What do you carry in your backpack?

At first glance, a backpack is just an object we use to carry the things we think we will need when we go on a holiday. But a backpack carries more than things. It carries our choices, our values, and what we stand for. In the end, the journey is not just about where we go, but how we walk through the world.
Sustainability is something we carry in every step we take. To help you make more conscious choices, the Portugal Outdoor Alliance (POA) developed the Touristic Footprint Index (TFI).

What is the TFI?

The TFI is an innovative tool that measures the real environmental, social, and economic impact of nature tourism in Portugal. Unlike many existing tools that only assess environmental impacts like the carbon footprint, the TFI offers a much more comprehensive view. We evaluate the impact of each tour through 15 specific indicators, organized into three main pillars:

How does it work?

Sustainability communication can often be vague, confusing, or full of technical jargon. Our goal is to speak with plain language and transparency, backing our statements with concrete, measurable data.

To make this easy to understand, the TFI translates complex sustainability data into a clear rating from ``Very Poor`` to ``Excellent`` (based on a numerical score from 0 to 5). This allows you to quickly assess the performance of different operators and tours, empowering you to make informed decisions.