Photo credit: Unsplash

While travel takes us to exciting adventures and inspires us, tourism also has a dark side since it is responsible for 8% of the world’s carbon emissions, besides putting increasing pressure on local communities and nature.

An estimated 790 million tourists travelled internationally in the first seven months of 2024, based on data published by the UN Tourism World Tourism Barometer, which fuels economies but also turns locals` dreams into nightmares due to overtourism.

Tourist hotspots are experiencing increasing negative impacts from overflowing visitors, resulting in skyrocketing rental prices, overcrowded streets, exhausting natural resources, and overall changing the characteristics of places – eventually losing the very thing that made them attractive in the first place.

Balancing benefits

One of the most iconic locations in Thailand, Maya Bay, gained popularity due to a Hollywood movie starring Leonardo di Caprio but quickly faced devastating damage as pollution caused by tourists left more than 80% of the coral around the area destroyed.

Photo credit: Unsplash

It was clear that despite the wealth this region generated thanks to visitors, counteracting the negative impacts of overtourism and restoring and protecting its natural habitat became essential in order to benefit in the long term.

In 2018, the government took a bold step and shut down the entire area for the first time, allowing nature to heal while nature park agencies and environmentalists actively worked to restore the corals. After the initial two-year closure period, it has become routine to clear the area from tourists for a couple of months during the rainy season annually and limit the number of visitors throughout the year to ensure proper time and conditions for nature to bounce back.

These efforts, combined with improved tourism management, not only allowed nature to recover but also led to a revenue increase despite hosting fewer tourists, according to the Thai government.

Others in the region also followed this practice, such as when the Philippines government closed Boracay island for six months to rehabilitate and restructure the island into a cleaner and more sustainable destination for residents and visitors.

How does regenerative tourism create more value?

Instead of considering hospitality as a milking cow for the economy, countries have started to recognise the value of exploring sustainable and regenerative ways to set tourism strategies.

The emphasis of regenerative tourism is intentionally and proactively looking for ways to improve conditions for communities, places and natural environments to thrive.

Therefore, this approach goes well beyond the “minimising harm” mindset, which is mainly related to sustainability, by realising a greater potential in reviving and enhancing destinations and even inspiring visitors to become part of these efforts and leave a positive impact behind.

The primary purpose of looking for regenerative practices in this sector is to empower communities and enable ecosystems to evolve, renew and flourish, acknowledging that tourism is part of a living system.

Transitioning to a regenerative tourism model has become a cornerstone of New Zealand`s agenda, building back after the COVID pandemic to embrace opportunities with a paradigm shift and “ensure that tourism gives back more to people and places than it takes”.

They align action plans and funding to support businesses and engage local communities in regeneration. For instance, a government report noted that Ngāti Tūwharetoa, one of the native tribes, sees themselves as guardians, not as the owners of Maunga Tongariro, a volcano that attracts many visitors, therefore, “visitor behaviour is shaped to fit the maunga rather than the maunga being shaped to fit the visitors”.

Tourism New Zealand also created a welcome ritual for travellers by inviting them to take the Tiaki Promise while they are spending time in the country, which reads as follows:

Photo credit: Tiaki Promise – Tourism New Zealand

“While travelling in New Zealand, I will care for land, sea, and nature, treading lightly and leaving no trace; travel safely, showing care and consideration for all; respect culture, travelling with an open heart and mind.”

Investing in regenerative practices

Fáilte Ireland, the official tourism body of Ireland, recently announced over €32million in investment grants for regenerative tourism projects in the Midlands region, which will include developing walking and cycling trails on former industrial peatlands and investment in Local Authority and State Agency tourism and visitor experience projects.

This initiative is part of the EU Just Transition Regenerative Tourism and Placemaking Scheme to unlock opportunities to realise the Green Deal’s ambitions to make the European Union climate-neutral by 2050.

Making meaningful travel memories

Travelling is a dream for many, but besides enjoying discoveries, it also gives us the power to positively impact places and people.

Smart choices can start with choosing service providers with reliable sustainability credentials and deciding on your form of transportation.

For instance, global cruise lines have gained much attention as budget-friendly options to explore the world, which attracted 31.7 million passengers in 2024, surpassing pre-pandemic levels by 7%.

Sustainable Travel International warns that besides the massive demand for fossil fuels and carbon emissions, these giant cruise ships that can take 5000-7500 passengers present various challenges. The massive influx of tourists to a destination puts local infrastructure under pressure and causes congestion while also favouring ports that can accommodate such large ships, leading to a higher concentration of tourists in those places.

Planning your dream vacation, you can also seek out opportunities to participate in wildlife projects, plant trees, or join a beach clean-up in addition to exploring hidden gems that are not typical touristy places to visit but would help locals benefit more from tourism and give you a chance to connect with authentic culture.

By opening up your thinking space to actively look for places and programmes that give back more than take, instead of being part of the “tourism factory”, you can make lasting memories and make a difference at once.