Eric Stoen of Travel Babbo has traveled in every way imaginable, from spending a year in Florence, Italy to zipping around the world in two weeks with his kids, and through it all he’s figured out some ways to travel better. We asked him for five things that others can do to be more responsible tourists.
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September 27 marks World Tourism Day, which I think is great because travel is amazing and should be celebrated. However, there’s a frequent online debate about “travelers” versus “tourists.” On one hand, there’s nothing wrong with being a tourist. You’ve earned your money and you should be able to spend it traveling however you want.
But…I keep coming back to all of the things I’ve learned in traveling to 94 countries, and what my kids have gotten out of their travels to 59 countries, and I’ve found that there are certain aspects of responsible travel that have such benefits, both locally and personally, that they shouldn’t be ignored. So wherever you’re headed next, with or without kids, I’d encourage you to incorporate these five things into your travels.
Book travel that supports locals
When you travel somewhere, do it in a way that directly benefits the local economy. Stay overnight in an independently-owned hotel or vacation rental. Support small businesses. Dine at non-chain restaurants. Hire a local tour guide. This seems obvious, but I’ve seen so many instances recently where people don’t contribute anything to the places they’re visiting. This could be cruise ship passengers who visit Venice, spend a few hours there on a tour led by the cruise company and then head back to the ship. It could mean booking a trip somewhere through a foreign tour operator and then only staying in foreign-owned hotels, and even dining at foreign-owned restaurants. Or buying duty-free souvenirs at the airport instead of venturing into the small family-owned store in the middle of town. Remember, you’re traveling to see a place because there’s something that makes it unique. If you’re not actively helping to maintain that uniqueness, it’s not going to be worth visiting for much longer.
At al Ponte Antico, our favorite locally owned hotel in Venice.
Learn a little of the language
English is the de-facto international language of tourism, but that doesn’t mean you shouldn’t make an effort. Before you travel somewhere, learn to say a few key phrases like, “Yes,” “No,” “Hello,” “Good-bye,” “Thank you,” and “How much does that cost?” in the local language. Even if you mess up the pronunciation, using at least a few words will set you apart. You’ll get better service, and you’ll connect to the culture, and the people, just a little more. It may even lead to a fun conversation or local recommendations. And yes, you can switch back to English for those!
My son working on his Danish during a hiking break in the Faroe Islands. He’s now taught himself Greek, French and Danish, and is starting on Arabic. We highly recommend using language apps, whether you want to learn a lot or just a little.
Travel deeper
I fully understand that a lot of people like to be “highlight tourists,” checking off all the essentials. That’s fine: Head to Paris for a photo in front of the Eiffel Tower, or take an Instagram-perfect picture in front of Cappadocia‘s balloons. But then go beyond that. Sign up for a market tour and cooking class with a local chef. Ride around the countryside with a local on bicycles or Vespas for a day. Ask your taxi driver or front desk person for a restaurant recommendation that they like and that tourists typically don’t frequent. The photo in front of Rome‘s Trevi Fountain? That’s what you’ll put on social media. But what you’ll remember is really connecting with your guide at the catacombs, and then being invited over to her house for dinner with her family. That’s the magic of travel. And you may have to break out of your comfort zone just a little to find it.
In Cappadocia, Turkey, our favorite activity was a valley hike in Göreme National Park, including our conversation with this tea seller in the middle of the valley—the only other person we saw during our walk.
Be wary of wildlife tourist attractions
There are a lot of animal sanctuaries around the world—places where orphaned animals are taken in and species are protected. Seek those out and support them. But anywhere that animals are held captive for your enjoyment? Nope, not a good thing to support. This includes swimming with dolphins (unless it’s in the wild), riding elephants and posing with tigers.
Responsible animal tourism at the David Sheldrick Wildlife Trust’s amazing elephant orphanage in Nairobi, Kenya
Look into volunteer opportunities
If you’re traveling, see what you can do to benefit the local community. Travelocity has a great program, Travel for Good, with links to vetted volunteer opportunities around the U.S. But you can reach out to local organizations, as well, or even the hotel where you’re staying, and ask what you can do for a day or even just a few hours to help people. Every community has different needs, and there’s virtually always a way to help.
Throughout Asia, monks go out at sunrise to accept donations of rice. We’ve woken up early in Laos and Thailand to donate. (Luang Prabang, Laos is pictured).
And I’d love to hear from you: What do you do to travel responsibly? Let us know know in the comments!
Eric Stoen
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We a always try and check to see if there are any unknown to us customs, gestures, etc. that we should know about. Also, we learn to pronounce place names we are visiting appropriately such as Edinburgh! Also, take a small token from home to give to people you meet. We are from Kentucky so one time we took a roll of quarters that had our state on the back. Another time, we took small gift boxes of bourbon chocolates. These tokens were greatly appreciated!
Great post, Very interesting and very informative.