Yo, Ho, Ho and 41 000 (reusable) bottles of Water

Grasshopper Adventures & Refill Not Landfill have distributed over 41 000 reusable water bottles together

Every year Grasshopper Adventures welcomes thousands of travelers from around the world. They trust us to show them the best of Asia and make the most of their holidays. As such, we have a responsibility not only to educate our customers about local customs and culture but also ensure their trip has minimal impact on the environment. 

According to Refill Not Landfill, these visitors will consume an average of two liters of water per day, many from half-liter or liter bottles. Millions of tourists fly to Asia every year, spending an average of 6.8 days,  so the math quickly becomes astronomical. In 2015, it was estimated that tourists in Cambodia alone were using about 10 million single-use plastic bottles a month!

In fact, it was out of this concern that Refill Not Landfill was founded in 2016 by Christian de Boer (Jaya House Hotels) and Dean McLachlan (JustRide Motorbike Adventures).  Revolutionizing tourists' water consumption in Cambodia was their initial goal. Since then though, it has quickly spread well beyond the Kingdom’s borders. 

Today, Refill Not Landfill is a global campaign with partners on several continents. They all aimed at reducing single-use plastic drinking bottles and other single-use plastic waste. People carrying Refill Not Landfill branded bottles have the possibility to refill their bottles, for free, at any of the partners’ establishments. And of course, this includes all of Grasshopper Adventures Day Tour locations in Cambodia, Myanmar, Thailand and Laos. 

Well aware of the ongoing plastic crisis, it was a no-brainer for us to partner with Refill Not Landfill. They approached us in 2017 and we haven’t looked back since becoming on of their most important distribution channels. In total, we have distributed well over 41 000 water bottles (and counting) across Asia. This represents a potential saving of 175,200,000 plastic bottles over the next four years* and a small army of environmentally conscious travelers.

Indeed, our efforts do not stop at handing out bottles. We make a point on each of our tours to brief customers about the negative impact of single-use plastic bottles. We encourage them to refill their water bottles throughout their stay in Asia and to stay clear of single-use plastic.

Explore Asia with us

The road ahead is still long. However, we believe that everyone has their part to play and we are glad to lead the way. Whether it is by promoting the use of refillable bottles or giving travelers the opportunity to lower their carbon footprint while traveling, Grasshopper Adventures is and always will be there to lead by example. After all, as Mandela said: “it always seems impossible until it’s done.”

Find refilling stations here.

*One refillable bottle can last up to four years or more. Even assuming a life span of just three years, a single bottle can replace as many as 4,380 plastic bottles.