Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
that is cultural at the destination. This is only one interpretation. Another
approach is to take the principles of slow travel (see Chapter 4) and evaluate
the extent to which all tourists might adhere to them in different cultural and
contextual situations. Following this line of thought implies that the principles
of slow travel are as applicable to modified mass tourism as to other forms
described as a new tourism.
The transition from a high-carbon tourism sector to a low-carbon one will
take time and depends on a number of interfacing factors: price of travel, fash-
ion, supply sector vision, and the availability of a wide range of substitutes in
the leisure market (such as staying at home, virtual reality holidays). Mass
tourism is likely to remain the cornerstone of future development in the short
term, but destinations are well equipped to re-model their offer in order to
meet the needs of a lower carbon economy. This will also allow them to com-
pete more effectively for a greater share of local and primarily domestic
markets. Slow travel will be more widespread than hitherto as a particular
form of holiday-making. The pace and scale of this change will depend on the
location and vision of each respective destination in response to the constraints
of a post oil-based society, and more probably as a result of compounding
external impacts.
One consequence is that this may result in a reduction in the scale of
tourism consumption, as the nature of economic activity matches resource
constraints. A related concept is de-growth, which in reality is a reduction in
what the supply sectors offer. This is likely to be construed as a major threat
to the current business-as-usual scenario. Hall (2009) has termed the current
approach as 'economism', a policy framework which focuses on growth as
represented by gross domestic product (GDP) and employment, rather than on
human and social costs and benefits associated with tourism development.
Slow travel is thus likely to be a response to a reduction in the tourism sector.
In this context it is a generic term used to encompass the elements of sustain-
able consumption, the nature of the travel experience and a reconfiguration of
destination management.
Slow travel presents an opportunity for tourism to flourish within a world
economic order constrained by limits to growth. In this context, the principles
of slow travel meet a prerequisite for low-carbon development. It also offers
an opportunity to reduce current CO
2
emissions, perhaps by as much as 50
per cent. Is it a practicable form of tourism development? The topic seeks to
respond to this question.
The structure of the topic
The scenario discussed thus far suggests that the tourism sector has an uncer-
tain future, and will need to respond to complex problems in the face of
climate change. The preceding sections provide an essence of slow travel and
how it represents a 'new tourism' that offers a pathway for sector innovation.
Of course, in many parts of the world, slow travel is already a way of life, and
there is nothing exceptional in our thesis. However, in the developed world,
slow travel represents a marked reappraisal of contemporary tourism travel.
