Feeding shriveled apples to Grand Canyon mules. Operating a railway on French fry oil. Slicing a cruise ship in half to add an insert.

At a time when globetrotters are increasingly choosing eco-friendly trips in an effort to reduce their footprint on Earth, more responsibly than ever. Booking.com’s 2023 Sustainable Travel Report found that 76% of global travelers express a desire to travel more sustainably.

Whether you’d like to ride a mule into the depths of the Grand Canyon, climb the majestic ruins of Machu Picchu, take a small-ship cruise through the islands of French Polynesia, or cycle through the Italian countryside, Xanterra will bring your bucket-list vacation to life — all while working to reduce the environmental impact.

When One Bad Apple Does Good

When do bad apples help our planet? When they’re fed to the famous mules in the Grand Canyon and come out as manure used by local nurseries and farmers. Since 2013, a mule named Vista along with 147 of its fellow park mules have feasted on 35 tons of shriveled apples and other food scraps such as melon rinds, broccoli stalks, and carrot peelings generated by Grand Canyon National Park Lodges restaurants. Not only does that keep the food waste out of landfills, but those hard-working mules also produce up to 2 million pounds of manure per year.

All Aboard the French Fry Express

A more eco-friendly way to arrive at Grand Canyon National Park and help keep about 50,000 cars outside of the park each year. Ride the Grand Canyon Railway from Williams, Arizona, on a scenic 65-mile 2.5-hour route across the Colorado Plateau to the edge of the canyon’s South Rim. But this train does more than just replace those polluting cars, thanks to French fry oil. Its two steam engines run on recycled waste vegetable oil collected from local restaurants (think of that with your next order of fries). Instead of using coal or diesel fuel, each locomotive uses about 1,200 gallons of vegetable oil per round-trip journey, significantly reducing waste and emissions compared to using ultra-low sulfur diesel. In addition, Xanterra harvests rainwater and snowmelt to operate its steam locomotives.

Old Presidents Under Bright Lights

Who better to preside over efforts to reduce greenhouse gases than great visionaries like George Washington, Thomas Jefferson, Theodore Roosevelt, and Abraham Lincoln? Just a few years ago, Xanterra built a 975-panel solar carport at Mount Rushmore under the watchful eyes of these past presidents. This structure now generates over half the electricity used by the restaurant and gift shop, while the remaining power comes from a nearby wind farm.

Sun & Water

The Oasis at Death Valley, a beautiful eco-resort in the middle of the 3.4 million-acre Death Valley National Park, has plenty of sun, but not much water. So the property harnesses the power of one while carefully conserving the other. It generates reliable solar energy with one of the hospitality industry’s largest solar photovoltaic system. And because the park is the driest place in North America — it averages less than two inches of rainfall a year — the resort recycles the precious water from natural springs to feed two pools, water the golf course and gardens (planted with drought-tolerant species), and eventually return it to nature’s watershed.

Pulling Carbon Out of the Big Sky

Did you know that you can feast on sustainably raised beef at the Yellowstone National Park Lodges restaurants and help support native grasslands in a first-of-its-kind project in the U.S.? Xanterra helps four ranches outside the park participate in a 209,000-acre project to improve soil health, provide forage for cattle, and remove carbon dioxide from the atmosphere to help reduce the effects of climate change.

Starry, Starry Nights

By reducing light pollution and greenhouse gas emissions, Xanterra preserves views of the dazzling night sky and protects nocturnal animals and ecosystems in the park. Because nearly 2,000 light fixtures have been replaced since 2013 — nearly half of them by Xanterra.

Xanterra uses similar outdoor lighting best practices in Death Valley, Zion National Park and Glacier National Park.

Purple Pipe Majesties

Purple plumbing pipes? Yup, they’re used for reclaimed water, one of the key ways to reuse and conserve this precious resource in Grand Canyon National Park. Quite simply, reclaimed water is wastewater that is treated and reused for a variety of purposes, such as drip irrigation and toilet flushing in the lodges, such as Grand Canyon’s Bright Angel Lodge. By reusing water about 4 million gallons of freshwater every year.

Eat Your Greens While Going Green

When you eat at Xanterra’s 56 restaurants, you can expect food that tastes good — and also does good. That’s because the eateries strive for 70% of food and beverages to be sourced locally (within 500 miles) and sustainably, while reducing chemical additives, saving water, reducing transportation, protecting local ecosystems, treating animals humanely, and reducing waste.

What’s more, only 40 (out of nearly 700) Certified Green Restaurants in North America hold the coveted, highest 4-star certification. And five of them are Xanterra-operated restaurants in Yellowstone, Grand Canyon, and Mount Rushmore.

The Big Stretch

Three of Windstar’s small, yacht-style cruise ships were audaciously lengthened and re-powered to improve their environmental performance on the high seas. Star Breeze, Star Legend, and Star Pride were each cut in two to insert a new middle section, which features more-efficient and less-polluting propulsion and generator engines along with new cabins and restaurants. This reduces fuel use and greenhouse gas emissions by about 20% per-passenger nautical mile. The ventilation systems on the three ships were also upgraded to include HEPA filters and UV-C disinfecting lights to purify the air. Plus, onboard incinerators were removed to eliminate their air emissions. It was a stretch, but it was worth it.

For more travel experiences available from the Xanterra Travel Collection® and its affiliated properties, visit xanterra.com/stories.