Around The World

From our Correspondents

Responsible Travel

While nourishing the soul, make sure that you are also nourishing conservation

By: Justin Francis

Luxury holidays are all the rage. Most people expect to stay in far better standard accommodation than that in which they live at home. On holiday we feel that we deserve the very best, and a special treat. However with 'luxury' being one of the most overused terms in marketing it’s getting harder to understand what luxury actually means.

While luxury is often just a short hand for expensive, even cheap products - such as toilet paper - are marketed as luxury. Luxury may in fact just be a relative term.

For some a hotel with a flat screen TV and Sky is luxury, but an increasing number of people leading very hectic, urban lives put a premium on tranquility, wide open spaces, abundant nature, and privacy from other people.

For them wilderness is the new luxury. At the extreme end Ted Turner is recreating the open American prairie with buffalo herds at his ranch. Celebrities such as Jade Jagger are just as likely to found in remote retreats as larging it up in Monaco.

Tourists seeking to experience some of the world's last wilderness areas are prepared to pay for the privilege of eco-chic lodges and resorts - but wilderness conservation also comes at a price. Many wilderness areas have been managed by man for centuries - did you know that there is only one forest in Europe with no evidence of being managed by man? Conservation of vast pristine areas is very expensive.

Secondly some wilderness areas are only kept pristine because local people use them wisely and sustainably. For example in developing countries parks and wilderness areas often have the best firewood, grazing and water - by not denuding parks of these resources local people pay what is called an 'opportunity cost.' If they are not rewarded for this - beyond the knowledge that they are conserving their natural heritage - then very poor communities face no alternative but to support their families in any way that they can, often to the detriment of the wilderness.

So while you are nourishing your soul at a wilderness retreat, then make sure that your holiday is also nourishing conservation and local people.

Justin Francis is founder of www.responsibletravel.com.

Sign up for Confidential Newsletter
Send this article to a friend
View other Around the World Articles

BACK

Nick Seewer's Style Report

My Personal Favorites: Constantia Uitsig is my favorite Cape Town restaurant - as well as Cape Colony at Mount Nelson Hotel.... more

By: Mary Gostelow

Tinaztepe on Istanbul

My Restaurants: Park Fora, overlooking the Bosphorus, is the most popular seafood restaurant in the city. Beyti is of the best... more

By: Halil Tinaztepe

Email:

Password: