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Responsible tourism is still something that Finns need to work on. Interest in the environmental and social impacts of travel has awakened, but these are often given little thought when people make travel decisions. The appeal of a destination and the cost of a trip are what matter most. These findings were revealed in a survey that was conducted for the Nordic Travel Fair MATKA 2009 by TNS Gallup during week 50/2008. A total of 1,208 Finns between the ages of 15 and 69 participated in the survey. The purpose was to find out to what extent responsibility is taken into consideration in tourism. The theme of MATKA 2009 is Our World – Our Responsibility.
Finns who took trips last year unsurprisingly said that the most important criterion in choosing a trip was the appeal of the destination (97%). Second in importance was the price of the trip (91%). Third were desirable conditions and the location of the hotel (86%), fourth the level of the hotel (77%) and fifth the local price level (71%). Matters linked to responsible tourism had the smallest effect on the choice of a trip, although many Finns consider them important. Over two-fifths of respondents (43%) mentioned favouring local industries, one-third (36%) the environmental classification of a hotel and one-fifth (21%) travel-related emissions. Women pay more attention to responsible tourism than men and are clearly more willing to act accordingly.
Among Finns who took trips in 2008 the most common way in which they acted responsibly on their last trip was spending money on local products and services (57%). Second was finding out in advance about local customs and culture and behaving so as to respect them (32%), and third was using water and electricity sparingly (24%). Only a small number of respondents (2-6%) said they selected their mode of travel, destination or hotel on environmental grounds. One-fourth had not done any of these things.
Finns who took trips last year are willing to increase the positive effects of travel and reduce its negative impacts mainly through small and inexpensive acts. Young people and students are more willing than other groups to pay more for an environmentally friendly option. Among respondents 12% are prepared to pay a voluntary charge for carbon dioxide emissions caused by a trip.
When asked about an imaginary situation in which everyone would have a personal emission quota, Finns would be prepared to make cut-backs mainly in matters related to day-to-day life and the home. This included repairing and recycling goods, reducing room temperature by one degree in the home, and conserving electricity and using green electricity. To some extent respondents were also prepared to cut back in the area of transport and travel by using public transport or car-pooling to go to work or by taking trips in Finland instead of abroad. Finns are least willing to give up holiday travel, eating meat and spending time at summer cottages.
Responsible tourism is a fairly new concept, but Finns associate it quite well with environmental, social and cultural matters. The number one category linked to responsible tourism is environmental matters (63%). Over a third of respondents (36%) associate it with social and cultural matters. One-fourth of respondents were unable to come up with any ideas about the concept of responsible tourism.
Theodore is the Co-Founder and Managing Editor of TravelDailyNews Media Network; his responsibilities include business development and planning for TravelDailyNews long-term opportunities.
