Young travelers will be looking for a different kind of travel once the pandemic ends, according to panelists on a webinar organized by Contiki, the tour operator that targets travelers 18 to 35 years of age. The webinar, called "Future of Travel," focused on sustainability and seeing travel as a force for good by supporting local communities and positive environmental practices.
Adam Armstrong, CEO of Contiki, said the company believes strongly that travel has a bright future. He said younger people especially are "desperate" to travel and will return to it first. He said sales in the last few weeks show customers are ready to book trips for 2021. With better and quicker testing and vaccines, he said, "there is a glimmer of light at the end of the tunnel."
He added travel "will look, taste, feel and sound different" in years to come and "the way we think about travel won't be the same." He also said there will be more domestic travel and more nature-focused travel as people seek to avoid cities and crowds. "We won't take travel for granted as much as in the past," said Armstrong.
As an example of the changes to come, Armstrong said that a recent Contiki campaign called Make Travel Count asked in a survey what consumers will do when they travel in 2021. One of the most consistent trends was the desire to "travel better," meaning more conscious and thoughtful travel, "leaving places better than we found them."
Carmen Huter, a travel photographer and social media influencer, said that her slogan has been "to create more than I consume." She explained people can make a difference in many ways, including the way they eat when traveling by supporting local businesses and farmers. She said supporting local people is key to a better kind of travel.
Hege Barnes, director of Innovation Norway, which promotes tourism to that country, agreed that supporting smaller communities is a goal. The destination has aimed to spread visitors out geographically as well as to encourage off-season travel. The result being that they can meet locals and be part of the story.
Elena Rodriguez Blanco, CEO of Authenticitys, which puts together localized experiences in cities, said that when locals help create and profit from visitor experiences, "it's a triple win - for the travelers, for the locals and for the world."
More travelers want to leave places in a better way, said Huter, and more product is needed to meet that demand. She also said it's important for travelers to ensure that companies who promise to leave dollars in the destinations or to help improve communities to make sure the money is being spent the way it was promised.
Sustainable travel, said Barnes, can make for a better trip. One example is Norway tourism officials working with indigenous people who raise reindeer. Interactions help visitors understand and maintain that lifestyle.
Travelers can be more authentic in small ways when in a destination, said Rodriguez Blanco, like making eye contact with a bus driver or someone asking for money on the street. "Make it about the people," she said, adding that travel "is about understanding other cultures, other humans and sharing stories."
When asked for one way that travelers can make travel better when it returns, Barnes said: "Make conscious choices by working with companies moving in the right direction as far as sustainability." Huter said supporting locals "is the best way to create a more equal and educated society." And Rodriguez Blanco said, "Look at the bigger picture. Why am I taking this trip and how can I make the place I'm going to better?"
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