Canada postal workers are on strike. Please call us if you need assistance. Intact Insurance clients: easily access your policy including your new pink slip, your claims or payments through the app or Client Centre.
Sustainable tourism offers a different travel experience, one that values authenticity. Here are three good reasons why trying it will be good for both you and your destination!
1. Combine tourism and sustainable development when you travel
What is sustainable tourism?
This concept emerged in the 1990s in response to the harmful impacts of mass tourism. Landscapes, biodiversity and natural resources are threatened in overexploited areas, and local populations are often excluded from the economic and social development that’s generated. The World Tourism Organization defines sustainable tourism as “tourism that takes full account of its current and future economic, social and environmental impacts, addressing the needs of visitors, the industry, the environment and host communities”. A utopian vision? Rather, it’s a new way of looking at tourism to achieve a “win-win” situation!
Is sustainable tourism in harmony with your values?
According to several recent studies, travellers are increasingly concerned about the environmental footprint of their trips. Industry players are getting up to speed with the result that sustainable tourism is no longer just for specialized agencies: it’s gradually becoming mainstream.
Everyone has their own role to play to keep things moving forward. As a traveller, you can take concrete steps by carefully choosing your travel providers (agency, accommodation and means of transport) and paying particular attention to what you do and how you behave once you’re at your destination.
2. Get off the beaten track by travelling differently
The many variations of sustainable tourism (ecotourism, justice or solidarity tourism, community-based tourism, or fair-trade tourism) will allow you to enjoy unique travel experiences, based on authenticity.
Enjoy an adventure in harmony with nature
Are you enthralled by biodiversity and luxuriant landscapes? Ecotourism is definitely an avenue worth exploring!
The emphasis is on discovering a natural environment, while safeguarding its integrity.
Local tourist guides often add an educational component. The sustainable approach takes into account transportation and accommodation that avoid the usual tourist circuits; it lets you discover genuine hidden treasures. By getting closer to nature, you are actively participating in local sustainable tourism projects that stimulate the green economy of the regions visited.
Meet the locals
Opting for sustainable tourism also means getting closer to your destination’s residents. You’ll discover other realities, other cultures, other ways of life. A rewarding human adventure lies in store! Many sustainable tourism projects offer encounters with the local population, whether guides or hosts, or individuals simply wanting to share with visitors their daily activities (working on a coffee plantation, for example). This gives you an opportunity to sample local cuisine and bring back authentic handicrafts. Aside from these human relationships, you can personally interact with the communities that benefit economically from your visit.
3. Sustainable tourism destinations: you have more options than you think!
These sustainable tourism companies can take you far
You’re drawn to a foreign land, but you want guidance in organizing your trip? Sustainable travel agencies like Kepri and Passion Terre have developed customized tours to meet your desire to get away. Even some cruises are starting to head in a green direction.
The fact is that environmentally-responsible travel is not just the preserve of young students with backpacks! What’s available can match everyone’s comfort needs so that all types of travellers can find the sustainable tourism trip they’re looking for. Not-for-profit Village Monde’s Vaolo platform has created a sustainable tourism labelling system that helps travellers in selecting from the accommodations and tourist attractions it offers all over the world.
Sustainable tourism players here in Quebec
You don’t have to go to the ends of the earth to travel in an environmentally-responsible way! Quebec is a favourite destination for the outdoors and also offers sustainable options year-round. For example, you can learn about the ecotourism activities certified by Aventure Écotourisme Québec.
In addition to preserving Quebec’s precious natural environment, this form of tourism has a positive impact on land-use planning because it stimulates economic activity in the region. For your sustainable tourism accommodation, look out for providers with Green Key certification; this attests to their commitment to sustainable development.
In a nutshell, sustainable tourism offers you unique opportunities to enjoy authentic experiences without leaving too many traces. Do these values harmonize with yours, and are you already planning your next getaway? Don’t forget to contact your insurance broker about taking out the right travel insurance so that you can head off into the wild blue yonder with peace of mind.