A woman whizzed off on an extra long holiday at the expense of her work after signing up to a new scheme.
Amy Cameron managed to spend just 10 days of annual leave on a 12-day trip to Majorca because her company Glimpse is signed up to Climate Perks.
As she had foregone flights and booked herself onto a train instead, the creative ad agency agreed to extend her holiday with two extra paid days off.
The additional leave left the 36-year-old feeling like the extra cash she spent on the train over the cost of a flight was worth it, and not just because it's much better for the environment.
"You can actually enjoy the journey," Amy told The Mirror. "People make the mistake of swapping like for like and try and fire straight down to Barcelona on the train.
"You can do that, but I like to enjoy the journey. [My boyfriend and I] went in the evening from London to Paris, spent a night and had dinner there, and then went from Paris to Barcelona the next day where we had dinner before taking the overnight ferry to Majorca.
"We left on Thursday evening and arrived at 6am on Saturday. It was so nice.
"We turned the journey into part of the holiday. On the train from Paris to Barcelona we saw all the flamingos in the Camargue. There's also a restaurant car you can sit in."
Amy argues that taking the train is much more luxurious than going by plane because "flying hasn't been glamorous since the 80s".
She added: "People underestimate how long flying takes. In reality you have to get to the airport two hours before because it's never where your holiday is.
"Whereas I find when I travel by train I'm already on holiday when I get on."
In 2023 companies signed up to Climate Perks are expected to give just shy of 5,000 days of extra annual leave to employees who opt to take greener forms of transport to their holiday destinations.
Some of the firms which have signed up include Wholegrain Digital, Julie's Bicycle, Bristol Credit Union, Friends of the Earth, Direct Ferries, Triple Bottom Line Accounting, 39 Essex Chambers, the Brunel Museum and Third Sector Accounting.
Amy's company gives employees up to two days off, but there is no limit for how many extra leave employers can doll out.
Glimpse includes its Climate Perks policy in its job ads, something which serves as a draw for potential employees, Amy argues.
"The year before I went to a friend's wedding in south of France which took two days on the train," she recalled.
"I am lucky because I live in London and the Eurostar makes it easy to get to mainland Europe, and the trains are much cheaper there."
The people behind Climate Perks have argued that train travel will be an essential part of the UK’s efforts for cut carbon emissions by 68% below 1990 levels by 2030.
While companies may feel unable to pay staff more to go by rail rather than on more polluting planes, offering them extra time off is cheaper from a business point of view, and sweetens the green-deal for workers.
Hannah Bland, Climate Perks project manager at climate charity Possible, which runs the scheme, said: “Running the Climate Perks scheme has made me realise just how much people are willing to partake in, and enjoy, slow travel.
"As we face the impacts of the climate crisis, it’s important that people are empowered to take action.
"Through this scheme, people can take one small step that can be part of a broader movement away from flights that harm the planet.
"Quite simply, we need to fly less. And with Climate Perks, employees everywhere can do that.”
