Traveling to other countries is an ideal way to make contact with different cultures, knowing unique sites and meeting new people, but it is important to follow a series of guidelines when we travel, that guarantee the care and respect of the environment, the culture of the area and of the inhabitants themselves. And sometimes, tourism can cause damage to the place we travel, both to its inhabitants and the environment. For this reason, in this ecology article, we talk about How to make sustainable tourism.
Current tourism problems and what is sustainable tourism
The World Tourism Organization (UNWTO), estimates that tourism is an activity that went from mobilizing about 2,000 million dollars in 1950 to 1.2 billion in 2015. In this period of time, international tourism went from about 25 million to almost 1.2 billion. And these figures without counting national tourism (within the country), which is estimated at 6,000 million people.
Tourism activity generates wealth in the receiving place and is a great source of employment. However, as a counterpart it can also be a destructive activity. It is estimated that tourism activity produces up to 5% of greenhouse global emissions. Even if we take into account the energy used in hotels, transport or hygiene products, it represents up to 12.5 %.
For example, in the European continent, a tourist spends more water when he is on vacation and those that are housed in luxury hotels, up to three more times. Other added factors are the waste produced in the resorts and cruises, overfishing to meet the greatest demand, loss of flora and fauna to lift hotels or negative impacts on the culture of the community.
With the idea of counteracting this destructive tourism, the alternative of sustainable tourismrespectful of the customs of the inhabitants and the environment of the community that welcomes us.
Tips for sustainable tourism or ecotourism
When traveling we can make a difference as consumers. Some tips on How to do sustainable tourism or ecotourism are the following:
- Extreme precautions and comply with all conservation indications of those monuments we visit. Many tourist places are the natural, cultural and architectural heritage of the sites we visit. In addition, they are a source of income, so it is essential to take care of them so that we can enjoy them.
- Inform ourselves about the place or hotel in which we stay: for example, asking how waste and water manage, if they supply local food, if they have recycling policies or use technology instead of the printed paper.
- Try to reduce the carbon footprint: the plane is the most harmful means of transport for the medium, so we can try to buy carbon bonds for our trips.
- Acquire local crafts instead of Souvenirs Industrial, thus we also collaborate in fair trade in the area.
- Consume local products.
- Save unnecessary consumption. For example, you can save on electric heating or air conditioning.
Some examples of sustainable tourism
Gijón
The city of Gijón is a sustainable destination, certified in 2013 as “Biosphere World Urban Destination” by the Institute of Sustainable Tourism (ITR) and UNESCO.
Gijón is a city that offers numerous benefits to visitors and its inhabitants such as various activities and museums, great gastronomic variety, high quality of life or green landscapes. All this means that it has been awarded as the best destination in tourist quality by the Ministry of Industry, Energy and Tourism in 2012 and 2014.
Biohotel, Colombia
Biohotel is a sustainable hotel in Bogotá that has the LEED certification. It offers accommodation, place of celebration of events, bars, restaurant, laundry or parking. Has an infrastructure totally sustainable.
Feynan Ecolodge
It’s a Ecoalberge in Jordan that enhances the conservation of the environment with a minimum environmental impact and offers a great tourist experience. It was devised by the Royal Society for the Conservation of Nature and Ecohotels and has received several international awards.
Werfenweng
Werfenweng in a municipality in Austria where it is possible to enjoy sustainable and environmental mobility. In this place, we can enjoy displacement in electric vehicles, horse cars or low emissions vehicles.
Nautilus Lanzarote
It is an adapted apartment for people with reduced mobility. It has baths that save water, use of recycled paper, recycled oil or photovoltaic fields.
Ecological Villas
Located in the Maldives, it works with renewable energies almost entirely. It has almost 6,000 square meters of self -mpiable solar panels. It also pays great attention to efficient water management, biodiversity or waste recycling.
If you want to read more articles similar to How to make sustainable tourismwe recommend that you enter our tourism category.
