Kuoni launches new Stay Beautiful responsible travel campaign

Stay Beautiful’s positive message will be “driven” by Kuoni staff, to whom the initiative was introduced on Tuesday (11 June).

“This is about positive action we can take to make a difference,” said Derek Jones, chief executive of Kuoni parent Der Touristik UK.

“It’s very much driven by our staff and our aim is that everyone can be involved. We’ve got some immediate commitments to kick the campaign off, but we want to give staff the green light to suggest anything we could be doing, big or small, to make a difference.”

Launch initiatives include a new partnership with Water-to-Go, which has produced 250 reusable Kuoni-branded filter bottles making water safe to drink anywhere in the world.

Kuoni staff will be testing them on educationals and gauging customer interest in select Kuoni stores.

Other pledges include adopting 100% compostable packaging for all brochures and documents from August; removing from 1 July all plastic packaging and bottles from Kuoni’s head office cafe; moving towards a sustainable replacement for the operator’s plastic luggage tags; and producing inspirational new articles showcasing hotels and resorts leading the way in the fight against plastic waste.

Longer-term, Kuoni is aiming to make all its small-group tours plastic free by 2021.

“Our new campaign is called Stay Beautiful – our world is beautiful and we want it to stay that way for future generations to enjoy,” said the operator.

Kuoni’s ambassadors, travel broadcasters Anita Rani and Simon Reeve, have both given the Stay Beautiful campaign their backing.

“I’m thrilled – doing small things and big things, thinking differently and playing out part in keeping the world a beautiful place. We can all do our bit,” said Rani.

Reeve added” “I’ve seen first hand the damage that plastic is doing to our oceans so well done Kuoni with your new campaign – even small things can make an important difference so I hope everyone gets behind it.”