States Aim to Attract
Ecotourists
July 19, 2005 — By Tara Tuckwiller, The Charleston Gazette
When customers arrive at Natural
Seasons Bed and Breakfast, they're often just looking for a convenient
place to stay in Weston. Period.
They might not be expecting the organic garden. Or the $5 discount for
arriving in a carpool or a fuel-efficient car. They might not notice
that the fluffy guest towels, when they aren't so fluffy anymore, get
reused as cleaning rags -- and when the towels' natural fibers break
down enough, they join the compost pile.
Natural Seasons is part of West Virginia's growing ecotourism industry.
"There are shades of 'green' in the tourism industry," said John
Williams, owner of Natural Seasons and president of the state ecotourism
association. "I focus on the darkest green I can achieve."
Ecotourism's popularity is exploding, with 20 percent to 30 percent
growth per year, according to several estimates -- much faster than
regular tourism. True ecotourism not only protects the environment, but
also benefits the local culture and economy.
More and more tourists are demanding such an experience. Almost
three-fourths of the United States' most well-heeled, frequent travelers
-- more than 55 million Americans -- favor such responsible tourism,
according to a 2003 survey by National Geographic Traveler and the
Travel Industry Association of America. Their group clout translates
into roughly half of all travel spending.
But those travelers have a hard time finding what they're looking for.
Ecotourism is well developed in exotic locales such as Costa Rica and
the Galapagos Islands. But it is still in its infancy in the United
States. Until very recently, travelers who wanted socially and
environmentally responsible nature vacations had to do a lot of blind
digging to unearth the small, scattered U.S. outfitters and lodgings
that fit the bill.
Kentucky, Maine, Vermont, Oregon, Hawaii and other states are working on
a more customer-friendly approach, as is West Virginia.
This year, West Virginia's ecotourism association has hired an "ecotours
coordinator," who fields calls from interested tourists and helps them
assemble a custom vacation.
Now, ecotourism outfitters in nearby cities such as Pittsburgh and
Washington, D.C., who traditionally have sent customers on ecotours in
foreign countries, are beginning to steer clients toward West Virginia
instead.
"A large majority of our market -- D.C. metro-area folks -- are looking
for this kind of tourism," said Ben Isenberg, vice president and chief
operating officer of Solimar Marketing. Historically, the D.C.-based
company has specialized in responsible ecotours to Costa Rica.
Often, though, the client's budget "is for a weekend getaway," Isenberg
said. "They don't really have the funds to do a one-time, once-a-year
trip to Costa Rica.
"We've definitely decided West Virginia is a perfect opportunity."
At first glance, it seems as if most West Virginia tourism would be
ecotourism. Whitewater rafting, in and of itself, doesn't hurt the
environment. Neither does hiking, biking, rock climbing ...
But today's ecotourists want to know more. For example, will the picnic
soda cans discarded by a rafting group be recycled?
And then there's the human dimension: Is a hotel owned and staffed by
local people, or will the money spent there wind up in a faraway
corporate headquarters?
Before 2001, there was no central ecotourism group in West Virginia to
answer such questions and attract those tourists. John Williams of
Natural Seasons joined with others who already were practicing
ecotourism in the Mountain State to form the ecotourism association.
"We follow what are called the 'Eight Principles of Ecotourism,'"
Williams said. "We have Poll ID members does
not exist. survey their facilities: What are you doing to conserve
energy, water, flora and fauna around your facility?"
The "Eight Principles" are fairly strict, agreed upon by The
International Ecotourism Society and others. Environmental friendliness
is just one part; the principles also demand that a tourism business
benefit the local society, while helping tourists understand and
appreciate that society.
Big hotel corporations have adopted some eco-friendly ideas, attracting
customers and saving money. The Boston Park Plaza famously raked in more
than $1 million in new bookings shortly after it announced in the early
1990s that it had installed energy-efficient windows, dimmers on the
chandeliers, low-flow showerheads, and wall dispensers for luxury
shampoos.
Ecotourism groups applaud such environmental efforts, but caution that
the local community must be kept in mind.
A "Green Living" book published this summer by "E, the Environmental
Magazine" puts it this way: "A beachfront hotel tower built of imported
materials with absentee owners and no local employees is not an
eco-resort, even if it does offer its guests the option of not washing
their towels."
There exists no "seal of approval" to tell a traveler for sure if a
company truly practices good ecotourism. So tourists often rely on
companies such as Solimar to book them environmentally and socially
responsible vacations.
Isenberg, of Solimar, believes West Virginia has what it takes to
attract ecotourists.
"A lot of the same people coming to our office, looking for an
international escape, would love the opportunity to do some ecotourism
close by," he said. The state offers many of the same ecotourism
activities as Costa Rica: "Whitewater rafting, birding, camping,
ecolodges," Isenberg said. "And the culture and history is pretty rich
in both places."
Popular belief, and early research, held that ecotourists wanted to
explore tropical, foreign countries. But a more recent Canadian
government study found that two-thirds of recent U.S. and Canadian
travelers interested in ecotourism would prefer to stay in North America
for their next trip.
West Virginia has the nature activities down pat. All of the top 10
nature activities preferred by U.S. tourists, as identified by a 1998
tourism industry survey, are available in West Virginia: visiting parks,
hiking, exploring preserved areas, viewing wildlife, walking nature
trails in ecosystems, visiting unique natural places such as sinkholes,
environmental education, bird watching, biking and freshwater fishing.
Organizations like Williams' want to make sure ecotourists are satisfied
with the other aspects of their stay. An Eastern Panhandle group, the
Ecology Coalition of Morgan County, includes ecotourism lodging
operators and others who set up packages such as this spring's "Redbud
Weekend" and "Birdwatchers' Weekend," making it easy for tourists.
Nature tourists have a reputation for not spending much money. But
several studies indicate that ecotourists actually spend more than
regular tourists.
"There are a couple of stereotypes that go around with ecotourism,"
Carol Patterson, author of "The Business of Ecotourism," told West
Virginia tourism operators at a conference in Flatwoods.
"I think it's one of those things that accounts for the slow start of
ecotourism. A lot of people have this idea that ecotourists are kind of
granola-ey, tree-hugging, wool sock-wearing, cheap tourists ... That's
not the case. We've actually found that they spend quite a bit of
money."
Ecotourists, experts say, are willing to pay people to provide them with
nature experiences -- whitewater rafting, mountain climbing, observing
rare wild animals -- that they don't have the equipment or expertise to
experience on their own.
Besides those experiences, West Virginia offers something that is very
simple, but hard to find in the populous Eastern United States,
Patterson said.
Solitude.
"We often overlook those sorts of features when we're putting together
our ecotourism ...You can offer that solitude, that return to nature
that these other people can't."
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go to http://www.wvgazette.com.
Source: Knight Ridder/Tribune Business News |