 Obviously this will be a big challenging year for the world. And a very big year for the travel industry. In fact an enormous year for sustainable tourism. You may be aware that the G7 has just met in the UK and COP26 will meet later this year. Look at the enormous issues that the G7 is now confronting:
Obviously it would greatly benefit any wise travel agent to know more about all of these issues and understand their personal opportunities. All these issues are reviewed from a tourism perspective and to your advantage in our this year’s Sustainable Tourism Report. The report also includes other major sections on sustainable tourism which can help you understand creating Sustainable Tourism for Success, the Food Tourism Opportunity, the Experience Economy Opportunity the Virtual Tourism Opportunity, surging Carbon Market Opportunities, how to combat Greenwash and Fairwash - and more. Plus.. it comes with 6 in depth 30-minute podcast interviews specifically about sustainable tourism opportunities with the senior tourism advisor at the World Bank, the boss of the Global Sustainable Tourism Council, the CSR boss at ITB Berlin, the boss of Green Destinations, Prof Geoffrey Lipman and a multi-award winning tour operator. Normally the report sells for £200/$285/€235 Single (non distributable) copies £100/$145/€115 As a travel business YOU can buy the report plus the podcasts NOW for just £10/$14.5/€11.5 Buy it now click HERE Valere Tjolle Publisher - Sustainable Tourism Report Www. SustainableTourismReport.com Facebook.com/sustainabletourismreport @tourismreport PS Why not find out more about our own groundbreaking Italian sustainable tourism initiative Www.bestofromagna.com And our fascinating and funny book about the travel industry You Lucky People - available on Amazon.
0 Comments
6/3/2021 Travel Agents: You could earn more, have a better life and do lots of good for your clients and the planet. How?Read Now  Travel Agents this may be your big opportunity Valere Tjolle A little about me to start! I’ve been in the travel industry since I was a kid. First I worked for my dad’s tiny tour operator, then in a full service travel agency, followed by a spell in a big DMC then a country specific tour operator then back to a local travel agency. I spent the next 20 years building up a niche tour operator to 120,000 pax per year, 500 staff and 6 destination offices. I sold out to a big UK television company. In 1992 - the year of the Earth Summit - I got the sustainable bug - learnt about it and started advising and running projects for the like of USAID, the World Bank, the European Union countries like Uganda and independent companies. In 2003 I began publishing the annual Sustainable Tourism Report and 2 years later became Sustainable Tourism Editor for TravelMole.com - the world’s biggest travel industry resource. I also worked for the UN World Tourism Organisation particularly in Central Asia, particularly in sustainable tourism. Next in 2011 I set up Best of Romagna in the heart of Italy with its fabulous seasonal local food and wine, respect for culture and history and full-on greenness as a sustainable destination operator. In both 2016 and 2017 we were proud to gain a place in the Worlds Top 100 Sustainable Destinations. All of this experience and knowledge is at your disposal. We all know the world has changed in the last 50 years - nasty things happen. But the more nasty things the more opportunities for true sustainability and the more opportunities for good travel agents and tour operators - YOU in other words. The key to survival and true empowerment is not denial of the horrible issues - like the increasing number of refugees, poverty, hijacking airplanes, modern slavery and people trafficking, the environment and coronavirus, destination social problems. And there are big time plusses coming up - all identified in the latest report from experiential travel to food and wine tourism. To give all our clients the very best, we really need to be aware of the problems, avoid them and give our clients really good sustainable solutions - in other words worthwhile travel experiences that make everybody’s lives better and don’t leave a bad taste - ever, anywhere. The fact is that you could earn more, have a better life and do lots of good for your clients and the planet. How? Why not read this year’s Sustainable Tourism Report and listen to its 6 fascinating podcasts it will fill you with great ideas and enthusiasm - as a travel agent I’ll give you a 90% discount here. For something lighter read my story - YOU LUCKY PEOPLE - it’s on Amazon as a kindle or hard copy. And if you want to see how you can really benefit why not join a FAM/INSPECTION TRIP to the Heart of Italy. Here is what just a few of our FAM professional travel agents have said!  CLICK TO WATCH VIDEO INTERVIEW  Amy from Planethoppers jumping for joy! YOU WILL BE TOO!  Start by getting an exclusive travel agent 90% discount on the revered Sustainable Tourism Report We believe that travel agents and tour operators are at the very heart and soul of the global tourism industry. It is them (you!) that provide the energy that makes the world of travel work. It is you that provides the direct connections with destination visitors, it is you that provide the information necessary to have brilliant visits. And it is you that have the most to gain from sustainable tourism in all its forms - economic, environmental, social and cultural.  As you may know, we have been writing about sustainable tourism since 1992, producing the Sustainable Tourism Report annually since 2003 and have set up The Best of Romagna in 2012 just to show how rewarding sustainable tourism can be. Best of Romagna got its first award (being selected as one of the world’s top 100 sustainable destinations) in 2016 and our second in 2017.
Here are two big opportunities for you to benefit in 2021:
Join our Linkedin community: HERE Follow us on Facebook: www.facebook.com/SustainableTourismReport @SustainableTourismReport  2021 Tourism will be all about big money - Carbon Market and Destination Monetisation will change the tourism world while little operators and interpretation/virtual tourism will satisfy tourist’s hunger for new experiences...
The Carbon Market: don’t throw out the doable good in favour of the unattainable perfect. Ex Bank of England chief Carney says global market is imperative and EUETS is a good model - $100bn a year size immediate potential. Read more in www.SustainableTourismReport.com Sustainable Tourism Radio: I’ve done a series of fascinating in depth interviews with top global tourism executives from the World Bank/IFC; GSTC; ITB; Green Destinations; SunX; and more. You can listen to them here https://www.bathradio.org.uk/the-future-of-travel Massive funding for destinations in 2021+ Canny destinations could capitalise their assets, protect and monetise their intellectual property and realise €$£ BILLIONS for sustainable, harmonious development. Read more in the www.SustainableTourismReport.com Read You Lucky People It’s fun, factual and all about the joy of tourism REALITY! Get a FREE taste at http://www.youluckypeople.com/news--stories This is the way tourism marketing is going in 2021! Destination-focused, highly researched, customer value, source market based, sustainable tourism ethos, high level of hand holding interpretation/value added. Example: www.BestofRomagna.com Survey: Travellers hungry for new tourism experiences: Read more: https://news.gtp.gr/2021/02/02/survey-travelers-hungry-new-tourism-experiences/  Just think lots and lots of beautifully-created active profit centres delivering satisfaction and sustainability! The Experience Economy will give you higher profits, better, more satisfied clients, more destination sustainability, more creative employment opportunities. Be like Disney but better! Think creating beautiful profit centres. Read about it in the 2021 Sustainable Tourism Report.HERE The Tourism Industry has no barriers to entry - it has opportunities for all, regardless of race, class, religion, orientation, homeland, access. Read about how it REALLY works in practice - in You Lucky People - this week's episode "My Big Fat Romagnolo Birthday Party here. Six informed key global tourism executives discuss tourism - the past, present and FUTURE in depth radio interviews start this week on Bath Radio. Listen HERE And the icing on the cake for Travel Agents? Brilliant Best of Romagna FAM experiences later in 2021 HERE Have a great, fulfilling profitable and sustainable week! Valere  17th Annual Report now released for travel agents, destinations, students One of the events that affected me most last year was an art exhibition called ‘Tour Operator’ created by Italian artist Massimo Sansavini. All the works of art on display were made of bits of the boats which carried refugees to Sicily. Each artwork had a web page attached showing how big the boat was, how many refugees it carried and how many died in transit. More than anything it showed me how inextricably travel - the business of dreams - is related to the real world. In the real world... the pandemic is still not under control, populist authoritarian regimes are spreading like wildfire, LBGTQ, women, minorities of all kinds are still discriminated against, there are still over 26 million refugees, human rights and workers’ rights are consistently infringed in tourism, over 40 million human beings are still held in some kind of modern slavery... and a climate disaster is already upon us. Although the writing has been on the wall for nearly forty years, the global travel and tourism industry, with notable exceptions, has paid little but lip service to sustainability until now. Now it’s all change. There are three forces that have the power to change the global travel and tourism industry dramatically - the market, big money and cohesive powerful global government action. In 2021 these forces will be in a dynamic conjunction. The market has already indicated that sustainable tourism will be number one; Governments are lining up behind the Paris Accord on Climate Change outbidding each other in emissions reductions and many trillions are now in a burgeoning global Carbon Market. The timeline has been painful but it looks like, finally, sustainability and tourism may merge to form a truly durable activity. This will create enormous changes. As the global carbon market grows - now powered by a group of people led by ex Bank of England Governor Mark Carney - finally the airlines will have to ditch toothless CORSIA for a tough financial solution. As far as emissions are concerned (and airlines represent 80% of travel emissions) they will have to cut their cloth to fit their flights. All the forecasts now show that the market will require sustainable tourism practices from season 2021. Clients will look for valid confirmation that their suppliers are actually practising what they preach - they have had enough of fake news - they will not tolerate greenwash. And now it looks like a change of direction is taking place and the USA will rejoin the Paris Accord - this will mean that our global vision will change. Destinations will attract massive new funding from global institutions seeking to promote their sustainability credentials. This will enable them to fulfil visitor demand for sustainable local initiatives - in particular food and drink, artisan and produce related. The Experience Economy will change our destinations for the better and offer locals quality employment opportunities creating places that are good to live in and to visit. Visitors will get a healthier, wider, more fulfilling experiences. But watch out for China - their trillion dollar Silk Road - now the One Belt One Road infrastructure project may change tourism in a less beautiful way. We’ve got a long way to go but we could still get there if we choose not to treat our clients as numbers. I’ve asked some friends to help us understand the plethora of information and projections that are swirling around us confusing 2021. So report subscribers will be treated to six big podcasts. Each a full thirty minute interview with a globally important, powerful and informed individual. Each with a big story. People I’ve known for years.  In the 2021 Sustainable Tourism Report you’ll read something of tourism’s past, a little of its present and a lot of its potential future. That’s largely because 2020 held very little present - that had been taken by COVID 19 and governments’ measures against it. Something like 90% of tourism activity wiped out. In the report we deal with with the subjects that will certainly be of critical importance in 2021 and those that will present the biggest, most sustainable opportunities. Best to understand them now! Sustainable Tourism is the 38-year-old big issue of 2021 the subject embodies everything that is really important about tourism. We’ve been writing about it specifically for over 20 years. The issue hasn’t changed but it is more important than ever as is sustainable tourism’s dark side - Greenwash and Fairwash - we published the definitive report 10 years ago. This cynical meretricious practice hadn’t changed either, except to get more malicious. Now we’re in the grips of the pandemic which has stopped tourism and its side effects, but not for long. Maybe its time for something different, less harmful and more fulfilling, can Virtual Tourism help? Can the Experience Economy make holidays both more sustainable and more fulfilling - plus more truly profitable? What dangers are there on the horizon? Is China’s Silk Road a massive tourism takeover or an opportunity and the Carbon Market is it trillion dollar greenwash or a massive opportunity? Finally, in this report we explore truly new and amazing structural and financial opportunities for Destinations and the delectable opportunity that Food Tourism presents. Plus for the first time each report subscription includes six exclusive 30 minute informative podcast interviews, each an in depth talk with a truly powerful global tourism executive. The World Bank and IFC; the GSTC, Green Destinations; ITB, SunX, and one of the world’s top sustainable destinations - they are all there  I hope you enjoy. More importantly I know this report will inform your actions. To find out more click HERE Valere Tjolle Valere Tjolle was for 15 years the sustainable tourism editor for TravelMole.com, the world's largest global online community for the travel and tourism industry. He is now an independent commentator and CEO of Tourism Vision Ltd. As principal of TotemTourism consultancy for the last 18 years Valere has specialized in the ethical development and marketing of sustainable tourism projects. Projects have included tourism developments in Africa, USA, UK and Eastern Europe for clients as diverse as the European Union, the World Bank, UNWTO, UNEP, the Department for International Development and local and international travel and tourism entrepreneurs. Valere has published the Sustainable Tourism Report Suite since its inception in 2003. The Sustainable Tourism Report has been published annually since 2003. Subscribers include: Club Med, Ecole Hoteliere de Lausanne, Rezidor Hotel Group, Northern Ireland Tourist Board, University of Brighton, Tourism Ireland, The Nature Conservancy, Cleaner Climate, Virgin Group, Micato Safaris, Hilton Hotels Corp, Visit Britain, Canada Tourism, Tourism Innovation Group, Dublin Institute of Technology, Sabre Holdings, EplerWood Consultancy, Nichols Tourism Group, The Adventure Company, Exclusively Canada, University of Wales, University of Guelph, Sustainable Side of the Street, IFC, Discover Ltd, Griffith University, Australia, Yukon Tourist Board, Ipswich College, Prince of Wales International Business Leaders Forum, The Tourism Company, Citizen Development Corps, University of Hertfordshire, Disney Corp, Anglia Ruskin University, Kidderminster College, Olive Green Group, Six Senses Group, and many, many more. The new world of tourism opportunities
If you ever wanted to make a fulfilling success in the travel and tourism industry now is the time If we are to continue, or begin to make a success in tourism obviously we need to know what the geography of the whole territory is; where we can find a profitable place in it; and what the short, medium and long term opportunities are. So it is really important to understand how the travel and tourism industry works now and going forward. Who are the players and what do they do? King or Queen of the whole industry is and has always been the client, personal, corporate or organisational. Obviously they all want value above all. And the industry responds with better and better, cheaper and cheaper offers. Like cheap food, cheap booze and cheap drugs, cheap travel is very addictive - and very wasteful. The crowd of supplicants seeking to fulfil the clients’ perceived needs range from local travel agents through upmarket personal travel agents to modern day massive price cutting online travel agents. None of these are principals - in other words they own nothing, they just work on a commission basis. They seek to take clients hostage one way or the other. It also includes tour operators who create specific holidays with or without specialities, often have a stake in the game (hotels, cruise ships, DMCs and sell their products through travel agents and direct to clients. Our supplicant crowd also numbers those players who really have a big stake in the game and want to bye-pass the commission agents going direct to clients and save payments to intermediaries. They include airlines (particularly low cost carriers) and hotels/hotel groups. Our supplicant crowd is also served by their own supplicant crowd made up of transport companies and destination services - hotels, destination travel agents (usually known as DMCs - Destination Management Companies) plus, of course the DMOs - local tourist boards. There are also of course country tourism marketing organisations whose job is to market their destinations. Having made their choices the client arrives at their destination and there is served by a wide range of destination facilities - hotels, travel agents, tourist guides, tourist attractions etc. So that is basically how it works. Now, in 2020, because of COVID 19, the whole global industry has faltered. In terms of international numbers of clients from the 2019 pinnacle of 1.5 billion, we’re back at the 500 million of 1992. For domestic tourism - people who stay in their own country (staycations etc) - figures are difficult to access but the global number is probably down from about 7.5 billion to 2.5 billion. So where do we go now? Where are the opportunities? For established participants? For new entrants? Be absolutely 100% sure - THERE ARE NOW LUCRATIVE, SUSTAINABLE OPPORTUNITIES and for everybody. Opportunities that are a precise fit for 2021. Opportunities for accommodation, destination attractions, destination guides, travel agents (new and old) tour packagers - and in completely new travel-related industries. The Sustainable Tourism Report 2021 will be full of them. It will be published on 5 November 2020 it will cost £200. Subscribe for a review copy now for just £20. GET IT NOW HERE We’ve been successfully identifying and explaining opportunities and trends since 2003 - from the OTA’s to the “Sharing Economy” to the “Experience Economy” we were there first. Valere Tjolle What they say about the Sustainable tourism Report: "The suite of reports is brilliant. Packed full of facts from: across the sector, worldwide cases and by a range of stakeholders. A great way to keep up to date with major issues of sustainable tourism and provide my tourism students with knowledge to underpin critical thinking and employability." Dr Angela M Benson Principal Lecturer - Sustainable Tourism Development Adjunct Associate Professor University of Canberra, Australia "What a great read! Whether you are a consumer, travel agent, tour operator or tourism board, this guide provides sage perspective and relevant examples that ultimately will help propel the entire travel industry forward!" Greenloons "Just finished with reading the Sustainable Tourism Marketing Guide. It provides a both comprehensive and detailed approach focussing in particular on destinations. What I liked most is an excellently presented genesis of modern tourism which I think is crucial for the understanding of sustainable travel. The guide builds a step-by-step understanding of basic underlying concepts, implementation and best practice. I learned a lot!" Lorenz Töpperwien @tourBlogging "Totem"s Sustainable Tourism Report provides a refreshing and no-nonsense guide to understanding sustainable tourism and how it sits against the backdrop of global issues we face today. With easy-to-read marketing strategies and lists of key players in the industry, it will assist any tourism stakeholder who wishes to transition to sustainability." Cherie McClosker, advocate of Phillipines Fair Trade: "I would like to tell you how much I enjoyed your Sustainable Tourism Report 2008. Not only was it an excellent distillation of the current state of a rather vast domain, but it also conveyed -- thanks to your editorial style -- the confusion, urgency, and in some cases irony of our situation at this point. I so enjoyed your tone and point of view". Linda Rivero - Peace Through Travel: "Thanks for producing such a fine report. I would like to put up a link from my website to an abstract or summary of your report, so that visitors to my website can order it I have finally had an opportunity to read your fine report. I loved your description of the Tourism Development Master Plan … will they ever get there? I wish you lived next door so that we could have a really good chat!" Kate Daniel of Journeys Ahead "A must-read for those working in sustainability and for colleagues that you're seeking to engage." Simon Pickup Sustainable Tourism Manager - ABTA "Again struck just the right balance between informing on international policy development; the latest trends in sustainable tourism practice and innovative developments in the private sector. "'¨ Cape Town Tourism "The Totem Annual Sustainable Tourism Report is the most comprehensive resource of its kind. It seems to hit the hot topics every year and gives me food for thought whilst providing concrete links to further indepth content. An important publication." Chris McHugo Chairman Discover Ltd owners of the Kasbah Du Toubkal, Marrakech, Morocco "The Sustainable Tourism Report helps us to share interesting and topical issues with our teams world-wide, keeping them up to date with news and developments in sustainability. They are also great to keep as reference documents and are stored in our online sustainability library providing easy access for all Thomas Cook employees." Jo Baddeley, Sustainable Destinations Manager Thomas Cook UK & Ireland "This is a really useful resource for any 'not for profit' membership organisation like us to be able to share with members. It clearly identifies the key issues and trends of increasing importance to visitors as well as providing some great examples of 'best practice' and case studies. In short there is something for everyone - whatever their size and wherever they are on the sustainability continuum." Eva McDiarmid The Association of Scottish Visitor Attractions STR subscribers include: The report is specifically created to be of use to: Tourism Ministers, Destination Managers, Travel and Tourism Executives, Higher Education Organisations with tourism courses. Anyone interested in tourism. The Sustainable Tourism Report has been published annually since 2003. Subscribers include: Club Med, Ecole Hoteliere de Lausanne, Rezidor Hotel Group, Northern Ireland Tourist Board, University of Brighton, Tourism Ireland, The Nature Conservancy, Cleaner Climate, Virgin Group, Micato Safaris, Hilton Hotels Corp, Visit Britain, Canada Tourism, Tourism Innovation Group, Dublin Institute of Technology, Sabre Holdings, EplerWood Consultancy, Nichols Tourism Group, The Adventure Company, Exclusively Canada, University of Wales, University of Guelph, Sustainable Side of the Street, IFC, Discover Ltd, Griffith University, Australia, Yukon Tourist Board, Ipswich College, Prince of Wales International Business Leaders Forum, The Tourism Company, Citizen Development Corps, University of Hertfordshire, Disney Corp, Anglia Ruskin University, Kidderminster College, Olive Green Group, Six Senses Group, and many, many more.  Half a million micro firms turn over 200 billion dollars and extra juicy profits up for grabs! Once upon a time travel was about going there doing stuff and coming back. The key was… Where was there? The pulling power of the destination dragged the passengers in. Now 50 years later the business has become bigger, ordered and homogenised margins are as thin as ever. Ever a leader, TUI, with its 30 million or so pax, has morphed into something really interesting. No longer a tour operator, TUI has reconstructed itself as an experience-provider. Why? Because they can, not only make much more money out of experiences, they can also own them. If you want a TUI experience (like a TUI cruise or a TUI hotel) there’s only one place you can go – that’s TUI. In this way they can pick the best out of an astonishingly fragmented market - globally about 450,000 suppliers turning over some $200 billion - and give their clients great curated experiences backed up by TUI credibility. So, their 30 million or so clients get to their destination with their holiday paid for, a wish to enjoy themselves on a new experience and money in their pockets. This is a massive profit, branding and customer satisfaction opportunity. Look at the power that TUI has - Their customers already trust them, TUI knows who they are and are already in communication with them, they probably already know what they want. They’re not out in the webspace looking for business - they know who their customers are, they are travelling with them after all. The only competition is local excursion/experience suppliers (who TUI probably already work with) or internet suppliers like Airbnb and Tripadvisor who offer a random, un curated, un guaranteed range. What a risk clients would take if they booked outside the box at this stage. And it’s a massive financial opportunity too. Margins on experiences are much higher than the bread and butter of travel and accommodation alone. Plus with TUI it’s a branded value-added offer, no-one else can offer the same or as good. On top of all that, TUI can use the experiences rather than the destinations to widen their brand appeal and pulling power.  TUI's latest €110m purchase - Musement destination experiences So TUI starts 2020 as another kind of company entirely. Like in the 1970’s they have become more vertically-integrated and focused on fulfilling customer needs rather than competing in the rush to the lowest price.
The Experience Economy is a new world for tourism – one in which there are opportunities for all. The Sustainable Tourism Report 2020 deals in depth with this subject and outlines the opportunities available for everybody. A limited number of review copies may be subscribed now at a 50% discount Valere Tjolle  CORSIA envisages 2035 as the date that airlines are compelled to take responsibility for their emissions - it is too late. In 1947 after the war global economic activity needed to be kick-started hence the Chicago Convention was agreed by the UN which gave airlines everything they needed to prosper. They were to pay no tax on fuel or spare parts and everything was done to help them to expand Success! They expanded beyond anyone’s dreams. Now, 73 years later they are still expanding and have fostered an industry which supports 10.1 million jobs directly - making planes, in airports, and operating airlines. The International Air Transport Association claims that airlines create $2.7trillion in global economic activity. And the future is enormous - massive expansion is still forecast for the years to come as international travel increases apace. However, in the seeds of their success there is also, now, danger. Obviously, air travel pollutes. Some 80% of tourism-related emissions come from air travel and, as international travel grows, this gets worse year by year. Even though the airlines still claim the benefits of the Chicago Convention of 1947, they have used this authority to endorse their claim to fly free of carbon emission restraints. And they have powerful friends to make their case. So, when the European Union sought to include intercontinental flights via Europe in their EUETS cap and trade system in 2012 (which has so far contributed to reducing the carbon footprint of the European aviation sector by more than 17 million tonnes per year), world airlines fought their case in court. Having lost the case, the airlines brought in their friends including the plane-makers like Boeing and the US government. They fought a full-on no-holds-barred battle. The result? After the set-to with the EU - it was agreed that an effective plan re global airline emissions was to be created by the ICAO (the organisation set up by the Chicago Convention). The plan was to be in operation by 2016. The result is a plan called CORSIA, announced in 2016 which, to say the least, does not treat the situation as a climate emergency - here are its demerits:
 The generally accepted tenet is “The polluter pays”
Airlines are polluting our atmosphere now. They need to pay immediately, not 15 years from now when the bill for the human race will be unpayable. Whatever their benefit to the global economy as a result of expensive powerful lobbying they have kept their perks far too long and they should not add to them an emissions free ride. Some airlines are coming up to the mark now - including Easyjet who are offsetting all their emissions now. OK offsetting is not perfect, but at least it is NOW not in 2035. Maybe more airlines will be shamed into following their lead. Air travel emissions are becoming a bigger and bigger issue - the subject is discussed in detail in the latest Sustainable Tourism 2020 ...It will take a truly objective view. The Sustainable Tourism Report 2020 deals in depth with this subject. A limited number of review copies may be subscribed now at a 50% discount HERE There will be a masterclass to discuss this and other sustainable tourism matters – location Bath, date 7 February. To register for a place just email valere@tourismvision.com Valere Tjolle  OK so it’s cheaper to go to a country that cares less about human rights than the tourist dollar. Maybe it presents better ‘value’ but actually when the holiday is over do visitors take the value home with them or their memory of the total experience? We live in a dangerous world. A number of governments are at odds with their citizens - there are still many human rights abuses. This leads to disempowered citizens, millions of climate and political refugees, and fosters the growth of both regional and international terrorism. Add to this challenging background of the internet, 24 hour news and the fact that disasters are good press and you have very good reasons for people with grudges to use violence to get them aired internationally using tourists to do so. Moreover in many less developed countries with human rights issues hospitality workers are very low on the food chain, it stands to reason that they do their jobs for money, not for love and see rich tourists simply as full wallets, which can often lead to resentment when they are treated with distain. Another issue that stirs anger is the changing of historic local culture to entertain tourists. In many cases host communities’ culture is the little that they have to hold on to, and to see foreigners, who know little about their history, treating them as items of entertainment, photographing their families and their homes as though they were unpaid exhibitd can understandably lead to irritation and bitterness. Against this background it is easy to see how tourists can form political targets particularly in countries that are already subject to unrest. In many countries the difference between rich and poor is insurmountable, and, naturally it is the powerful that control tourism. Foreign tourists often are just fodder for an economic machine that extends globally. As the world becomes more unequal it is likely that tourists will become more segregated from the host community. Is this a formula for a happy relaxed holiday or would tourists get a better, more fulfilling experience in a destination that was more harmonious? OK so it’s cheaper to go to a country that cares less about human rights than the tourist dollar. Maybe it presents better ‘value’ but actually when the holiday is over do visitors take the value home with them or their memory of the total experience?  Bhutan is leading the way with Its Gross National Happiness policy - a philosophy that guides its government. It includes an index which is used to measure the collective happiness and well-being of a population. But there are other countries that are also making strides to deliver holidays with real hospitality.
And there are many other countries and destinations following Bhutan's lead. Why not deal with a happy country in 2020 for your holiday rather than a troubled one just because it's cheap? Security is becoming a bigger and bigger issue - it is discussed in detail in the latest Sustainable Tourism 2020 ...It will take a truly objective view. Maybe 2020 is the time? The Sustainable Tourism Report 2020 deals in depth with this subject. A limited number of review copies may be subscribed now at a 50% discount HERE There will be a masterclass to discuss this and other sustainable tourism matters – location Bath, date 7 February. To register for a place just email valere@tourismvision.com Valere Tjolle |
AuthorWrite something about yourself. No need to be fancy, just an overview. Archives
May 2021
Categories |
RSS Feed