Our Sustainability Policy

At BikesPlus, we are committed to operating our business in a sustainable and responsible manner. We strive to minimize the negative impact on the environment and local communities while leaving a positive imprint wherever we operate. This sustainability policy outlines our vision, mission, values, and operating principles to guide our actions towards a more sustainable future. 

First, a caveat: Travel, and specifically air travel, has high environmental impacts, specifically for long-haul travel. This sustainability policy therefore addresses the actions and policies we implement while travelers are on tour and within our internal company management.  

 

Our vision: to power dreams and meaningful connections through active and immersive travel. 

 

Our mission: We take care of the details for those who want to explore Europe by bicycle, in small groups, on their own or any other way they wish. From our base in Italy, we use our decades of experience, a vast network of local contacts, high quality equipment and exceptional cycling routes, to craft the memorable travel experiences you imagine. 

 

Our values:  

• Quality and Value: We are dedicated to delivering the highest quality services that exceed our travelers’ expectations. We ensure that the time, money, and energy our travelers invest in our services are worthwhile, fostering strong relationships between field and office staff and a high percentage of returning travelers. 
• Curiosity and Care: We embrace curiosity as a catalyst for exploration and transformation. By encouraging curiosity among our staff, tour leaders and travelers, we promote continuous learning about the world and its diverse cultures. Additionally, we recognize the importance of low-impact travel and strive to follow sustainable practices in our work to minimize our environmental footprint. 
• Honesty, Transparency, and Integrity: We value honesty and transparency in all our interactions. By maintaining open and trustworthy relationships with our travelers, partners, and ourselves, we build trust and credibility.  

• Active and Experiential Travel: We believe in the power of active travel to intimately connect with a destination using all senses. We cherish the power of physical movement and motion for health and well-being and feel that low impact travel amplifies the benefits of being active. 
• Independence and Teamwork: We appreciate the value of independence and individual schedules for our travelers and staff. At the same time, we recognize that teamwork strengthens our organization. By encouraging open communication, collaboration and teamwork, we aim to achieve the best of both worlds. 
• Community and Relationships: We acknowledge the importance of community and relationships in shaping our world. We feel rooted in our communities and strive to benefit and nurture our internal, local, and global communities. This involves valuing and respecting relationships with our team members, business partners, travelers, and the local communities and environments we travel through. We prioritize sustainability in our business practices to contribute to the well-being of our global community. 

 

Core Business: Our core business activities include: 

1. Guided and self-guided bicycle tours throughout Italy and Mediterranean Europe, for both individual customers (B2C) and businesses (B2B). 

1. Custom cycle, walking, and active tours throughout Italy and Europe. 

1. Design and operation of exclusive, immersive (non-active) travel packages in Italy for small groups and individuals. 

1. Bike, van, and bike tour equipment rental for groups and tour operators, with specialized delivery and collection services throughout Europe. 

 

Operating Principles: In designing and operating our trips and rental services, we adhere to the following principles: 

 

Minimize Impact: 

• In designing our tours we attempt to minimize as much as possible the (negative) impact we and our travelers have on the environment and local communities we travel through.  
• We strive to leave a positive impact in the communities we travel through. By engaging with local businesses, supporting community initiatives, and respecting local cultures and customs, we ensure that our travel activities contribute to the well-being of local communities. 
• We encourage paperless travel, providing digital vouchers and an app for navigation as opposed to printing maps and road books for our travelers to follow.  
• We include public transportation in our tours and reduce private transfers as much as possible; 

• We encourage travelers to use public transportation to arrive and depart from tours or travel areas;  
• We ensure that the delivery of our services is as fuel efficient as possible, limiting and grouping services to maximize efficiency and reduce travel as much as possible. 

 

Local Partnerships: 

• We prioritize working with locally owned and managed suppliers who meet all legal requirements; 
• We aim to build transparent, reliable and long-lasting relationships with partners and suppliers, ensuring fair prices for each party; 

• We commit to working extensively with our partners and suppliers on sustainability issues, sharing best practices, asking them to improve their sustainability policies and attempting to hold each other accountable 

 

Customer Experience: 

• We create experiences or facilitate moments that allow our travelers to truly connect with people, the history and culture of the destination and each other as they travel; 
• We provide high quality customer service from beginning to end. 

  

Internal: We recognize that sustainability extends beyond our tour operations and encompasses our daily office practices. Therefore, we have implemented the following initiatives within our office and warehouse: 

• Healthy Work Environment: We prioritize creating a healthy and sustainable work environment for our staff and tour leaders. This includes allowing flexible work hours, promoting indoor air quality, ensuring proper lighting and ergonomics, providing team building and social opportunities within and outside of work and encouraging physical and mental well-being among our team members. 
• Community Engagement: We actively contribute to the communities in which we work by participating in local events and volunteering with local organizations. By engaging with the community, we aim to build strong relationships and contribute to local initiatives that align with our sustainability goals. 
• Recycling Practices: We follow strict local recycling policies and procedures in all our offices by providing clearly labeled recycling bins to ensure that waste is properly sorted and disposed of. We encourage all staff members to actively participate in recycling efforts and raise awareness about the importance of waste reduction. 
• Reusable Flatware and Containers: In our office kitchen and dining areas, we provide ceramic reusable flatware and silverware. We encourage our staff members to bring their own food in reusable containers, reducing the use of single-use plastic or paper packaging. By promoting reusable practices, we aim to minimize waste generation and promote a circular economy. 

• Energy Efficiency: We prioritize energy efficiency in our office operations. This includes using energy-efficient lighting, appliances, and equipment, and implementing measures to reduce energy consumption, such as turning off lights and electronics when not in use. We are also exploring renewable energy options for powering our office spaces. 
• Paperless Practices: We aim to minimize our paper usage and promote paperless practices within our office by maximizing digital communication and documentation whenever possible.  
• Sustainable Procurement: We prefer to purchase office supplies and equipment from environmentally responsible suppliers and consider the environmental impact of the products we purchase, opting for recycled or eco-friendly options whenever available. Additionally, we promote responsible waste management for electronic devices and recycle them at the end of their lifecycle. In our bicycle mechanics shop, we use eco-friendly detergents for bicycle cleaning as much as possible, and reuse or donate bicycle parts. If we cannot donate parts, we properly dispose of them at the end of their lifecycle. 

 

By integrating these sustainability initiatives into our office and warehouse operations, we aim to reduce our environmental footprint, promote a culture of sustainability among our staff, and contribute positively to the communities in which we operate.