A new online quiz by the Travel Foundation explores the challenges and opportunities surrounding responsible tourism. Paradise (Almost) Lost, takes you on a journey to a virtual tropical island with the challenge to save “Paradise” by responding to a range of issues such as: temples crumbling from too many visitors, a lack of local produce on the menus, and what to do with all that waste! Appealing to everyone from travel agents to destination authorities, the 20-minute quiz is a great coffee break challenge – and those who previewed the quiz agree:
Rachel O’Reilly, Head of Communications for Kuoni Travel, said: “The quiz is a really useful insight into the topics surrounding responsible tourism and we all found it a fun and engaging way to involve people around the business. This is definitely something we’d like to adapt with the Travel Foundation for our wider team and keep the topic of responsible tourism front of mind.”
Entrepreneur Vanessa Branson, owner of El Fenn hotel in Marrakech, said: “Taking part should be obligatory for all those entering the tourism industry. It is full of useful, simple ideas for encouraging good practice without sounding preachy.”
Mario Hardy, CEO of PATA, said: “This is a superb idea and extremely informative and easy to follow. This can really help small destinations and offer solutions to improve the sustainability of the tourism industry.”
This course is just a taster, as the Travel Foundation provides more advanced and custom-built courses to its industry partners, alongside broader training options and sustainability advice. For instance, the Travel Foundation recently held a product and supply chain workshop for Travel Counsellors to identify where they could focus efforts, and this will soon lead to new sustainability commitments. Homebased Travel Counsellors will also improve their knowledge of sustainable tourism, first with the Paradise (Almost) Lost quiz, and then with tailored training created especially for the organisation in the coming months.
Mike Vincent, Head of Learning and Development for Travel Counsellors, said: “We have a fantastic opportunity to learn more about what we can do to support destination sustainability and how we all play an active part in this, and it’s something we are absolutely focused on. As such, I think our Travel Counsellors will be excited and energised by the training.”
To try out the free course, go to the Travel Foundation’s training site: https://travelfoundationtraining.com
