25 Jun Sustainable Tourism and Responsible Travel

Ensuring that tourism is truly sustainable – improving the lives of travellers and people in the destination communities – is a team effort. All the tourism system members must contribute in their own way to achieve the best possible outcomes.

Travellers must be part of the solution.

As Jane Goodall says, “ You cannot get through a single day without having an impact on the world around you. What you do makes a difference, and you have to decide what kind of difference you want to make”. Each traveller makes an impact – positive or negative –  and billions of trips make a difference to society, the environment, and the economy. Helping travellers understand the impacts they make and the ways they can positively contribute as they enjoy their travel is critical.

It is great to see research showing that travellers want to travel more sustainably. For instance, new research shows that 59% of travellers are committed to making more sustainable travel choices, according to Booking’s most recent Sustainable Travel Research Report.

Unfortunately, many travellers (7 in 10) feel overwhelmed starting the process of being a more sustainable traveller, according to Expedia’s Sustainable Travel Study. That is a great opportunity for the tourism system, particularly destination management organizations (DMOs).

The Travel Care Code Initiative is committed to supporting tourism sustainability through travellers. We have two objectives:

• Empower DMOs and other tourism organizations in their responsible travel programs. Responsible travel programs can be an important part of a destination’s overall sustainability efforts. TCCI has support materials, including the travel care code, designed to help destinations develop responsible travel programs.
• To help people travel more responsibly and in ways that have a positive impact on the places they visit.

Sustainability in the tourism system is a complex problem. It requires system change – both within tourism and beyond – as well as individual behavior change. Even so, travellers can be part of the solution, and the TCCI is working to support better travel behaviors.

For more information:

Visit the Travel Care Code

Check out the Booking.com Sustainable Travel Research Report here

Check out the Expedia Media Sustainable Travel Report here