Off the Beaten Path: The Dilemma of 'Secret' Destinations
hello and welcome wherever you are in the world today thank you for joining us for the rise traveler unpacking conversations of sustainable travel we are here to talk to eco-minded and socially conscious Travelers diversity and inclusion Specialists Wildlife conservationists environmental activists and anyone using travel as a way to uplift and Inspire together we will go a Step Beyond the Instagram ready world of travel and take a look at how travel can be a source of growth and development for all people and all communities this podcast is an extension of the rise travel Institute a 501c3 nonprofit committed to empowering young Travelers through educational programs research study tours and scholarships visit ryra institute.org to learn more and now here's your host Amy Hager hello hello hello wherever you are in the world today thank you for joining us on the rise traveler unpacking conversations of sustainable travel we're here to talk about how travel can be uplifting and inspiring going A Step Beyond that Instagram ready world of travel and really take a look of how travel can be a source of growth and development um for all people in all communities and here at the rise travel Institute we are committed to empowering Travelers through educational programs research study tours and scholarships you can learn more by visiting rise travel Institute .org if we have not met before I am your host Amy Amy Hager welcome and I'm super excited today joining me from Bali is Aurora and we are going to be talking a little bit about if anti-mass tourism will be good and it's actually sustainable tourism and so before we dive deep into this topic I'm really excited to hear a little bit more about you Aurora so tell us a background what do you do in this world okay hi I'm Aurora uh I'm a student of rice travel Institute for the pilot program on 2021 if I'm not mistaken it's two years already uh it's crazy to think it's been two years already uh yeah I currently live in B Indonesia I've done my education in both Forest conservation and tourism management that's why I'm really diving in the sustainable tourism concept and currently I'm work as salesperson in a luxury travel agent so I'm work with all this highet clientele and this luxury travel work so yeah that's what I do nice well so then tell me a little bit about how does mass tourism actually affect an area and dive into a little bit about that with us will you okay so so um I think uh as as someone who learned about sustainable tourism uh it's been how can I say this people always say that the ma the mass tourism is the biggest a of it because uh people uh coming into a destination impacts uh large crowd it's destroy the environment it's destroy the community it's destroy the The Local Economic uh so it's always pain Mass tourism as uh the biggest deil of sustainable tourism and I've seen it uh in Bali of course because after coid everyone wants to go to Bali uh so uh suddenly uh the traffic jam is everywhere and the prices goes up uh I've seen it but also I've seen how my clients travel so um as a luxury Market they don't want to go to this Mass tourism destination right they always goes to exclusive area this they always wants to go to what is it the slogan uh the unbeaten track the places that people have never goes before and I thought when I first go to this industry oh that's great then we're developing a sustainable tourism then by um making these people go to places that not as crowded right but uh I don't see it that way right now I don't I no longer see that Master turism is the biggest devel and the less tourist uh less M tourism is better sustainability uh toriso well so then is less people actually better is that what you're saying or you no that's not what you're believing anymore that's not what I believe in anymore okay so what do you think so I think uh at least for uh the case in Indonesia uh a nonmass tourism development most likely is an underdeveloped tourism destination Okay so because not many people go there um uh the local focus is not tourism I will take um this example so we have Bali in one place and Komodo Island it's the newest uh trending uh Hot Spot tourism destination right now yeah b b is a mass tourism destination yeah but the local community is prepared they know know how to welcome tourist they know they speak English they know how to deals with these different cultures they have infrastructure they have what it takes to do uh I know that tress also a huge issue but they already seen it as a problem and try to manage it they have all of that okay commodo in other hand they have none of it the local community is not prepared I when I go to Komodo Island a few weeks ago my guide is a jakartans people people from java and not the locals yeah the one who own every infrastructure not locals oh the locals cannot keep up because it's uh they didn't get used to welcome these tourist to De places they don't know how to speak English and Etc they don't know uh what kind of issue that could um disturb their life they didn't see it tress as an issue in example or plastic waste as an issue because they're not used to see uh people bring water bottles yeah foreign coming foreign people coming to their area so uh I see that uh when it comes to nonm tourism destination they are actually struggling more to welcome this uh I wouldn't say unwelcome but like uh they're not prepared to welcome these foreign people these tourists uh coming to their houses to their homes to their area to their city so yeah I I think it's uh it's quiet weird for me itself to see that mass tourism actually could be more more sustainable than this uh going to a middle of nowhere kind of Tourism yeah going to off the beaten path or somewhere Less Traveled right and so the the people who live on the island that they're not used to mass tourism you know I know that sometimes Solutions end up being you know some sort of like Community Based tourism or to develop e ically the area and so I'm curious on what your take is what what do you think the shortcomings or is there shortcomings of Community Based tourism like is that an actual solution yeah it's it's really uh weird to think about it because uh at first I also thought that Community Based tourism is the answer because that's where uh a nonprofit organization or government can go into a village and help to prepare all of these uh villagers all these local people uh to build their own program tourism right uh activity or something I thought that was the great solution but I don't think that way anymore because when because this is where going into a luxury Market uh really changed my mind okay uh my client because they pay a lot they expect a really really really high quality yeah and to be honest with you the community cannot keep up to it because well uh they are not trained in tourism they are uh before previously they are farmers or they are Fisherman or they they're just not uh they're just not prepared to welcome tourist in whatever way whatever quality that the this tourist demand so it's become difficult and I've seen that um even uh for domestic Market I mean not and non-luxury Market people who goes in budget they didn't go to this community based uh tourism destination a lot I see that despite of a lot of money or funds going into these places it's not working yeah so uh it's quite uh difficult to I mean I know that I cannot say the solution right now right but I think this is the issue that we need to see and accept that there is an issue in this kind of uh tourism yeah so it's acknowledging the issue first and then coming together to develop the solution right yeah because it's not easy right right well and one thing that you shared that I it wasn't on my awareness was you know when they're traveling when you have your Travelers going to this island a lot of times when we talk about traveling to different communities looking for lodging that is supported or owned by like a local family or a local company but it sounds to me like on the island here there there isn't that right it's someone coming in and providing lodging services and so does that mean that the money actually even stays really in that Community I get that there's probably some employment for some people that live there locally but if the ownership isn't even from someone from the island then the dollars really aren't even staying in that Community to support that Community even more right right yeah I mean how can uh someone who rent their house keep up with this huge hotel chains right yeah how can they keep up with it how can they keep up with the prices with the quality of it yeah even if there is someone who I let's say there's someone who reachs and want to build this uh hotels or something in their area yeah they didn't have knowledge for it yeah they previously they work in different sector right so it's quite difficult I mean not that I say that it was impossible but it's definitely needs time yeah yeah it's need a lot of time so then you've done a case study called keep it secret tell us a little bit about this uh so it's not uh how can I say uh it's also related to theism right uh there is uh I'm sorry um people already realize that they don't want to go to a crowded tourism destination right uh especially me that live in Bali even though I'm not a Bist like I really want to have some places that I can enjoy without crowwood yeah right uh and that's where gatekeeping goes the keep it secret destination goes where when I found something some places I don't want to uh share it with other people I don't want to post it in social media because I don't want anyone else know about it that's become a quiet phenomenon here yeah but also to encounter that uh coming this phenomenon of hidden areas hidden places this influencer who goes and start looking of these hidden places and places that to be honest with you local has been gatekeeping from the tourist uh and this is a very interesting phenomenon to see because like um in in one hand I understand that the this uh tourists these visitors want to feel fully immersed they want to yeah fully immerse to the culture to the destination they want to go to where local goes but there's also this local concern of I'm not sure if I have this term right uh a back door where they want their own space uh when they want to maybe uh B not B mou but like talking to each other without uh the need to be uh have to be in service for the visitors that coming right right so uh this is also an how can I say an interesting issue that comes uh for this uh Mass destination and the less Mass destination so should we as a traveler really go to this places that less Mass destination that less develop and not ready to welcome us I think it's something that interesting to think of yeah you're bringing up a really interesting concept you know at least when you're traveling to a destination that's prepared to accept tourism and is quote unquote Mass destination and if you're going somewhere that's more off the beaten path you know as Travelers we we're curious right we want to ask questions we want to learn more about the local life and about the life that people live there because it's different than the life we live in our own homes right that's true and and you know maybe these people don't want to talk about that right if they did maybe they would live in more of the mass tourism area right and there are people who love to be hosts and to really talk to Travelers and so I feel like those people are where they need to be when they're in those Mass destinations so you're you're really bringing up some really really great thought pieces and thought points and again you know we don't have Solutions today but I think creating that awareness is really really important and so I'm a little bit curious too since you do travel quite a bit and you have taken the rise the rise Flagship program how has that program really empowered you in your choices as a traveler I would say that um the biggest one that I realized it's uh it's making me ask more question yeah so in example when I go to the comodules the one that I've told before I'm not just accepting what the guides told me or I'm not just uh what is it uh just seeing around oh this is such a beautiful place but I'm asking questions like uh okay so where are you from are you from these islands to the to aride or and like uh okay how the locals keep up to this uh what kind of people coming here how is there any conflict I'm starting to asking those questions so at least I'm only annoy my kite so it's okay it's his job uh but yeah I think uh this uh I'm really grateful that I'm starting to look from different perspective and start to realize that everything is not as good as it seems or as simple as it seems I was gonna say it's not as simple right and I think too going into travel with curiosity and asking questions and being open I think is is one of the biggest lessons that we learn from The Rise flaghship program right yeah true so then the the piece of the program the Capstone part of the program how how do you think that really has influenced your work or are you you as a traveler as well uh so I'm actually working on this R pilot program when I'm doing my master degree yeah and at first and I mean as you know University is mainly works with this Theory stuff so I have this kind of Ideal in my head that oh this is how sustainable tourism should look like yeah but when I go dive to the program and then I see oh even I remember in the animal tourism uh discussion I remember that the um the one who give the material itself is debating within its order so I'm like oh oh okay it's really interesting uh that all of this is still debatable and it's also prepare me for this real life that this real word that I need to come in after the master degree that sustainable tourism it still have a very long way to go and it's not as easy as the theor said but it's also still worth to be uh Strife for yeah yeah well and I think again like you you really nailed it a lot of time people go through University and they understand a lot of theory but they're missing that practicality point of it and it isn't as black and white as the words are written in a book and so it really is complex issues that we don't have answers to but going in and exploring and figuring out the answer I think is really really important and I love that that's that's kind of where you are in your journey and and so I'm curious when you look through your your crystal ball how do you see the future of sustainable travel like what do you see it as unfortunately I will take a fa pessimist uh point of view in this time uh seeing what happens around me I see for the the upcoming few years at least um green watching will still hold the era in sustainable tourism yeah uh because right now I know that there's a rising demand of sustainability but I don't think the industry itself realize that they need sustainability there are a lot of other demands that uh they put uh put first right instead of suain ability and that's where green washing came right when they do something but not really doing something yeah yeah I think it will still be the trend for upcoming years at least until the industry itself realized that they need sustainability to survive yeah they have to dig deeper sense that makes sense well so then as we wrap up our conversation today what Legacy do you want to leave behind in this world oh wow that's actually I'm really thinking hard for this question yeah uh but yeah I'm actually want to make people live better by traveling better okay I believe that travels can change uh uh let me rephrase this I believe to Trav can change people way to see everything they can change the way of people thinks and therefore they can change people life and so I want to be able to provide uh people with better travel uh experience so they can also change their life for a better one I love that well I think that's why your belief and what we do here at r just flows so well together we really do believe that travel is a tool and there is a way to make this world a better place through travel and I think through conversations like we've had today and experiencing and realizing that it's there's not an easy fix to anything quote unquote and to really dve in deep and look into it so thank you so much for joining me today Aurora thank you for inviting me here yes and that brings us to the end of our journey so if you've liked what you've heard and you want to hear more more please subscribe like and comment and you can follow us at rise travel Institute on Facebook or Instagram or on Twitter at be a rise traveler and again here at the rice travel Institute we really do believe travel is a powerful tool for positive transformative change and so if you're a college student planning on studying abroad or a professional thinking about a AP year or really anyone who's wanting to travel the world in a sustainable way I do really encourage you to head on over to the RIS Trav institute.org for more information on our educational program and we'll be back soon with another episode but until then keep roaming keep learning and continue to be a rise traveler bye-bye byebye this podcast is an extension of the rise travel Institute a 501c3 nonprofit committed to empowering young Travelers through educational programs research study tours and scholarships visit ryra institute.org to learn
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2023-10-29 05:27
