Chapter 1 What is Responsible Tourism

Abstract

Tourism is inherently neither good nor bad – though the word ‘tourist’ has a pejorative edge to it and most of us would rather see ourselves as travellers or visitors. Tourism is used to describe both the human activity, the experience, and the services which facilitate it; it has positive and negative impacts. And tourism is what we make of it – individually and collectively, as businesses and as tourists. In buying a tourism experience, whether as a package or constructing it ourselves, we purchase accommodation, transport and activities which allow us to experience ano ther place. Then there are the consumer goods: accommodation, food and beverage, entertainment, souvenirs, entrance fees, guiding and a wide range of other goods and services. Responsible Tourism is one response to the challenge of sustainability for a particular area of consumption; it is about taking responsibility for making the consumption and production of tourism more sustainable. Sustainability is the goal: a goal which encompasses economic, social and environmental objectives. It is by taking responsibility and acting that sustainability can be achieved. Sustainability is the objective, responsibility is the means.