Sustainable tourism statistics
Sustainable tourism statistics
Last updated: Jan 5, 2024 · 3 min read

Sustainable tourism statistics

 

Have you ever heard about sustainable tourism? The UNWTO describes sustainable tourism as tourism that “takes full account of its current and future economic, social and environmental impact, addressing the needs of visitors, industry, environment and host communities“.

In April 2018, Booking.com researched sustainable tourism, with some interesting results. Here we compiled and organized them, along with some visual help of graphics. Enjoy your reading!

How many travelers are sustainable?

We can actually easily divide this question into three categories: those who do, those who don’t, and those who would love to:

  • 87% of travelers want to travel more sustainably
  • 39% of travelers always manage to actually keep it sustainable
  • 43% said that “never, rarely or sometimes” manage to travel in a sustainable way

Motivations for travel sustainably

What makes people wanting to become more sustainable? Some of the reasons travelers gave to keep it sustainable while traveling is:

  • 40% wants to help to reduce environmental impact
  • 34% said they traveled sustainably to have a relevant experience at the destination
  • 33% wanted to feel good about their accommodation choices

How did eco-travelers feel inspired to choose a sustainable way?

  • 60% found inspiration when visiting natural sights
  • 54% chose to be more sustainable when realizing the visible impact of tourism on destinations
  • 32% couldn’t cope with the guilt of knowing the impact of their holiday on the environment
  • 47% felt inspired when seeing the positive effects of sustainable tourism on locals

Obstacles for sustainability

Why is it hard for some people to travel more sustainably? Here are the answers the surveyed gave Booking.com:

  • 42% said they can’t afford the extra costs
  • 32% said just the lack of information and knowledge is what stops them to travel more sustainably
  • 22% saw as an obstacle how time-consuming would be to travel sustainably
  • 22% thought there would be a lack of sustainable travel destinations, therefore not that many destinations to choose from
  • 20% thought that sustainable travel doesn’t meet the standard of luxury they are used to

How to travel sustainably

Those more used to travel sustainably gave some recommendations on how to achieve that goal:

  • 53% recommended buying local
  • 52% advocated for public transportation
  • 41% recommended finding a local restaurant that only uses locally sourced products
  • 40% suggested visiting less known sights
  • 30% suggested choosing an eco-friendly certified accommodation over more traditional ones like hotels

 

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