admin With the hopes of travel resuming again and sustainability becoming a key focus, international digital travel platform Agoda has rolled out its Sustainable Travel Trends Survey. Launched to mark World Environment Day 2021 (5 June), the survey highlights easy identification of sustainable eco-friendly travel options, limited use of single-use plastics and financial incentives for accommodation providers who maximise energy efficiencies as the top three measures needed to make travel more sustainable. Establishing more protected areas to limit tourist numbers and removal of single-use bathroom amenities round out the top five measures.
The findings from the survey also revealed that in India, pollution of beaches and waterways, and overtourism are the top two tourism concerns, with single-use plastics and energy inefficiencies (including overconsumption of electricity/water) both ranking third.
Governments considered most responsible for making changes to make travel more sustainable
Globally and in India, 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 UK were most likely to do so (36%), China followed not too far behind at 33%, with Australia and Malaysia in fourth and fifth spot (28% and 27% respectively), and India stood at 24%. The markets most likely to cite themselves or individuals as most responsible for making changes to traveling sustainably were Thailand (30%), Japan (29%) and the US (28%), with India at 20%. Meanwhile, China (11%), the UK (13%), and Vietnam (14%) were least likely to attribute responsibility to the individual.
When asked what they would pledge to do better in a post COVID travel scenario, the top responses globally and in India were #1 manage their waste including using less single-use plastics, #2 switch off the air conditioner and lights when leaving their accommodation, and #3 always look for eco-friendly accommodation.
No ‘one size fits all for’ sustainability
In India, the top practices most associated with environmentally-friendly or sustainable travel are #1 accommodations using renewable energy and resources like solar, wind, hydroelectric and water, #2 no single-use plastics, and #3 travelling to destinations that are not high-density tourist spots. Additionally, when asked about what Indians associated the most with sustainability, the top 3 results were renewable resources (36%), natural cleaning products (32%), and eco-friendly design/furniture (31%).
Other energy saving solutions such as key cards or motion sensors, using natural cleaning products are the other key practices. Interestingly, buying locally sourced products and reusing bedding or towels during holiday stays are the bottom two practices out of 10 associated with sustainable travel.
“We can see from the Agoda Sustainable Travel Trends Survey that the messages of taking simple steps such as switching off lights and air conditioning when leaving the room or reducing waste by minimising use of single-use plastics are being embraced by the public across the globe. What is also clear is that while globally the message is governments need to take the lead on managing sustainable travel, there is recognition that some responsibility lies with people’s own behavior,” said John Brown, CEO, Agoda.
“While there are different interpretations of what practices are eco-friendly or sustainable, most of the public are keen to be able to do their part, by actively pledging to choose eco-friendly properties or make smarter environmental choices when traveling. One of the easiest ways to counter concerns about overtourism is to consider traveling to off the beaten track destinations. This past year we have seen a shift in travel patterns as people, limited to domestic travel, explore lesser-known areas. If managed well, not only does this help support independent hoteliers and accommodation providers that rely economically on the tourist dollar, but it can also help lessen the environmental burden on overcrowded areas.”
“As an industry, we need to continue to find ways to help individuals achieve these goals be it making it easier to search and find sustainable properties on Agoda or supporting and encouraging more partners to use key cards for power, use renewable energy sources or offering carbon-offsetting options for travel products,” continued Brown.
COVID negatively impacts attitudes to sustainable travel
The increase in desire to travel more sustainably was most prevalent among respondents from South Korea (35%), India (31%), and Taiwan (31%). However, looking at the figures globally, while 25% have an increased desire to travel more sustainably, 35% have witnessed a dip in their desire to do so. The markets reporting the biggest proportional decrease were Indonesia (56%), Thailand (51%) and the Philippines (50%).
“It’s concerning that many people see sustainable travel as less important today than they did before COVID-19, but I hope that is just a short-term effect, driven by people’s thirst to get back out there and travel any way they can,” Brown concluded.
