Visiting a Nation’s Vacation location? Many of our guests enjoy bringing home a keepsake from one of the park stores. While Nation’s Vacation and our parks are committed to sustainable practices 365 days a year, we wanted to feature environmentally friendly products offered in many of our gift shops in celebration of Earth Day. The products that are available are not just unique and memorable, in many cases, the manufacturers represent quality domestic companies, which are committed to continuously improving their products while also having a positive impact on the environment.

Kastlfel Tees and Hats

A great way to share your adventure is by wearing a stylish t-shirt or hat emblazoned with a nod to the park. These are made from recycled polyester from plastic bottles as well as transitional cotton – grown pesticide-free, using low-impact dyes that save water, and made with an eco-efficient production process that reduces waste, reduces materials, and saves energy and water.

Capsco Drinkware

One important way to contribute to the environment when visiting a state or national park is to use a reusable water bottle throughout your stay. In the Nation’s Vacation retail locations, you can select from stainless steel mugs and cups as well as water bottles that are upcycled from single-use plastic water bottles and milk jugs. In fact, just one of these upcycled water bottles removes 6 single-use water bottles or a milk jug from the waste stream!

Stuffed Animal House

A plush toy is a perfect gift for someone little – or not so little. These furry friends – ranging from bears to buffalos to Bigfoot – are made from plush recycled polyester fill made from water bottles and are even shipped in recycled content bags and boxes. In an effort to make their environmental footprint even smaller, the facial details on the animals (eyes, noses) are now being made through embroidery instead of by using plastic.

Dust City Wood Stickers 

This Colorado company creates stickers that are wood-based, eco-friendly and recyclable. The stickers are made from only Forest Stewardship Council (FSC) Certified sustainably grown and harvested wood from domestic tree farms. Not only is the material sourced in the USA, the stickers are made in Denver, Colorado. The designs are fresh and fun and make the perfect addition to your water bottle, laptop and more. 

These are just a few of the unique items found in park stores. In addition to helping us to communicate sustainability programs in the park, they also allow our guests to reduce the amount of waste they are creating while they are recreating in the park. Our retail stores have also contributed to zero-waste programs in our National Parks by working with suppliers to have them reduce and eliminate packaging when these items are shipped to the parks. So, if you are needing to take some time off of the trail, be sure to look for these reusable and sustainable items during your next park visit.