Sustainability in Travel Report 2023

Summary

"Sustainability" in travel often zeroes in on climate change, yet overlooks vital cultural and economic aspects. Tourists frequently miss the mark on maintaining local cultures and economies due to insufficient information, resulting in cultural erosion and economic disparities in tourist-heavy areas. Additionally, the surge of overtourism complicates crowd management, straining resources and exacerbating local challenges, with many travelers unaware of the impact of their footprints. Despite a high level of interest in sustainable travel, there's a notable gap in consumer follow-through, particularly in managing visitor volumes and preserving local identities. The travel industry faces a critical opportunity to bolster education and engagement around sustainable practices, ensuring not just environmental but also cultural and economic sustainability for future generations.

Phocuswright’s Sustainability in Travel Report 2023 is a comprehensive consumer research study focused on sustainability in the modern travel environment. Key questions addressed include:

• What is travelers’ awareness level with regard to issues surrounding cultural and economic sustainability?
• How do consumers’ intentions, misconceptions and incentives concerning sustainable travel behavior influence the trip-related choices they make?
• In what ways can consumer education on sustainability be improved, and how can the market address these gaps to meet both consumer and destination needs? 
• How does the rapid proliferation of short-term rentals impact economic and cultural sustainability in popular destinations?
• What role does social media play in exacerbating the popularity of already-famous places, and what can DMOs and other organizations do to promote less crowded destinations?
• What actions can travel suppliers, DMOs, and other stakeholders take to bridge the gap between travelers' good intentions and measurable sustainability actions?

In This Series

• Sustainability Dissonance: What Travelers Say vs. What They Do (and What to Do About It)
• Far From the Madding Crowd? The Truth About Overtourism and Dispersal
• Beyond Climate Change: Cultural and Economic Sustainability in Travel