What: A New Model From WTTC Aims to Help Destinations Grow Responsibly
A new report from the World Travel & Tourism Council (WTTC) lays out a framework for “Destination Stewardship,” a model that will help destinations balance the needs of locals and visitors while keeping sustainability and smart tourism development top of mind. The report showcases four different scenarios — all with varying levels of involvement from governance structures and the public and private sectors — to show how destinations can thrive when its stakeholders collaborate with shared objectives and a penchant for promoting “the common good.”
Why It Matters: As the World Emerges From the COVID-19 Pandemic, It’s Time for Destinations to Rethink Their Tourism Strategies
It’s time for destinations to shift their focus away from traditional tourism metrics like visitor spend and tourism arrivals — which could lead to cases of overtourism — and instead work toward a unified vision of social inclusion and sustainability, while finding a balance between supporting host communities and delivering on visitor expectations. Tourism ministries, Destination Management Organizations, travel advisors and suppliers would do well to become familiar with this new framework and consider the role they play in helping destinations recover more responsibly.
There has similarly been a rising call for social inclusion, new enabling technologies, a growing need for resilience and increasing governmental interest in destination governance, so this report comes at just the right time.
Fast Facts:
- WTTC’s report, “Towards Destination Stewardship: Achieving Destination Stewardship Through Scenarios and a Governance Diagnostics Framework,” was launched by the WTTC in partnership with the Travel Foundation and the European Tourism Futures Institute.
- The report lists “the most important triggers of Destination Stewardship,” which include managing supply and demand, the governance of a destination, issues of sustainability, the evolving visitor economy, resilience and social inclusion.
- Meanwhile, barriers to Destination Stewardship include the lack of a clear mandate, clashing cultures and agendas, insufficient knowledge and data and a fragmented tourism industry.
What They Are Saying: The New Framework Provides a Necessary Call for Action for the Struggling Tourism Industry
“WTTC believes this major new report points a way forward for the Travel & Tourism sector following the growing interest in Destination Stewardship, which has been accelerated during the COVID-19 crisis,” said Virginia Messina, senior vice president and acting CEO of WTTC. “There has similarly been a rising call for social inclusion, new enabling technologies, a growing need for resilience and increasing governmental interest in destination governance, so this report comes at just the right time.”
The Details
World Travel & Tourism Council
