Easy identification of sustainable, eco-friendly travel options, limited use of single-use plastics and financial incentives for accommodation providers who maximize energy efficiencies are the top three additional measures needed to make travel more sustainable, according to Agoda’s Sustainable Travel Trends Survey. Establishing more protected areas to limit tourist numbers and removal of single-use bathroom amenities round out the top five global measures.
Concerns with tourism
The findings from the survey launched on World Environment Day 2021 also revealed globally that overtourism and pollution of beaches and waterways are the top two concerns of the impact of tourism, with deforestation and energy inefficiencies (including overconsumption of electricity/water) ranking joint third.
Filipinos’ concerns are ranked a bit differently, with polluted beaches and waterways being the top concern, followed by overtourism.
Globally, the public considers governments most accountable for making positive environmental changes around travel, followed by tourism authorities and individuals themselves.
When it came to holding governments most accountable, those in Indonesia and United Kingdom were most likely to do so, followed by China, Australia and Malaysia. The markets most likely to cite themselves or individuals as most responsible for making changes to traveling sustainably were Thailand, Japan and the United States.
When asked what they would pledge to do better in a post-COVID travel scenario, the top responses globally were: #1 manage their waste, including using less single-use plastics; #2, switch off the aircon and lights when leaving their accommodation; and #3 always look for eco-friendly accommodation. Interestingly, despite overtourism being the biggest concern, going to lesser-known destinations only ranked seventh out of 10 as a pledge to do better.
Sustainability for Pinoys
For their part, Pinoys’ top two pledges were to patronize eco-friendly accommodations and to manage their waste, such as by using less single-use plastics.
Some 43 percent of Filipinos associate sustainability with accommodations using renewable energy/water sources, while 39 percent see eco-friendly building design or furnishings, and 36 percent consider buying local products from local sellers, to be helpful practices to travel sustainably.
The increase in desire to travel more sustainably was most prevalent among respondents from South Korea, India and Taiwan. However, looking at the figures globally, while 25 percent have an increased desire to travel more sustainably, this compares with 35 percent whose desire to do so decreased.