Opinion
Can a tourist highlight be a local experience?
On our Spotted by Locals blogs, locals in 38 Europe cities write about their personal favorite spots. Usually, these are very much “insider” tips that you won’t find in the regular guidebooks. Sometimes (very rarely), a local (“Spotter” as we call them) has a very special story about a “highlight” in their city and writes […]
Linking Cultures Through Sustainable (and Local) Tourism in Celebration of World Tourism Day
Do you believe travel can be a force for good? Since 1980, the United Nations World Tourism Organization (UNTWO) has celebrated World Tourism Day on September 27th to bring awareness to the importance of tourism and its social, cultural, political, and economic value. “World Tourism Day is an opportunity to reflect on the importance of […]
Stories from a local traveler
I don’t need to go anywhere except my front porch to encounter life in its finest form. Living in Los Angeles has forever redirected my reasons and motives for traveling. When I travel, I often think of my LA days as a reference point for the type of openness, ingenuity and experiences I seek to […]
Conscious travellers want suppliers to think globally but act locally
Because most visitors to a place come from another and because most other places are far away, suppliers of tourism services have inevitably had to adopt a global perspective. Considerable attention is given to understanding cultural and linguistic differences of various source markets and to researching and deploying the different channels of distribution at work […]
A potpourri of local travel thoughts
I truly believe there is nothing as strong or beautiful as traveling locally. When I travel; I admire, I compare, I remember, I learn, I observe, I share, I love, I hate, I dream, I regret but I never forget. When I travel, I open myself to the warmness of genuine human beings, who like […]
How to become a responsible traveler: 5 tips from a local travel expert
I remember the first time I saw ‘local travel’ mentioned in writing. I don’t recall the actual article, but I must have been thinking about food; I read ‘local’ as ‘lo-cal’ travel (i.e. travel on a low-calorie diet). My confusion didn’t last long, but it made for some welcome chuckles while I pondered the possibilities. […]
Indigenous People’s Week: August 8 to 12, 2011
Indigenous tourism is the topic of the moment thanks to an innovative and fun ‘unconference’ that is taking place around the globe as part of Indigenous People’s Week, from August 8 to 12, 2011. As the founder of Planeta.com, I’m co-hosting the event with Sweden’s Nutti Sámi Siida. Their Anders Kärrstedt tweeted more than a […]