“Responsible tourism” isn’t just the latest catch phrase in the travel universe. These two words are slowly changing the way people travel. With more attention being placed on the environment, people and animals, a shift is beginning to be made towards a more responsible, more ethical way to see the world.
Recently, both STA and Intrepid announced they would no longer offer elephant rides as a part of their tour packages — a major coup for people like me whose goal is to help protect these majestic creatures, but also to educate people on the truth about elephant (and other animals) involved in tourism. But, responsible tourism stretches far beyond just elephants. It is everywhere, and now, each week, there will be a chat on Twitter to help educate others regarding how to be more responsible, but also to share their stories and more.
I’ve joined with travel bloggers Jessica Festa of Epicure and Culture and Dylan Lowe of The Travelling Editor with one goal: to spread the word about responsible tourism via #RTTC or Responsible Tourism Twitter Chat. We’ve brought along some other amazing and passionate travel bloggers (Twitter handles below) who share our passion and kick off Wednesday, June 4 at 6 p.m. GMT.
Join us this Wednesday, and every Wednesday to chat about responsible tourism, learn more about the realities of travel and how our decisions impact the world around us, and share your stories, too. We’re looking forward to seeing you on the chat! In the meantime (and in between time), be sure to also follow along and contribute your own responsible travel stories on our Facebook page!
See you this Wednesday … and every Wednesday thereafter!
Be sure to follow all of our hosts on Twitter for the latest on responsible tourism and more!
Diana Edelman: @DTravelsRound
Jessica Festa: @EpicureCulture
Dylan Lowe: @TravelingEditor
World Travel & Tourism Council: @WTTC
Backpacker Becki: @BackpackerBecki
The Culture-Ist: @TheCultureist
Travel Write Sing: @lukespartacus
Where Sidewalks End: @WSEtravel
Globetrotter Girls: @GlbetrotterGrls
Fantastic, I have been looking for something like this for a while I will be following along from South Africa.
LikeLike
Wonderful! We look forward to having you participate!
LikeLike
Kudos Diana! I just set an alarm to remind me to join this chat 🙂 And congrats on the elephant-sized victories!
LikeLike
Thank you!! Hope you can make it this week!
LikeLike
It was about time people started to realize the impact of using animals as if they were amusement rides! While I won’t be joining the dialogue (Social Media ain’t my forte), I totally commend all the efforts made to raise awareness of this issue.
Btw, I really like the new layout of your website!
LikeLike
Thank you, I agree. Responsible tourism is VERY important and I hope the chat can help educate and also make it more of a hot topic. I appreciate your support! And, thank you! I like my site, too!!
LikeLike
Hi Diana, is this chat still going? It sounds great and I would love to participate sometime. Thanks!
LikeLike
It is!! It takes place every Wednesday at 6 a.m. and 6 p.m. GMT. We’d love to have you!
LikeLike
OK great, I’ll try to make it. See you there!
LikeLike