Travel Agents and Tour Operators can “Make Tourism Better”

Successive Booking.com and Expedia research has evidenced growing consumer demand for more experimental and sustainable holidays. Many high street retailers and supermarkets are already adapting to this shift in consumer awareness and demand – and they’re doing so for sound commercial reasons.

Agents and operators, whether online or on the high street, are catering to these same consumers by offering a product designed to be experienced at leisure – often with a heightened awareness of the destination as someone else’s home, and the traveller’s impact there. To enjoy a holiday purchased from a travel agent or tour operator, the customer must physically travel to the destination – the ‘factory’, so to speak, where the product is consumed. This presents both opportunities and risks for retailers. As Justin Francis has long argued, while it is almost impossible to taste the difference with fairly traded coffee, the consumer should notice the difference when taking a responsible holiday.

Matt Callaghan, Chief Operating Officer at easyJet holidays, explained at the launch of ICRT.global in November last year that the company is working to mainstream Responsible Tourism.

Speaking at the ABTA Sustainable Travel Conference last month, Callaghan noted that the industry must stop expecting consumers to lead the change toward sustainable travel. He asked delegates whether they’d been offered an upsell to Fairtrade coffee that morning. “Why were we not offered it?” he queried. “Because they’ve already incorporated it!”

He pointed out that in 2002, only 10% of coffees sold in cafés and coffee shops were ethically sourced. By 2012, that figure had risen to 80%. He added: “That didn’t happen because we were banging our fists on the counter in Costa Coffee demanding ‘Give us Fairtrade beans’. They grasped the nettle, because it was important to them as an industry.”

Agents and operators have a vital role in shaping and editing the choices consumers make. Repeat bookings and referrals depend on helping clients choose holidays that deliver the experiences they want – and, as market research shows, this increasingly includes sustainability.

However, sustainability is best avoided its vague and conveys next to nothing. The Travel Trade Gazette ran an important and very useful article by Ilaria Grasso Macola on 17^th March: “ Five ways to sell responsible travel (without mentioning the S word…)”

1. Small steps make a difference – they accumulate to big change

2. Challenge suppliers

“EasyJet holidays senior environmental social governance (ESG) manager Scott Lawson believes agents should feel confident enough to ask suppliers what they are doing to minimise their environmental impact. “We need to start judging people’s actions rather than their words,” Lawson said. “Agents need to start getting beneath the surface of some of [suppliers’] claims.”

3. Speak in a language customers understand

Iberostar business development director Aishling McCoughlin insists that travellers don’t consciously book stays at Iberostar properties because of the company’s sustainability initiatives. However, “They’ll get there and they’ll come back with stories about how impressed they were and how they love being in a single-use plastic free environment,” and this will inform their future decisions. Megan Parkinson, Lata head of sustainability and impact points out that “sustainability” is an industry term and not in the consumer’s mind when they make a booking.

4. How to steer customers away from animal attractions

Daniel Turner co-founder at animal welfare consultancy Animondial points out that “It’s really important that travel agents understand the issues. Their reputation is at risk if they’re selling something that is detrimental to animals or their guests,” “At the beginning of conversations with clients, you should say ‘It’s fantastic that you want to go see these animals, but I’m going to suggest a different way to do it rather than the one you’ve come to me with,” explained Not Just Travel consultant Lewis Jones.

5. Try and make it easy for customers

Mirjam Peternek-McCartney, founder and chief executive of travel PR firm Lemongrass argues that “People want to make the right choice but currently the right choice is more difficult for consumers to make because it tends to be more expensive or complicated,” she said. “It’s incumbent upon us to do the hard work in the background and then make it super easy for the end consumer.””The best way to go about selling sustainable holidays is to sell in a fun and added benefit way, rather than making people feel bad or guilty,”

Emma Butterworth, Travel Specialist at Adventures By, encourages clients to choose the more responsible option, especially with hotels and experiences. “If you’ve got a hotel that lacks certified credentials versus one that operates more sustainably, talk to customers. They’re essentially the same experience, but one gives you that feel-good feeling. Very few clients will choose the less responsible option.”