By Ethan Gelber

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A Local Travel movement is finding its legs. Strong legs. Last weekend, in a step to find good solid ground upon which to exercise those legs, I published two blog posts about it, one on Lonely Planet’s Travel Blog hosted by Yahoo!7 Travel in Australia and the other on The Brooklyn Nomad’s blog.

It’s true. Local Travel’s here. It’s a small new movement, but it’s gaining momentum. Stay tuned for more…

Lonely Planet’s Travel Blog (hosted by Yahoo!7 Travel in Australia)

On 17 December 2009, I wrote a post about the misunderstood merits of Local Travel on Lonely Planet’s Travel Blog hosted by Yahoo!7 Travel in Australia.

Judging by the glowingly supportive comments, I apparently tapped a rich vein of local travel enthusiasts eager to lend credence to a cause.

Given that, I was invited by Lonely Planet to write a follow-up post, digging a little deeper into the fertile earth I’d found. That text – Get Lost, Go Local – has again fielded some welcome input from readers.

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Posted under media, opinion, responsible organisations, responsible travel, responsible travel news, responsible traveller, whl.travel newsletter

By Ethan Gelber

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The lion is one of the Big Five found in Kruger National Park, the country’s largest game reserve and a superb place for a safari (photo courtesy of South African Tourism)

The clock’s ticking. Every hour we move closer to 4pm South Africa time on 11 June 2010, when the World Cup 2010 kicks off in Johannesburg’s Soccer City Stadium. The anticipation is palpable, but so is the growing frustration and sometimes anger about the absurd room rates and out-of-focus travel opportunities in a country driven by high expectations.

So what are you to do? Are there reasonably priced accommodation options anywhere in South Africa? How can one find exciting and responsible travel options beyond the pomp of a month of games? And, as we’ve written about already, is there any way of ensuring that some of the money spent will be fairly distributed, so that the inflated profits benefit as wide a cross-section of people as possible, not just the already rich and powerful?
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Posted under General, South Africa, countries, local tips, responsible organisations, responsible travel, responsible travel news, whl.travel newsletter

Putting responsible tourism into practice, Planeta.com and friends in Oaxaca, Mexico, are hosting the Responsible Tourism Fair (Feria de Turismo Responsable) from 17-30 January 2010.

According to Ron Mader, founder of Planeta.com and organiser of the event, responsible tourism is treating others the way they wish to be treated. The Responsible Tourism Fair therefore responds to the “growing number of travellers [who] want their journeys to be less invasive and more beneficial to the local community,” he said. “They want to better understand the culture of the people they meet in the places they visit. Those who enjoy a trip will look back fondly on it for the rest of their lives.”

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Posted under General, Mexico, countries, responsible organisations, responsible travel, responsible travel news, whl.travel newsletter

By Maureen Valentine

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Off Panama’s Pacific coast lies Isla Gobernadora, a peaceful and natural haven practically untouched by modern preoccupations. For the local inhabitants, primarily fishermen, island life tends to revolve around the seasons and tides, and the absence of roads and cars means that people get around by boats or boots. This hasn’t however prevented outsiders from beating a path to the famous surfing point of Santa Catalina or establishing a base for diving trips into Coiba National Park or nearby Isla Cebico.

Boats on the Isla Gobernadora shore await use in this ideal diving area. The beautiful waters of the Pacific off Panama draw some of the best divers in the world.

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Posted under General, Panama, countries, responsible organisations, responsible travel, responsible travel news, whl.travel newsletter

whl.travel moves from strength to strength in the two regions, with local coverage spanning 60 live destinations in 31 countries

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The St. Nicholas Church at Malostranske Namesti in Prague’s Lesser Town is the stunning backdrop of the Europe and Middle East regional office of whl.travel

whl.travel is a global online travel-booking network that began as a pilot project of the International Finance Corporation, or IFC (a member of the World Bank Group), helping unique, locally owned travel product gain access to international markets. whl.travel, now a private company, has since become a springboard for independent consumers headed off the beaten path and yearning to travel with local businesses, no matter how small, and especially those making socially responsible and sustainable decisions about their destinations, often in the developing world.

As of late December 2009, the whl.travel network spans nearly 200 live destinations in 85 countries, with another 100 or so under construction, including 10 new countries.

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Posted under General, responsible travel, responsible travel news, whl.travel news

After the successful launch of Urban Adventures on October 1, 2009, the business has been moving from strength to strength. The month of November, in particular, was very productive in network growth and technological improvements. Now just 71 days after officially opening our days, there are 28 destinations and 94 adventures live, with new product being added each week. Destinations already operating include major centres like New York, London, Rio de Janeiro, Delhi, Johannesburg, Istanbul, Sydney, Bangkok, Vancouver, Nairobi, Kathmandu, Lima and Auckland.

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Posted under Australia, Brazil, Brunei, Canada, General, Greece, India, Jamaica, Kenya, Latvia, Mexico, Nepal, Peru, Philippines, Portugal, South Africa, Thailand, Turkey, USA, United Kingdom, Zambia, responsible travel news, whl.travel news

By Ethan Gelber

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LEIA LOGO ABAIXO ESTA NOTICIA EM PORTUGUÊS / SEE BELOW FOR THIS MESSAGE IN PORTUGUESE

Some things make no sense at all, especially when it comes to politics and the environment. Far too often, years of careful consultative and democratic negotiation in favour of cultural and environmental conservation can be – and are too often – undone by the surreptitious and unilateral actions of a (perhaps) ill-informed and (sometimes) self-serving few.

Such appears to be the case today along the Emerald Coast of Brazil and adjacent islands (especially Ilha Grande), where a June 2009 decree signed by the governor of the state of Rio de Janeiro has relaxed 23-year-old environmental protections and now threatens the ecological sustainability of the entire area.

Ilha Grande recently received the title of the 'Second Wonder of the State of Rio de Janeiro' and has routinely been recognized as one of the world's most beautiful tourist destinations. Its beaches are certainly amongst the best in Brazil.

Fortunately, the sly changes in policy have not gone unnoticed. “Here in Brazil, we have many people and organizations mobilized to repeal that decree,” said Nélio Ricardo Aguiar, the whl.travel local connection in Ilha Grande.

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While the vocal opposition is building, so is support for their cause via an online petition calling for immediate revocation of the decree.

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Posted under Brazil, General, countries, responsible travel, responsible travel news, whl.travel news

This article was first published by our friends at Intrepid Travel, who have agreed to its republication here.
View the original article on their Intrepid Express Blog.

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Bear for breakfast, langur for lunch or tiger for tea? We certainly hope these are not on YOUR dinner plate, but sadly these endangered creatures can be found on some menus in Indochina.

Fortunately we have good news that this situation is changing thanks to the work of the World Wide Fund for Nature (WWF) and TRAFFIC, the latter a partner of the Intrepid Foundation.

Choosing a restaurant in Vietnam’s capital city just got a little easier with the help of a tiny green chef. This cheery culinary figure is turning up on posters in eateries around Hanoi as the logo for WWF and TRAFFIC’s Green Restaurant Campaign to end illegal and/or unsustainable wildlife consumption.

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Posted under Vietnam, countries, responsible organisations, responsible travel, responsible travel news

By Luke Ford

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With 167 countries represented by over 5000 exhibitors, the first open-trade day of the World Travel Market in London was certainly no-holds-barred. Enticing the crowds meant dishing out the tastiest of local cuisines, turning up the volume on some truly local tunes, donning traditional garb and even, in some cases bringing out the celebrities to really raise the temperature (was that Kylie or her sister?). WTM, now in its 30th year, remains the principal event on the travel industry’s calendar and presents a valuable opportunity for all those involved.

whl.travel's Luke Ford (centre) takes a moment at the WTM with Mr Kim (left) and Ms Lee of Holiday Planners, the whl.travel local connection for South Korea

WHL Group, parent company of whl.travel, was also in attendance, sharing the messages of whl.travel, Urban Adventures and WHL Consulting, all of which were received positively. With a growing network around the world in more than 90 countries, whl.travel was there with 15-plus whl.travel local connections.

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Posted under General, responsible travel, responsible travel news, whl.travel newsletter

By Paul Tavner

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Coming to the Fringe RT Network event as first-timer, I genuinely wasn’t sure what to expect. I’d never attended a networking event before and was worried that I’d feel a bit like an outsider with little to offer by way of contribution. I was, therefore, pleasantly surprised to find myself on the receiving end of a very warm reception from a diverse bunch of genuinely friendly and interesting individuals.

A lot of good people with a lot of good things to say at the Fringe RT Network event @ WTM 2009

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Posted under General, responsible organisations, responsible travel, responsible travel news