Celebrated in line with the United Nations General Assembly proclamation of 2017 as the International Year of Sustainable Tourism for Development, World Tourism Day, held on 27 September, is dedicated to exploring the contribution of tourism to the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).

This year, World Tourism Day focuses on Sustainable Tourism, celebrated in line with the 2017 International Year of Sustainable Tourism for Development. BW Hotelier spoke to industry experts on how they plan to enrich this day within the travel community and spread the importance of tourism and its social, cultural, political and economic value in the society.

As published in an online report by UNWTO, World Tourism Day has been celebrated since 1980 on September 27, the day in which the Statutes of the World Tourism Organization (UNWTO) entered into force. Peace and Dialogue, Energy, Accessibility, World Heritage and Water and Tourism have been some of the topics tackled on the 37 previous editions of World Tourism Day. “Last year alone, 1.235 million travellers crossed international borders in one single year. By 2030, this 1.2 billion will become 1.8 billion. The question, as we celebrate World Tourism Day 2017, is how we can enable this powerful global transformative force, these 1.8 billion opportunities, to contribute to make this world a better place and to advance sustainable development in all its three pillars. This World Tourism Day, whenever you travel, wherever you travel, remember to respect nature, respect culture and respect your host,” said UNWTO Secretary-General Taleb Rifai in an online report.

Suman Billa, Joint Secretary, Ministry of Tourism & Chairman, ICPB, feels that the tourism sector should focus on the two important aspects that augur growth in India – ‘Swachhta’ and ‘Suraksha’. “If we are not able to handle security and cleanliness, it may affect the growth of tourism. But thankfully over the past three years we have taken several initiatives to drive cleanliness in India and infrastructure build-up – ports, cruise and terminals – providing regional connectivity which could add to the robust Indian economy,” he said.

Commemorating the day, ITC Hotels has curated a series of immersive ‘Responsible Luxury’ experiences for guests at its hotels on September 27, 2017. Commenting on the occasion, Nakul Anand, Executive Director, ITC Ltd. says, “We are pleased to honour UNWTO’s chosen theme of Sustainable Tourism as it exemplifies ITC Hotels’ journey with ‘Responsible Luxury’ as its credo. ITC’s hotels business is committed to deliver luxury experiences in a responsible manner in keeping with ITC’s objectives to create larger value for the nation in a sustainable and inclusive manner.”

The United Nations World Tourism Organisation (UNWTO) 2017 theme of ‘Sustainable Tourism’ pillared on the dimensions of Economic, Social, Environment, Culture and Peace, underscores ITC Hotels’ ethos of ‘Responsible Luxury’ that transcends the limited boundaries of ‘Green’ to include practices and experiences that showcase luxury with a deeper commitment to the nation and society.

Experiences that demonstrate ‘Responsible Luxury’ and its impact over a larger stakeholder group will be showcased to guests, on the occasion. These include, destination discoveries through guided exploration of the hotels featuring indigenous architecture, art, local traditions and rituals. Culinary journeys that emphasis regional cuisine experiences, a ‘farm to plate’ approach and holistic well-being initiatives, among others.

ITC Maratha further strengthens its environment sustainable practices and plans to install a new bio gas plant in the property premises to promote use of clean energy. Bio-gas being a renewable and clean source of energy, would help reduce greenhouse effect. The wet waste generated at the property would be channelized to produce bio gas fuel. This energy would then be used to fuel the kitchen areas. The Bio-gas plant is planned to be set up and operational at the property by November 2017 on wards.

Speaking on the occasion, Kuldeep Bhartee, Area Manager (West) – ITC Hotels & General Manager – ITC Maratha said, “At ITC Maratha, conservation of resources and the protection of environment has always been our primary responsibility and ongoing commitment. In order to create a positive ecological footprint, we at ITC Maratha believe in undertaking ecofriendly initiatives to maintain a balanced harmony with nature. Also, with guest increasingly becoming more demanding and environmentally sensitive, it is important to ensure customization of premium aspects of luxury without compromising on sustainable practices. Hence, at every step of our commitment towards guest satisfaction, we shoulder our responsibility to conserve our nature by realizing the corporate philosophy of ‘Responsible Luxury’.”

Similarly, Ratna Chadha, Chief Executive, TIRUN, a pioneer of the cruise tourism industry in India and India representative of Royal Caribbean Cruises has constantly endeavoured to expand the conservation and sustainable business practices. In 2016, Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd. partnered with World Wildlife Fund, world’s most respected conservation organization, to help ensure the long term health of the oceans. The cruise tour operator is always focused on reducing carbon emissions and ensuring sustainable seafood procurement. “The cruise industry is a popular segment that uses the natural environment as its key product. With increasing challenges and limited resources, sustainable tourism is the only way forward. Any business that we are involved in should be such that it does not ruin the equilibrium of the nature in any which way,” says Chadha.

Royal Caribbean Cruises, over the next few years, is set to achieve ambitious and measurable sustainability targets that will reduce Royal Caribbean’s environmental footprint and raise awareness among the company’s more than 5 million passengers about the importance of ocean conservation.

Amit Taneja, Chief Revenue Officer, Cleartrip feels, “The rise in popularity of travel and tourism in India has brought about a deep focus on sustainable tourism and its importance. As a leading operator in the travel sector, Cleartrip focuses on the economic growth of the destinations it services as well as the well being of the people who belong to these geographies. It is the utmost responsibility of every stakeholder to be accountable for our natural heritage and for ways to preserve and protect it. We ensure that all our partners; airlines, hotels, trains and others are well educated about the various aspects of sustainable tourism and we continuously emphasize the need for every tourist destination to be maintained in its pristine state, not merely for the benefit of future generations, but also for the sake of the local communities and for the overall ecological balance.”

Manheer Singh Sethi, Co-founder, Travkart, a unit of Holidays by Sahibji Pvt. Ltd. specializes in fixed departures and themed holidays believes that sustainability has been one of the core values of the travel industry. “When we say Sustainable Tourism, we need to mainly focus on two pillars i.e. environmental and socio-cultural changes. On the same lines, we recently introduced an ‘Accessible Travel’ tab on our website which can be used by the travellers with disabilities to browse and book curated holiday packages. The move underlines Travkart’s commitment to make holidays and travel accessible for everyone and is our contribution to the cause of sustainability. Travkart aims that the resources should be preserved and rescued making sure that in every area where ever the travellers go and even the future generations, they can use it and again preserve it for their future generations, which is much more than just being green.”