While ecotourism should always be sustainable, not all examples of sustainable tourism are ecotourism. For example, you might take a train to stay in a sustainably powered lodge.
On their website, Sustaining Tourism state that international tourist arrivals have increased from 25 million in to 1. There are a few main ways we can look at the positive impacts of the tourism industry. We can start by looking at the social and cultural benefits , before moving on to study the environmental benefits. This will provide us with some well-rounded insights into different key areas. The negative socio-cultural impacts of tourism can vary heavily depending on location and culture, but there are definitely some patterns that repeatedly show themselves.
Our open step by Coventry University suggests three things that can happen:. As discussed in our open step by Coventry University, there are two main ways that tourism can negatively impact the environment: through the development of the area, or through the behaviour of tourists.
Some examples of both include:. As tourists ourselves, many of us prefer to visit places that are clean, not too crowded, and safe. We also usually want to preserve local cultures, traditions, religions, and buildings, rather than experience an inauthentic ploy for money. Therefore, we all have a lot to gain from alternative forms of tourism , including sustainable forms. The best places for sustainable tourism to be developed are regions with natural resources, landscapes, or cultural buildings — all features that attract tourists who might want to explore and admire local destinations and cultures in an environmentally friendly way.
You can learn more about what makes a tourist destination so attractive in our Placemaking and Public Space Design: Unlocking Tourist Destinations course by the Lulea University of Technology.
These will help to demonstrate the ways in which sustainable tourism can provide a solution to some of the global challenges facing the industry today:. One example of sustainable tourism is the Six Senses Fiji resort, which is powered solely on solar power, recycles rainwater, runs on a low-waste model, and uses handiwork such as furnishings and artwork created by local villagers.
However, this is obviously a high-budget type of experience. For something simple, how about organising a self-sufficient camping trip, choosing sites accessible by train or bike? One kind of sustainable tourism is rural tourism, which you can read about in more detail in our open step by Coventry University. It must occur outside of an urban environment and tends to focus on actively participating in a rural lifestyle.
With rural tourism, tourists tend to stay with local people, understand their lifestyles, and even help out with manual labour. In a similar vein, community tourism can also be a great example of sustainable tourism. After all, when we talk about sustainability, we involve all living beings on the planet into the discussion. Some countries around the world have been putting a lot of effort to become a more sustainable destination.
In my opinion Bhutan , is the best example. Did you know that Bhutan is the only country in the world considered carbon negative? Tourism in Bhutan is well controlled, in addition to requiring a visa, a daily fee of USD to USD is charged, which already includes a minimum of a 3-star hotel, tour, and meals.
Much of this fee goes to environment preservation and social development projects. A more complete list would include more countries such as New Zealand , Norway , Seychelles and others.
I was not always a responsible traveler , the awareness of the impacts that my travels can have on the environment and society hit my life only in , during a 5-month trip that I took.
But the key experience that made me decide to learn more about sustainable tourism was when I saw a lot of trash on paradisiacal beaches in the Maldives and I found out that tourism is one of the main responsible for this. After returning to Brazil, I started to research about the topic and I also started to share what I was learning on my social media. How about you? How sustainable tourism came into your life? And what are your questions about it? These include: overcrowding, the destruction of heritage and the environment, globalisation, detrimental social change and many others.
Thankfully, more and more tourism destinations and enterprises are focusing on becoming more sustainable and encouraging responsible tourism. Green tourism has been used interchangeably with such concepts as ecotourism, nature tourism, responsible tourism and rural tourism.
Moreover, international organizations have defined the notion in line with the concept of sustainable tourism, which also considers other dimensions than environmental protection. But why should you try to engage in green tourism? Besides the fact that your actions will be contributing positively, there are some great benefits of sustainable tourism.
Firstly, green tourism supports local communities. Particularly, responsible tourism generates greater economic benefits for local people and enhances the well-being of host communities, improves working conditions and access to the industry. Secondly, sustainable tourism has a lower ecological impact.
On the one hand, part of green tourism is eating local produce and food from local businesses. On the other, importing food comes at a huge cost — economically and environmentally.
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