Top Ecotourism Trends In 2020 And The Future Of Tourism
When it comes to ecological trends and innovations, the tourism industry also evolves. In a rapidly changing landscape, new trends are constantly emerging and making progress. Demographic change, technological development, and changes in social customs are only a few factors that contribute to crucial new tourism trends.
The meaning of Ecotourism
Ecotourism is a form of tourism directed to undisturbed natural areas, in our age, it's as a popular alternative to commercial mass tourism. This form of tourism contains a variety of ethical travel practices, so it can get broadly described as a choice of travel to demonstrate respect to nature and local communities.
Moreover, sustainable tourism educates tourists about providing environmental protection. As a consequence, it directly promotes economic development and political empowerment of local communities. At the same time, it enlightens people about cultural diversity and environmentally friendly practices.
In the 1980s, ecologists referred to Ecotourism as a crucial task for future generations. The purpose at the time was to discover areas that remain relatively untouched by human intervention.
Due to the rampant modernisation of the world, natural resources run out whenever humans introduce advanced technologies. Apart from the fact that such advances are convenient innovations, it's worthy to note that, generally, there's a risk factor associated with them.
You probably heard it before: We need clean air and a green environment to survive in the next generation. Tourism takes an important role here.
Ecotourism is practised all over the world today. When you travel in natural areas where the environment is protected and also ensure the well being of local people through education and awareness, this is called Ecotourism.
Why it’s important
As a tour operator, it's imperative to have a clear understanding of the needs of travellers. People want to explore nothing but a stunning, beautifully preserved destination with fresh, natural life.
Even in the most remote places on the planet, there are ecotourism destinations. At these places, locals survive on their own and have little to no industrial income for further development as individuals or as a society.
As foreigners, people need to understand and respect local laws and avoid pollution by any means. The result will be a greater enjoyment of the natural environment they travel to, at the same time, everyone can contribute to the protection and preservation of the region.
For this reason, there’s an active necessity to promote and implement awareness campaigns in all regions of the world. Tourists and tour operators must be aware of the consequences of tourism activities as both persons can contribute to wasting some of these places in the world.
The Great Barrier Reef is slowly dying each year as a consequence of climate change.
Moving on to better news, in recent years a lot of international programs are being put together to help further promote Ecotourism.
For instance, there are Ecotourism, and Sustainable Tourism Conferences that take place around the world every year. These gather major tourist groups to support sustainability in the tourism industry and to protect popular natural destinations at risk.
Ecotourism trends in 2020
Several surveys can back-up the fact that people prefer eco-friendly products; in fact, 1 in 3 consumers prefer eco-friendly options. It might be the time to give your business a fresh start, below you will find the main trends in Ecotourism for 2020:
- Empowerment of women in developing countries
Different initiatives have been created to deliver a strong message to empower females; there's the Me Too Movement, for example. The tourism industry is no exception to this.
Tourists are thinking of different ways to improve and support the local women they meet during their visit. Societies are searching for ways to promote gender equality and help women reach their full economic potential.
- Sustainable volunteering
Choosing to volunteer as a trip can be a deeply impactful experience, in present times, there’s a big number of volunteers program that reflect evolving interests and needs. By volunteering abroad in a sustainable way, participants ensure that they are supporting an ethical program.
There are travellers interested in providing local people access to their professional skills. For example, certain developing countries need qualified doctors, nurses, and teachers, also, physical skills like helping to build and equip the communities with infrastructure is an opportunity.
- Nature reserves and Safaris
Recently, different lodges and camps are opening in Africa, which is a significant step for eco-travel. This idea makes travelling in a more conscious way more accessible than ever.
Game reserves primarily allow wildlife animals to live safely, and they also take a huge role in the development of communities in natural-diverse areas. Now, local communities get benefits from Ecotourism as they are contributing to protecting wildlife and making sure that their impact on the environment is favourable.
- Avoiding crowded places
It isn't too delightful to visit a monument crowded with people, but that isn't the only reason we should care about over-tourism. More often, travellers are taking more responsibility and avoiding places struggling with over-tourism.
Contrarily, less crowded places are at the top of the list. Additionally, popular tourist destinations now introduce strict regulation rules to reduce the influx of visitors.
- Activities to counteract the environmental impact
The plastic waste crisis has been quite a debate for the past few years. A 2017 study found that 6.3 billion tons of the world's 8.3 billion tons were waste. Don't stop at encouraging travellers to lower their impact on the countries and communities they visit, go beyond, ask people to get involved!
Embracing sustainable travel involves actively reducing plastic footprint. Travelling itself is an eye-opening activity; it could also allow people to notice the seriousness of some issues, for example, the harsh consequences of plastic pollution.
What to expect in the future
Ecotourism has created an influential market base that has attracted thousands of tourists that became interested in the movement. As of now, the management of frequently visited landscapes and regions is one of the main challenges associated with the promotion of green tourism.
It's crucial to promote smart growth, as it is on the low in certain areas. There's landscape flooded with hotels, restaurants, and travel services on the rise. As a consequence of unethical tourism, lots of local workers may live without basic sanitation, clean water, health services, proper education, and more.
To create well-planned destinations in the future, governments should also take responsibility. Without local planning, Ecotourism could be an additional problem for the landscape. Local communities need to realise that they need to protect their resources for the future, preserving the environment and assuring the future of tourism is friendly to our Earth.
