A CONTRARIAN VIEW: WHY travel IS bad FOR THE world

Posted: 11/28/2016 | November 28th, 2016

Travel is a good thing. To quote Maya Angelou:

Perhaps travel cannot prevent bigotry, but by demonstrating that all peoples cry, laugh, eat, worry, and die, it can introduce the idea that if we try and comprehend each other, we may even become friends

I believe in travel. Heck, I have an entire site and career devoted to making people do it more!

But, in the rush to get people to travel, we often overlook the negative impact of travel on neighborhoods and the environment. We talk about how travel can be a force for good: breaking down social barriers, linking people, mentor people about life, and themselves but….

Is as well much travel a bad thing?

Is there an argument to be produced traveling less?

Are we all, even with the very best intentions, doing damage to the extremely thing we want the most?

Nothing is ever perfect but if I had to make an argument against travel, these are the points I would make:

Travel destroys local cultures – The globalization of food, travel, hotels, and language diminishes the extremely culture we traveled so far to see. instead of going out to seek the unknown, many people stay in resorts and hotels, never experiencing the country they are in. We go to McDonald’s or eat food we can get at home. It’s as though we travel to never leave home. anywhere we go, we seem to bring our western culture with us.

Travel makes the world Disneyland – From the hill tribes of Thailand to the Andes to cowboys of America, travelers have a certain expectation of what a place is and how the people ought to act. We travel to see that expectation. We travel to see Crocodile Dundee, Mayans, native Americans, and hill tribe cultures in Asia. Cultures around the world then put on a show to give us what we want and in the process “Disneyize” their culture. I dislike seeing the bit hill tribes in Thailand or native American shows in America or “traditional” dance in Vietnam. It’s not how they truly act. It’s how they act for tourists. Doesn’t that just cheapen the experience and, in the end, cause more damage than good?

Travel destroys local economies – All that travel in big hotels and global restaurants doesn’t help the local economy. many of that money is eliminated by corporations to the head office. Travelers choose what they know and many will stay at the Marriott before they stay in some unknown place, never believing about where the money is going. travel can be a huge economic boon but only if the money stays local.

Travel hurts the environment – traveling is not the most environmentally friendly of activities. Flying, cruising, eating out, and driving around all have a negative impact on the environment. many people when they travel constantly utilize towels in hotel rooms, leave the air conditioner going, or forget to turn off the lights. Jetsetting around the world in airplanes or driving around in an RV all contribute to global warming. between waste, development, and pollution, we are doing exactly what The beach stated we would do — destroy the extremely paradise we seek.

Travel creates short-term revenues – everyone tries to get that last dollar. travel isn’t the only industry this occurs with but it’s the most appropriate to us. instead of building for the long term, people overdevelop in the name of short-term gain. You see it in Thailand with its developed up beaches, in Cambodia, in southern Spain, and in Las vegas with all the casinos (where’s all that water going to come from?). It’s everywhere. money now, forget later. Eventually, the tourists will stop coming because they will be so put off and so unfortunate the beauty they came for is gone.

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While there is a growing effort among people to reduce these downsides, the reality is we can’t ignore overtourism and the negative side of travel. Yet I don’t believe these reasons ought to make us stop traveling. In fact, I’m just believing out loud here. just letting the wheels turn.

At the end of the day, these negatives come down to personal choice. You can easily travel the world and refrain from doing any of these things. I don’t fly much, I don’t stay in giant hotels, I avoid chain restaurants, I stay in local guesthouses, and I won’t do trips that exploit animals or the environment.

Things are only good or bad if they make them to be. If you stay with travelers, never get out of the traveler area, never look up from your phone, squander water, and trip elephants, yes you’re travel is bad for the world.

But if you do the opposite, then there’s no reason why your travel can’t be a force for good.

While many travelers are good at believing about the environment and cultures, the majority aren’t. and so I do believe there is a strong argument to be made that travel does cause a lot of issues that ought to make us rethink how and why we travel. There’s a drawback to what we do and we ought to take it upon ourselves not to do those things so we can keep travel the benefit that it is.

Let’s be a force for good and change the method we travel by utilizing our money to support better local environmental efforts and companies.

As they say, leave no trace behind.
 

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