ECOTOURISM OR RESPONSIBLE TOURISM

Thailand is the victim of its success with mass tourism growing dramatically every year.

Many travelers are looking for another form of tourism that combines the discoveries, encounters, nature and authenticity that mass tourism does not offer.

 

A form of responsible tourism exists, bringing the pleasure of the journey with a respect of the environment and a rediscovery of the fundamental values of interculturality.

To propose circuits where the main requirements of responsible tourism are taken into account requires constant reflection and adaptation in an environment which operates on the other hand by the unrestrained and poorly controlled development of mass tourism.

There are two elements that show how the country is not really turned and aware of a responsible environmental approach:

 
1) The problem of plastic and mainly bags.

While in France and around Europe the plastic bag is banned, each Thai uses an average of 8 per day, which positions the country in 6th place of the most polluting countries of the oceans (study conducted by the University of Georgia)

 
2) The problem of water.

2014 was a year of great drought but the following years see this problem resurface regularly.

The causes are multiple with mainly climatic changes as everywhere but also massive deforestation and intensive real estate construction in urban and seaside areas.

Paradoxically, in order to fight against the competition of the neighbouring countries proposing unavoidable sites such as the temples of Angkor in Cambodia or the Halong Bay in Vietnam, Thailand seeks to develop a tourism based on golf. This is indeed paradoxical when we know that golf is a very large consumer of water.

 
So we see that responsible tourism has its place to offer an alternative and to deal with an inevitable destruction of the environment if nothing is done.
 
To propose a responsible tourism is a challenge but it is possible and the challenge is raised every day a little more.

When we talk about challenge just look at some figures regarding Thailand:
- In the years 70 there were 350,000 tourists and 35.4 million in 2017 or 100 times more
- Tourism accounts for 18% of GDP versus 9% on average worldwide
- Chinese tourists were 900,000 in 2006 and are 10 million in 2017
 
The consequences are tragic: destruction of fauna and flora, pollution, displaced populations at the rate of unrestrained constructions and many other induced and perverse effects.

In the face of this mass tourism it is fortunately developing a more responsible, ecological, more respectful form of tourism for the planet and the people.

It can be called ecotourism but I do not like the term because its definition is still vague and poorly framed despite the efforts made for many years, thus giving a wide open door to some, unscrupulous who claim a Label they do not apply.

I prefer to talk about responsible tourism because the responsibility is that of each one and it increases in the course of travel where people are initiated and more and more understand the interest and transform themselves as ambassador to others.

Responsible tourism will take into account the preservation of sites and populations and participate actively in the preservation of the existing.

What are the simple actions that can be described as actresses of responsible tourism?

 
First of all be in small group. By moving to 6 or 8 you can easily (as an agency) educate much more easily than with groups of 30 or 40 people.

Then, in a small group, you can easily walk in a natural park, walking in an Indian file on a path without going to trample the flora or disturb the fauna on either side.

 
Try to choose means of transport with the lowest carbon footprint. On this subject there is much to be said because opinions are shared. For example, one can prefer a one-hour plane trip compared to a 12-hour van transport. I stay a little interrogative because it is necessary to integrate everything. During a 12-hour trip, fuel will be consumed (by airplane as well) but also water can be consumed in plastic bottles, several times are stopped to be restored and energy will be consumed, especially if one stops in Air-conditioned places.

On the other hand, the trip being much less comfortable than by airplane, reluctant tourists will tend to join the followers of mass tourism energy-consuming which is not the goal. 

 
It is complicated to make a precise calculation on the carbon footprint (even if formulas exist, they remain far from a science and I let everyone choose what they feel is the most accurate.
 
-   Choose to visit places that are preserved. This is an interesting dual title.
    First of all it will be very trainer and tourists will be much more attentive by discovering
    unspoiled and beautiful places that if they are in crowded places with rubbish
    everywhere.    
    Then, in the preserved places it will be much easier to help the local people by

    consuming on the spot the products of the local crafts.

-     Have in mind that water is a rare and vital one. Taking 5 showers a day is useless, no

      more than letting the water run unnecessarily while soaping.

      Golfers will avoid the very high impact activities such as golf, which is a big consumer   

      of  water.

      The same will be the same for quad rides or other motor-driven equipment.

-    Avoid having too many plastic packagings and especially do not throw them anywhere. Some will say it's complicated to have less plastic. As far as possible.

       Thailand is one of the largest consumers of plastic bags in the world. If you go to a
       supermarket you will find with fright that you are put your purchases in an incredible
       number of bags. Personally, and I invite everyone to do the same, I will do my shopping
       with a cloth bag and refuses plastic bags. A little gesture, certainly, but a beginning of
       education.
-      Choose hotels or accommodations as close as possible to what you want to visit. This
        seems logical but we too often see agencies preferring a location in relation to purely
        economic criteria (or mercantile sometimes) and it is a pity.
        Making 2kms to go for a visit is obviously much less impactful than making 15 or more.

-      When one walks in the nature and especially in the national parks one will not feed the
        animals because it is not doing them service and attracts them in areas where they can
        cause damage.
-      At the level of local people we will be respectful, this is also an integral part of
        responsible tourism.
         Local people and rural villages are not human zoos and when you want to take a
        picture it is normal to ask for permission before. Then these people are often poor, a
         few baht will be enough to help them and make you discover their broad smile of
        thanks.

-       We will also respect the kingship, the local culture and the Religion by adopting an

        adapted outfit in the places of worship in particular.

-      Personally, and it is also a form of responsible attitude, we work exclusively with local 

       people (drivers for example). We could have our own driver and our own vehicle but

        by doing so we would first do much more kms since we would move from one point to

       the other of the country and we would not work the premises but only one driver.

 

       Of course, visiting Thailand in ecotourism or responsible tourism at 100% is impossible.

       This is impossible because inevitably we go to places that are very visited. As far as we

        we try to do the best we can and we create our circuits taking into account as much as

        possible the criteria of what is called responsible tourism.

       Finally it is useful to note that when we go to villages to meet the local people, to share their meal or to sleep in the inhabitants, this is the result of a long work done with them and is done in accordance with their culture and in a total respect of their personality and their specificities.

Some examples of what can be met in a responsible tourism in Thailand

Travelers will have the pleasure of seeing amazing things like for example a fair Trade rum

distillery where a whole village works from the beginning to the end of the chain, that is,

from planting and harvesting sugarcane to Bottling and manual gluing of the labels on the

bottles.

-    It will also be an organic coffee farm in the mountains where an ethnic village of the Lahu tribe finds a remunerative work on the spot and without leaving its natural environment.

 

-     It will be the ethnic villages of the far north of the country and the Akha tribes where agriculture was initiated to compensate at the time for the disappearance of poppy cultivation and where today organic agriculture is growing more and more. The traveler will sleep at home and share his daily life by allowing him to live better by a complementary contribution of his income.

-     It will still be an elephant camp where these are collected and saved from the abuse of the tourist factories. The traveler in will take care, without riding it, simply by taking part in the work with the healers and by bathing with them in the river. 

        He will sleep on the spot, in a tent and in this camp he will discover  

       the use of solar and hydraulic energy, air conditioning by spraying.

       water, making paper with elephant feces as well as making fertilizer.

The price of ecotourism circuits is not necessarily higher than the so-called "classic" circuits and remains in reasonable means and allows the greatest number to enjoy this alternative tourism.

In addition, the traveller will know that he contributes, by pleasing himself, to a cleaner and more respectful world and where a share of the prize is directly beneficial to those who need it most.

It is good today to realise that our land is really threatened but to be aware is not enough, it is necessary that each (or at least hopefully, the greatest number), has a real action by small gestures so that we leave tomorrow to our Children a cleaner land and not a dump and the example of irresponsibility.

 

SIAM-HOLIDAYS.COM has chosen to build its circuits by applying the best recommendations of a responsible tourism and applying the Charter "QUANTUM PLANETAE"

 

Making a circuit in responsible tourism is not to deprive visitors but is to make them otherwise, at the right time, according to certain rules (which moreover will bring comfort to the traveler) and it is wanting to give more, both to the traveler and to the local people.

Nor is it to deprive itself of comfort, quite the contrary and it is not traveling in a Spartan way but simply wanting to go out and escape from mass tourism to see the world otherwise.

 

There are many places in Thailand where you can still see a true nature and it is a delight and an encouragement to see that it exists and how beautiful it is.

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