Green Maps will Explore World's Greenest Cities

Granada, Cordoba and Seville by train: Andalucia

A series of green maps is now available showing environmentally-friendly places to visit in cities around the world. Over 175 guides have been published as part of an international Green Map System, a New York-based organisation that promotes eco-friendly urban living.

Craig Simmons, coordinator of the Oxford Green Map, said the idea is to include eco-friendly places of interest that aren't usually shown on tourist maps, such as punting facilities, cycle tracks and bike hire shops. The maps offer some surprises. Sheffield, for example, is ripe with organic shops, green groups and green university projects. The maps cost around £2 and are available from tourist information centres and local bookshops or can be downloaded from the website for free.

The Toronto Green Tourism Association published one of the first guides, The Other Guide To Toronto (Can$16.95; greentourism.ca2), which shows that even a big city has its green and tender side, including the eco-chic Fairmont Royal York Hotel, an organic brewery in the downtown Distillery district and Tommy Thompson Park - a 5km peninsula where you may catch sight of migratory birds.

Other green city maps include Dublin, Paris, Barcelona, Malmö and Wellington. For details, see greenmap.org.

Greentraveller lists a range of City Breaks within Europe, including trips to Andalucia, Lille, Florence and Barcelona. The Short City Break in Lille, for example, explores what has quickly become one of Europe's most interesting and dynamic cities. Whether you're interested in art, architecture, gastronomy or shopping, Lille is a great choice for a green weekend away. 

Buy tickets for trains to Lille

This article, by Richard Hammond, was first published in the Guardian.