Not-for-profit, sustainable travel company Good Journey says it is trying to change the way the world travels, one small step at a time – starting right here in the UK
In a world that’s buckling under the weight of climate change and global heating, now more than ever, it’s important to find sustainable alternatives for your lifestyle wherever possible.
One major contributor to the global climate crisis is travel — and how you travel is immeasurably important.
That’s where Good Journey comes in: this not-for-profit, sustainable travel company is trying to change the way the world travels, one small step at a time – starting from the UK.
Championing car-free leisure travel across the UK, the independent organisation founded by Nat Taplin launched in 2018, with the support of a coalition of conservation and transport organisations. Good Journey actively promotes green travel and is built on the ethos of widening sustainable visitor travel across the UK and to broaden access to culture, heritage and leisure to everyone — not just those with a car.
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Speaking exclusively to Mirror Travel, Good Journey’s founder and director Nat Taplin, and newly appointed CEO Louise Dando, shared the company’s story.
“We believe everyone should have access to culture, leisure and nature, without needing a car. We want every visitor attraction in the UK to welcome people by train, bus, bike, and foot and to give everyone the confidence to choose to travel car-free for their leisure time. We believe the ‘getting there’ can and should be part of the whole day-out adventure. Travelling by train or bus in the company of friends and family, or wheeling and walking can be part of the experience itself,” they told the Mirror.
According to Good Journey, around half of all CO2 emissions from tourist attractions come from visitors’ cars. Getting more visitors to arrive by bus, train, bike, or foot is therefore key to cutting those carbon emissions. The non-profit organization also hopes to open up access for the 22 percent of UK households without a car (roughly 15 million people).
In 2024, Good Journey worked towards making tourism greener in Suffolk, welcomed 10 Peak District attractions, and aided 35 National Trust properties in boosting green travel.
The Good Journey website currently features more than 500 attractions across England, Wales and Scotland that you can reach car-free, each with detailed travel instructions and a door-to-door journey planner to the point where whether walking routes have pavements or even bus shelters to take refuge if it’s raining, are pointed out. Available kid’s activities, places for shelter in case of bad weather, and views to look out for on your walk or train ride are also meticulously pointed out. The website can be used to search for discounted train tickets and quieter cycling routes as well.
Their members are made up of tourism businesses and attractions who are encouraged to offer rewards for car-free visitors, such as money off entry, a free hot drink, or discounts in the shop and café of the attraction.
“We’ve kept our costs as low as possible – starting at just £75 for the smallest attractions. There’s a 20 per cent discount if a business signs up for two years. There are also discounts available for multi-site attractions. We also offer to the businesses expert-led webinars, tips and advice to help them grow the number of visitors arriving car-free and to support them as they build their green and inclusive travel plans.”
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Working with the support of travel partners such as Traveline (who provide Good Journey’s train and bus planning tools), people can also sign up to receive the regular free newsletter which contains inspirations for places to visit, highlights offers and rewards. The Good Journey website is also free to access for all.
Some rewards and offers offered by the travel firm include:
- 30 per cent off at five RHS gardens across the UK for visitors who arrive by train, bus, bike or foot.
- A free hot drink at National Trust properties including Cotehele, Trelissick, Tinkley Gate, Woodchester Park, Lacock, Dunstable Downs and Whipsnade Estate, Anglesey Abbey, Sutton Hoo, Kedleston Hall, Wightwick Manor and Gardens, and Sizergh.
- 50% off at RSPB Leighton Moss when you go by bus, bike or train
- 20% off a ‘Bridgerton’ walking tour of Bath when you arrive by train
Some of the more unusual rewards on offer by Good Journey for visitors who travel car-free include:
● A gift of seasonal produce such as flower seeds from the garden, freshly harvested apples, a plant, or a bag of flour from the watermill at Acorn Bank, Lake District
● A hygiene pack containing gloves and a balaclava for whizzing round the track at Anglia Indoor Karting, Suffolk
● A locally-sourced breakfast box delivered to the door of your shepherd hut when you stay at Romney Marsh Shepherds Huts, Kent
● A refreshing apple juice from the orchards at Norfolk’s Drove Orchards when you travel by bus
● You can watch plays at five theatres across Newcastle without paying for your transport to get there
● £50 off your stay at Rail Holiday’s restored vintage railway carriages in Cornwall
● Your choice of a second-hand book at Killerton and four books from A la Ronde, both National Trust properties in Devon
As a direct result of Good Journey’s collaborative efforts, Blenheim Palace in Oxfordshire has gained 25,000 more car-free visitors in just two years. Up to 500 people a week use Good Journey to plan car-free travel to Blenheim. Visitors enjoy a 20 per cent discount when they arrive at Blenheim Palace by train, bus or bike – that’s a saving of over £8 per adult.
Another successful Good Journey collaboration has been with the National Trust. Like many other heritage organisations, the National Trust sees the vast majority of its visitors arriving by car. In 2024, the Trust ran a pilot project with Good Journey to explore how people felt about greener travel and set out on figuring out how to enable visitors to reach 34 of its properties car-free.
They created bespoke web pages for each property on the Good Journey website with detailed travel directions. National Trust staff and volunteers created trails through the grounds from the bus stop, improved walking routes, installed bike racks and provided a warm welcome (using locally sourced and recycled materials where possible). Participating properties offered worthwhile rewards for choosing to travel car-free, such as a discount on entry or a free hot drink.
The result?
There was initially no bus service to National Trust Wallington before they began trialling a free seasonal bus. In 2024, it was used by 800 people. Eight out of 10 people said it was their only way to visit. The bus stops along the route give local communities an improved service to and from Newcastle. The entry fees and visitor spend generated by the bus passengers now outweigh the cost of providing the service.
The project has also been shortlisted for the 2025 Sustainable Project of the Year Award at the Museums and Heritage Awards.
Marketing Campaigns Manager at Visit Peak District & Derbyshire, Rachel Briody said: “We’re delighted to be working with Good Journey offering memberships for local visitor attractions to highlight how easy it is to travel around the Peak District on public transport. Good Journey is a great platform which allows potential visitors to clearly plan a car free journey for their trip.”