With changing times, the tourism industry is advancing at a tremendous speed with an emphasis on environmental and ethical consciousness. Sustainability becomes a must-have instead of a nice-to-have In 2024, every tourism business has sustainability up top on the agenda. With more travelers and businesses worldwide approaching responsible travel practices with the desire to use eco-friendly solutions that protect our planet as well as its cultural and natural environments.
Learn about some of the key sustainable travel trends we can expect to see in 2024, including how the sustainability directive will make sustainability reporting vital, what type of eco-accommodation you should be choosing, and the power of tech for implementing more sustainable operations.
Sustainability reporting
The tourism industry has responded to the challenge as one of the most effective private sector initiatives in regulating business impacts on our environment and human rights. We demand that tourism-related businesses abide by this reporting in the European Union (EU) and this means many organizations have had to take a long, hard look at their operations and supply chains.
One might therefore reasonably criticize this new emphasis as not merely being about gender but also other worthwhile objectives such as more responsible business practices, including the recent introduction of the Corporate Sustainability Due Diligence (CSDD) directive.
The CSDD directive generally applies to ensure companies, including tourism businesses, comply with environmental and social standards. This demands a deep dive into their supply chains to ensure businesses operate in an environmentally and socially responsible manner. In doing this, the EU is hoping to establish a system of transparency that will help incentivize these companies to proactively reduce their carbon footprints and implement fair labor practices.
The rise of eco-friendly accommodations
Hotel stays are one of the oldest experiences around and we have been seeing a lot of movement in recent years towards eco-friendly hotels. 2024 We continue to see an increased number of places to stay that make an effort towards sustainability in their operations. And whether we are talking about small boutique hotels or international hotel chains, more and more accommodation establishments are featuring practices that work towards a lesser impact.
Eco-friendly accommodations also focus on energy-efficient practices to shrink their carbon emissions. From using LED lighting and energy-efficient appliances, to installing solar panels and wind turbines. Hotels even started to turn water and sewage management systems independent, in some cases moving to renewable energy sources which translates into landfill space saving.
Aside from saving energy, more and more accommodations are concentrating on other pro-environmental options such as waste reduction. In green-minded hotels, waste management programs that encompass recycling and composting have become de rigueur. The initiative for them to reuse towels, as well as the reduction in single-use plastics has helped to decrease the overall amount of waste with encouragement from guests.
Hotels have been no strangers to this trend—many hotels have already replaced their plastic water bottles with refillable glass containers and are switching out the plastic toiletries for biodegradable options.
Technology’s role in promoting sustainable tourism
In 2024, technology is a driving force for achieving sustainable tourism. Travel planning, hotel management — technology is enabling businesses and travelers to make smarter decisions that are better for the environment.
One of the most significant developments is the emergence of platforms dedicated to sustainable travel. It allows travelers to easily find and book sustainable-minded accommodations, tours and activities, as well as transportation like flights and rentals so that their entire experience can pass the social accountability test. These insights help consumers choose more sustainable travel options and make them feel empowered in doing so.
Technology has not only enabled travelers to select sustainable travel options, but also shifted gears on how accommodations work. Most hotels now use smart-systems in terms of energy to monitor and manage the consumption.
The future of sustainable tourism
Sustainability regulations and practices are not just a trend for businesses but an obligatory step to take. The rising demand on the part of travelers to be environmentally and socially responsible as we can only assume will see a further growth in the amount of responsible tourism. The tourism industry must continue to focus on sustainability reporting, shift toward renewable energy and use of their technology to develop more sustainable practices that ensure the protection of our planet and welfare for all in travel.
The article Sustainable travel trends for 2024: Shaping the future of tourism first appeared in TravelDailyNews International.
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