TUI 2018 Sustainability Report: 9.2 million customers stayed in sustainable hotels certified to a GSTC-Recognized standard (81% of the hotels owned by TUI Group) TUI Group has just released its 2018 Sustainability Report with the progress on their goal to increase the number of hotels with sustainability certifications to accommodate 10 million customers a year [...]
We are currently revising the GSTC Destination Criteria (GSTC-D). Earlier this year we held a public consultation asking for comments on the existing criteria and inviting recommendations for improvements and additions. We are most grateful to everyone for their contribution. Based on the consultation we have proposed revised GSTC-D criteria, accessible here. From mid-June, [...]
On June 14th, 2023, ahead of the first cohort of the GSTC Accessible & Inclusive Travel Online Course (July 3-9, 2023), Martin Heng, former Accessible Travel Manager and Editorial Adviser at Lonely Planet, shared invaluable insights in a public webinar about Accessible & Inclusive Travel. This public webinar was moderated by Roi Ariel, GSTC [...]
Tourism in Roatan, Honduras Today Roatan is an island in the Caribbean located 65 kilometers from the coast of Honduras. Tourism is key to Roatan’s economy. However, it's unfortunately confronted with its own set of issues. The island’s growing popularity has resulted in increased wastewater, pollution, and other environmental threats. These are all accelerated [...]
Push to Certify Sustainable Destinations The Global Sustainable Tourism Council (GSTC) has teamed up with the state-run Designated Areas Sustainable Tourism Administration (Dasta) and Mae Fah Luang University to develop experts in sustainable destination assessment. The collaboration marks a significant step for the global body in ASEAN, where Indonesia and Thailand are the first [...]
“Closing beaches that have been overused wouldn’t need to happen today if yesterday there had been proper planning and execution of sustainable policies, plus enforcement of existing laws relating to waste management,” says Randy Durband, GSTC CEO. “The good news is that there is positive movement. The bad news is that much needs to [...]
"In order for a destination to be certified as sustainable, the Global Sustainable Tourism Council outlines a list of criteria. It ranges from supporting local businesses, to conserving natural resources, and encouraging visitors to participate in the community." Separately, places like Jackson Hole, Wyoming and Yellowstone National Park in Montana are following a similar [...]
Arival Looks into the question: "Are Sustainability Certifications Worth It?" There is a clear business opportunity for tour operators to please travelers who care about sustainability a little—and to earn new customers from the passionate travelers who care about sustainability a lot. Certifications can help prove your company’s sustainable practices, and offer assurance to [...]
The GSTC Destination Criteria has been translated into Swedish and is available to download in the Criteria Translations section. GSTCs Destinationskriterier har översatts till svenska och finns att ladda ner i avdelningen för kriterieöversättningar.
The Mauritian Standard on Sustainable Tourism is Now a GSTC-Recognized Standard The Global Sustainable Tourism Council (GSTC) is pleased to announce that the Mauritian Standard on Sustainable Tourism has achieved the ‘GSTC-Recognized Standard’ status. The Mauritian Standard on Sustainable Tourism (MS 165:2019) was developed to guide the sustainable development of the tourism industry in [...]
GSTC Training Partner: mascontour Sustainable Tourism Consulting & Communication The Global Sustainable Tourism Council (GSTC) announces a new partnership with mascontour, a leading global sustainable tourism consultancy based in Berlin, Germany. GSTC will work with mascontour's team of expert sustainable tourism consultants to deliver training and skills development opportunities for tourism industry professionals. One [...]
How to Support Healthy Tourism When You Travel: Tips from Airbnb Tourism Advisory Board Professor the Hon. Bob Carr, the former Foreign Affairs Minister for Australia and former Premier of New South Wales: "Beyond the advice of our Tourism Advisory Board, there are many other resources you can tap for learning how to be a [...]
PATA BUFFET (Building an Understanding For Food Excess in Tourism) State of the Industry Report Every year around the globe, 1.3 billion tonnes of food is lost or wasted. That is one-third of all food produced for human consumption (FAO, 2019). There is a huge opportunity for the tourism and hospitality industry in the Asia [...]
The GSTC Destination Criteria has been translated into Swedish and is available to download in the Criteria Translations section. GSTCs Branschkriterier har översatts till svenska och finns att ladda ner i avdelningen för kriterieöversättningar.
GSTC Member "Region Västerbotten" in Northern Sweden, has identified GSTC and its Criteria as a means to help create sustainable tourism in businesses and DMOs. Region Västerbotten is responsible for regional development and growth in Västerbotten County. This is the story of they have applied the GSTC Criteria in their region: Step 1: Regional [...]
Region Västerbotten in Northern Sweden has completed a three-year project of introducing sustainable thinking and acting among industry and public stakeholders with the GSTC Criteria as guidelines. About 60 tourism businesses were assessed with GSTC Industry Criteria and given sustainable tourism action plans. Participants ranged from small family outdoors businesses to city hotels, museums [...]
APEC Addresses Greenwashing in Tourism and refers to the importance of GSTC in a new Policy Report Demand for sustainable tourism has been on the rise, and with it came exaggerated sustainability claims – also known as “greenwashing”. This policy brief addresses the issue by examining the use of environmental certifications to address greenwashing and [...]
Global Travelers prefer eco-friendly accommodation: Booking.com Sustainable Travel Report 2019 70% of global travelers say they would be more likely to book an accommodation knowing it was eco-friendly, whether they were looking for a sustainable stay or not. However, when it comes to recognizing a sustainable place to stay, almost three quarters (72%) of [...]
Condé Nast Traveler Recommends GSTC “Aside from air travel, properties have some of the greatest impacts in terms of energy use and food." Check a hotel’s website for a "Responsible Travel," "Environment," or "Good Stewards" section—if they’ve spent time, energy, and money to be low-impact, they’ll likely have this information displayed - says Jim Sano, WWF's [...]
The Toll of Tourism: Can Southeast Asia Save Its Prized Natural Areas? From Thailand to Bali, a huge increase in tourists, many from China and other rapidly developing economies, is straining sensitive ecosystems to the breaking point. Some countries are trying to control the boom, with a few closing popular destinations to allow damaged [...]
