Can Europe's 'flight shaming' movement work in Asia?

It may be (much) slower but train travel gives a lot more back

Leaving Bangkok - Andrew Benfield smaller.png

The author leaves Bangkok by train, beginning his 1,800-kilometer journey to Singapore. (All photos by Andrew Benfield)

ANDREW BENFIELD, Contributing writer

I did a double take as I scanned the departures board at Bangkok's Krung Thep Aphiwat railway station. Unfortunately, I had not made a mistake -- my first taste of flygskam really was going to start with 21 hours on a train.

Though it might sound like a tasty Scandinavian snack, flygskam is Swedish for "flight shame," a movement that encourages people to ditch air travel to save the planet. The movement is said to have contributed to a downward trend in flying in Europe, although the post-COVID-19 travel boom is pushing back against that.

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