Responsible Tourism / Sustainable Tourism / Ecotourism

Many people living in the developed world feel drawn to visit the world’s great wildernesses and unknown cultures. They look for intriguing lands to view the wildlife, experience traditional ways of life, or simply savour the peace and beauty of wide-open spaces. They seek new experiences and a wider understanding of the world we share, and are prepared to travel the world to find them - and there is absolutely nothing wrong with this desire. However, the growth of such tourism can threaten the very fragile beauty of these very areas that those of us with an adventurous spirit are searching for.

Undeniably tourism makes a difference to the areas people visit, and often tourism is seen as a panacea for assisting development and alleviating poverty in developing countries. Sadly however, often the difference can be negative, such as: family displacement; cultural and environmental degradation; and distortion of traditional social structures and economies. A common feature of tourism in developing countries is that obtaining income from tourism activities is not a particular problem, but how that income is distributed is often un-transparent and un-equitable. More often than not the majority of it remains in the hands of the powerful and/or leaks out of the country as many of the tourism services are provided by foreign interests. The real challenge is to keep as much of that income as possible in the host country and direct it towards the impoverished communities who live in the areas that we visit.

Yet despite these negatives, in the right circumstances tourism can promote respect for different cultures and encourage people to care about what happens to others in faraway countries, it can create jobs and put money into local economies, as well as helping rural and indigenous communities preserve their culture. These right circumstances can exist if all involved in the tourism industry behave conscientiously, or ‘responsibly’. Asia Adventures wants to do all it can to promote the growth of positive tourism, and as such the ‘Responsible Tourism’ ethic is at the heart of all that we do.

What is Responsible Tourism?

Despite what many people think ‘Responsible Tourism’ is not a recent phenomenon; people have been experiencing it since the tourism industry began. Indeed all forms of tourism can be responsible; it is not so much about what you do, but rather about how you do it. It’s all about being a conscientious world citizen and respecting the lives, beliefs, cultures, and environment of the people whose region you are visiting, and becoming more involved with it in a considerate manner.

Responsible tourism is a form of tourism which:

brings you closer to local cultures and environments by involving local people in tourism in a fair way. For example, a local guide will open your eyes to their history, culture, and ways of life far better than a foreign guide could ever do, plus they will earn a much needed income;
generally features smaller groups as this places less pressure on resources and makes it much easier to interact with local communities who may be apprehensive at the sight of large groups of ‘foreigners’;
allows visitors to get more out of their travels, and to give a little bit back to the special places and people that they encounter;
understands and respects that some cultural experiences are best kept private, and that the presence of tourists would be an intrusion;
enables people to re-discover how to experience nature and village life - allowing visitors to be in it, to feel it, smell it, and learn about it, rather than just look at it through the glass barrier of a large bus;
understands local peoples relationship with their environment, and that income from tourism can be a powerful incentive for cultural and environmental conservation;
values diversity – diversity of people, cultures and environments. It enables visitors to grow as individuals through their experiences.

Above all else supporting Responsible Tourism is fun and rewarding. It allows you a greater level of interaction with local people, a greater level of understanding of how they live, and the knowledge that you are making a positive difference to their lives and the environment in which they live.

Asia Adventures Responsible Tourism Policy

The Responsible Tourism ethic is intrinsic in the way Asia Adventures carries out its day-to-day operations as well as sourcing the travel services we provide. Being regionally located helps to ensure our revenues stay within the countries you are visiting, assisting in its social and economic development. There are no financial ‘leakages’ to non-regional countries as happens with the larger travel companies which operate in the region, yet have their headquarters in western countries. Another element of how we do business, which not only supports our Responsible Tourism philosophy but also minimises costs, is the fact that we are essentially an internet based company taking full advantage of modern technology, which allows us among other things: to keep our paperwork to a minimum; to operate from a small office; not to have to produce expensive brochures (with their associated environmental costs); and to eliminate ‘snail’ mail with its inherent fuel miles.

As part of our commitment to Responsible Tourism and using tourism as a tool for poverty alleviation in Cambodia we are members of CCBEN (Cambodian Community Based Eco-tourism Network), and advise small rural communities how they may be able to benefit from offering low-key tourism services based upon the local character of the environment within which they live and work. Once established we support these projects by informing our guests of them and encouraging them to visit. Click here to find out more about the main ecotourism projects we support in Cambodia. In addition we attend meetings of the Cambodia Fair Trade Forum, a network of local product producers who are committed to the principles of ‘Fair Trade’, we encourage our guests to support these producers (often less advantaged people such as landmine victims, polio sufferers, vulnerable women etc. are employed by these producers). We are proud to have been awarded the only Responsible Tourism style accreditation in Cambodia, ‘Heritage Friendly Business’, which we received in recognition of the work that we are doing to raise awareness of heritage issues and its preservation, our support for local community projects, assisting non-profit organisations, and our environmental commitment. We fully support the ‘ChildSafe’ initiative which provides street children and beggars an alternative livelihood, as well as raising awareness of the child sex-tourism issue. And last but by no means least Asia Adventures has its own charitable project, ‘Pedal2Empower’, whereby we work with orphanages and remote rural villages to facilitate the donation of bicycles to those whose lives can be most positively changed by this small, yet incredibly meaningful gesture. For more information on some of the other charitable organisations we support please visit the Good Cause section of our website.

As far as we can we vet all our suppliers to ensure they have an understanding of the Responsible Tourism ethic. However, in a developing country with low levels of education, weak law / regulation enforcement, and a young tourism industry, this is not always easy or possible. Yet for all the accommodation providers we use we have conducted our own ‘Responsible Tourism Survey’ and in the accommodation section of our website we have indicated those hotels / guesthouses which we feel have a commitment to Responsible Tourism, as well as showing those which have the Heritage Friendly Business accreditation, and support the ‘Child Safe’ initiative. In terms of tour guides, all the guides we use are local nationals and certified by the Ministry of Tourism, in addition we ensure they have an understanding of Responsible Tourism and the information / experience that a ‘Responsible Traveller’ may be looking for. In addition when our guests visit local community based tourism projects a community guide is also used, not only does the community guide have a much better understanding of the local area and its culture / traditions, but it is an additional income source for the community.

To enable our guests to prepare themselves for their holiday with Asia Adventures we send them a ‘Travel Pack’ which not only details their travel arrangements but includes background information which we believe will enable them to have a more enjoyable and rewarding travel experience. We provide information covering: tipping; local customs & etiquette; beggars (to give or not to give?); political situation; environmental & heritage preservation issues; recommended background reading; useful phrases, etc.

We also endeavour to be ‘the listening travel company’. We firmly believe that our guests are our best critics and their feedback is invaluable. Thus all our guests receive a questionnaire which we encourage them to complete. Every single questionnaire is read by at least two members of staff and any negative feedback is promptly addressed, and positive suggestions incorporated into future tours. Thus we are a dynamic company always willing to make changes and introduce new developments as we continual seek to offer the best possible travel experience.

To download a copy of Asia Adventures Responsible Tourism Policy please click here.

Asia Adventures Travellers Responsible Tourism Code of Conduct

Responsible Tourism is a holistic approach to tourism and to be fully effective all participants involved in the tourism experience need to believe in and uphold its principles. Amongst others this includes; tour operators, accommodation providers, guides, restaurants, transport providers, local communities, travel agents; retail outlets, and you – the traveller!

We always provide general advice on the countries being visited to all our guests in our pre-departure ‘Travel Pack’. However, if you would like more detailed assistance in how to me a more 'Responsible Traveller’ download our Travellers Responsible Tourism Code of Conduct by clicking here.

For a socially responsible visit to Indochina Asia Adventures is your No. 1 choice…