taken into consideration when creating truly sustainable tourism. These categories are ecological, social, cultural, economical and political sustainability. (Read more about sustainable tourism here )

Why this blog?

This blog is a part of our journey towards more sustainable travel planning. Our aim is to provide an exposed and clear view to our sustainability project and low carbon tours.

Nature is the main tourism attraction in Finland.

Our part in creating sustainable tourism.

For us sustainability has been a key value since day one. Respecting the Finnish nature and local culture comes naturally to us and we think that these are also the main reasons for travelers to visit us and thus they need to be protected.

As tour operators we have a big responsibility that our service providers and partners are on the same page with us when it comes to sustainability. This is why every activity, accommodation and sight is tested and audited by us.

Sustainability is something that we feel can always be improved. This is where our new sustainability project comes in. In our project we are creating Low Carbon Tours that are built to increase the level sustainability even higher than before.

Besides the Low Carbon Tours we are committed to improve the sustainability in our company by introducing a new Sustainability Plan . It enables us to make concrete and visible plans for the future and it completes our Social Responsibility Strategy .

We are part of Sustainable Travel Finland.

Sustainable Travel Finland is a project created by Visit Finland for the companies and destinations in the Finnish travel industry.

The projects aim is to increase sustainability in the tourism sector and offer sustainable travel services.

Skafur-Tour is committed to develop our sustainability on the Sustainable Travel Finland -path.

(More info here )

Low Carbon Tours

Thu, 11 Jun 2020 14:58:33 GMT

What are Low Carbon Tours?
Our new Low Carbon Tours are a step towards even more sustainable travel planning through reducing the carbon footprint of our tours. Low Carbon Tours are planned in a way that doesn't take away the excitement and unforgettable experiences of your holiday. Instead, they give you a chance to enjoy travelling now, and in the future.

In our Low Carbon Tours you get to enjoy Finland in a sustainable way.

What is done to reach a lower carbon footprint?

In our Low Carbon Tours planning we take into consideration the different areas of sustainability. Low Carbon Tours are planned to be sustainable in all areas of sustainability, such as social and cultural, but the biggest emphasis in these tours is on their ecological impact.

To reduce the tours impact on the environment we have chosen a group of services that will have as low carbon footprint as possible. This means that all of the activities, accommodations, meals and transportation of the tour are as ecological as possible.

To give you an idea of the concrete actions to make this happen, here are some examples:

- Every activity is man-powered, meaning that there are no motors or fuels used

- all accommodations take account of the environment and strive to lower their ecological impact

- meals included in the tours are vegetarian, vegan or locally produced

- transportation is as ecological as possible

- short distance is covered by man power, like cycling

- longer distance is covered by train or bus

Besides the ecological point of view our Low Carbon Tours support a wide range of cultural, social and economical sustainability, such as local and rural businesses, education and training of local workers, as well as authentic culture, arts and history. Read more about our values and responsibility in our Social Responsibility Strategy and Sustainability Plan .