Responsible Tourism

RESPONSIBLE TOURISM – Socially Conscious Travel

Responsible Tourism is about minimising the impact of tourism in relation to the environment, contributing to local economies, respecting and understanding cultures, preserving heritage and supporting the views and needs of local communities.

Responsible tourism affects everyone and everyone has a part to play.

Travel and tourism companies, operators and organisations are under pressure to act more responsibly.  All types of tourism, whether a niche market or mainstream, can and should be operated in a way that respects and benefits destinations and local people. Responsible tourism is not just the responsibility of big businesses.

It is a market trend that no tourism-related business can ignore. Responsible Tourism makes business sense because an ever-growing proportion of consumers are looking for a product that complies and with that comes the self-satisfaction of contributing.

It also implies that tourism businesses that practice Responsible Tourism will have a powerful competitive advantage over those who do not.  This may be particularly significant in the current economic climate.

Responsible Tourism is not just the responsibility of the travel and tourism providers, it is also about educating the consumers themselves.

Whilst we have seen that more and more people are becoming aware of Responsible Tourism, there are still those who are unaware of it, do not know how to become involved or what they can do for their part.

If you are a consumer and wish to know what you can do to be a more responsible traveller, then follow a few helpful tips.

There are also a number of publications available and websites to visit for much more information. See below.

For tourism businesses, then the place to be is the World Travel Market (09-12 November 2009, ExCel, London).

The World Travel Market is not open to the general public.

“Staged annually in London, World Travel Market is a vibrant must attend four day business to business event presenting a diverse range of destinations and industry sectors to UK and International travel professionals. It is a unique opportunity for the whole global travel trade to meet, network, negotiate and conduct business under one roof. By attending World Travel Market, participants efficiently, effectively and productively gain immediate competitive advantage for their business and stay abreast with the latest developments in the travel industry.” (WTM)

Wednesday 11 November is World Responsible Tourism Day which gives businesses a chance to learn more, become involved and debated issues.

Also on 11 November the Virgin Holidays Responsible Tourism Awards will be held.

The Responsible Tourism Awards were founded in 2004 by responsibletravel.com.

They run the Awards in partnership with The Daily Telegraph, Geographical Magazine, BBC World News, and World Travel Market. Virgin Holidays became headline sponsors of the Awards in 2007 and have continued to support ever since.

“The central tenet of the Awards is that all types of tourism – from niche to mainstream – can and should be operated in a way that respects and benefits destinations and local people. The Awards recognise individuals, companies and organisations in the travel industry that are making a significant commitment to the culture and economies of local communities and are providing a positive contribution to biodiversity conservation.

Our Responsible Tourism Awards are different from other awards schemes in that winners are nominated by tourists. One of the founding principles of the Awards is always to seek out new responsible tourism ventures that deserve to be celebrated and your nominations are fundamental to this process.

This is the 4^th year of the awards and sees growing numbers of nominations in the wake of people’s awareness of responsible tourism.” (responsibletravel.com)

The Judging Day for the Virgin Holidays Responsible Tourism Awards is now complete! You can read the short list at responsibletravel.com.

Useful links:

Global Sustainable Tourism Criteria

Carbon Offsetting

Useful publications:

The Ethical Travel Guide: Your Passport to Exciting Alternative Holidays

The Eco-Travel Handbook: A Complete Sourcebook for Business and Pleasure

Responsible Tourism: Critical Issues for Conservation and Development

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