Senior research analyst at Phocuswright, Madeline List, began the day by sharing findings from the most recent sustainability study released by the research authority. The study, which polled thousands of tourists from the US and Europe, found a large discrepancy between people’s words and deeds about sustainability:
“If they can immediately feel the consequences of not acting, people are more likely to follow through on what they say,” according to List. For instance, about half would like to stay somewhere less well-known and crowded; many people genuinely adhere to this preference since it would immediately influence them. People care about environmental issues, yet they are not immediately affected by decisions they make that are not sustainable.
Travelers also want their money to support the local economies of the places they visit. Only 1 in 4 respondents indicated they had ever looked up whether the product they had purchased was locally sourced, though. People care about each other emotionally, but they’re not acting practically to make those decisions.
- Visitors find sustainability perplexing.
Are tourists aware of what sustainable travel really entails? The majority of respondents claimed to be perplexed by the requirements for ecologically friendly travel; in fact, those who are already focused on sustainability seem to be even more perplexed than those who don’t care.
Additionally, 19%–26% of respondents think their infrequent travel doesn’t have a big enough environmental impact. Even though they make up a sizable portion of travel, individuals who take two trips annually don’t believe they have much of an influence.
There was disagreement among travelers on who should be in charge of sustainability: some felt that the government should be in charge, while others thought that travel agencies, destination associations, or even individual tourists should be in charge. Travelers don’t question where their money goes after they spend it because they believe destination groups should be in charge of keeping tourism-related funds in the local economy.
Additionally, 36%–47% of passengers believe that eco-friendly travel options cost more. Furthermore, people are more inclined to conclude that sustainable travel offers more expensive options the more they consider it at home. People claimed they would be willing to spend an additional 10% to 15% for environmentally friendly travel.
According to List, “I don’t think this belief-behavior gap is coming from a bad place.” “They want to think that they will choose the best course of action, but [travel agencies] need to realize that this isn’t always the case.” List concluded by offering some useful recommendations for the travel sector:
Boost the number of sustainable options accessible and make them more feasible from the start. These options should appeal to travelers in general and shouldn’t only be about sustainability.
- Green options must be widely available and conspicuous.
Propose sustainable options at a range of pricing ranges to demonstrate that sustainability is both affordable and accessible.
Assist tourists in realizing that sustainability affects many other spheres besides the environment.
Teach, teach, teach: encourage tourists to strive for group transformation by emphasizing the why rather than the what and fostering comprehension from the bottom up.
Source- Travel daily