Magestic Mountains

As we keep one eye on the up coming ski season, we do of course adore the mountains in the summer months. Whether it is the breathtaking scenery;  stunning landscapes, the majestic mountains, lush valleys, crystal-clear lakes, or picturesque villages.

Then there is the hiking, mountain biking, rock climbing, paragliding, and white-water rafting, all enjoyed in a relaxing mild climate.

Maybe the thermal spas and wellness retreats in the fresh mountain air, or visiting the charming villages, historical sites, and traditional festivals are more your summer holiday vibe. One thing is for sure, we are always on the look out for the delicious local food, even in summer, a fondue, raclette with cured meats, and artisan cheeses, all taste as good in the mountain air, gazing over the lush flora and fauna.

Meet Krissy, Senior Sustainabilty Manager at Inghams Walking who specialise on summer mountain holidays.

Hi Krissy,

Can you tell us a little bit about yourself and what you do for Inghams?

I look after our sustainability initiatives at Inghams, working closely with all the teams in the business to make positive change happen. Ultimately, it’s about reducing our negative impacts and doing more good, for people and planet.

I’ve worked in sustainability, impact and responsible tourism for more than 15 years. The language we use today around ‘purpose’, ‘values’, ‘sustainability’ – these terms just weren’t widely used back then. We’ve come a long way but there’s still much more to do.

Can you share any initiatives that Inghams Walking implements to ensure sustainability is front and centre?

Yes, Inghams Walking was relaunched and rebranded last April (previously called Inghams Summer) and has a focus on sustainability. We’ve made a commitment to reduce our carbon emissions by 50% by 2030. A range of operational tweaks have already resulted in us successfully reducing our per passenger, per night carbon emissions by 9% in 2023, including ensuring transfers into resorts are as efficient as possible – for Swiss resorts 100% of transfers are by rail.

Earlier this year we launched Inghams Walking rail packages to 23 resorts in France, Italy, Austria and Switzerland. Travelling from the UK by rail dramatically reduces the carbon emissions of a holiday, compared to flying, on average by 3.5 times. (source: ecollective)

For those customers that do choose to fly, we know that business class seats can be three times as carbon intensive, per passenger, per kilometre, as economy flights. So in January 2024, we announced a new policy to no longer sell business class, premium economy and first-class upgrades.

Connecting with nature is central to our Inghams Walking holidays and we design our packages to be as nature-friendly as possible, working with local walking guides with expert knowledge, to take guests on lesser known routes and to bring to life the location, nature and environment. In 2023 we launched a new Animal Welfare Policy | Inghams which puts protecting nature and wildlife at the fore. In addition, £10 from every holiday booking goes towards carbon removal solutions as well as to the restoration of biodiversity with our partners Rewilding Britain.

As part of our rebranding we were mindful to ensure that all new Inghams Walking uniforms were ethically sourced with much help from EcoSki. We’ve also focussed on helping staff look after and maintain these uniforms for as long as possible.

We love our partnership with EcoSki which encourages and incentivises our customers to rent or purchase second hand hiking gear so as to minimise their environmental impact further.

Given your collaboration with a large number of third-party hotels, how does Hotelplan UK influence and work towards sustainability in its supply chain?

Working with our supply chain towards shared commitments and values is vital for us if we are to succeed in truly reducing our impacts. Ultimately, we need to collaborate and work in synergy if we’re going to change things for the better.

Every year as part of our work to measure our carbon emissions, we survey our hotel partners and ask them about their environmental impact. We ask them as part of our re-contracting process to complete this survey and in time this will become mandatory.

We want to work with suppliers who share our vision for better business and who share our passion for protecting these special places for the future.

What other partnerships have you embarked on that are helping to make a difference?

Inghams has an ongoing partnership with the charity Mind over Mountains which helps people with mental health challenges get outside and connect with like-minded individuals, whilst enjoying the therapeutic benefits of nature.

We also work with the inspiring collective, ReAction in the Alps, who take our old uniforms and repurpose them with such creativity and colour, selling them on, with profits benefitting local communities.

This year, we’re supporting The Summit Foundation – an independent not-for-profit on a mission to reduce the environmental impact of human activities in the mountains. Some of our staff will be taking part in mountain clean up days this summer in Switzerland.

We’re also supporting Lake Aid, a charity which provides support, activities, homework help and essential supplies for unaccompanied minors, asylum-seeking children and homeless families in the Annecy region of France.

 

What are Ingham Walking’s future sustainability goals or initiatives that you are particularly excited about?

There’s a huge amount happening. But what excites me the most isn’t the headline-grabbing, shiny stuff. It’s the hard graft that goes on behind the scenes to totally transform the way we do business. It’s the need to be constantly asking ourselves, ‘is this really the best way of doing things? What if there is a better way?’ As individuals, we all need to be a part of this re-design – that’s ultimately where true progress lies.

How do you track and measure the success of your sustainability initiatives? Are there regular reports or updates on sustainability progress available to the public?

You can read our Hotelplan People and Planet Report here to find out more about how Inghams is tracking and progressing on sustainability, alongside its sister companies within Hotelplan UK.