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Majolica Travel S.r.l.s.
Via Don Orione, 30 | Palermo (Sicily)
Office (+39) 091 5077 283
Mob. (+39) 327 619 0641
© 2021-2024 Majolica Travel S.r.l.s. - All rights reserved | VAT n. 07003890824 | D.D.S. n. 137/S7
Responsible Travel
As Tour Operator, We Must Share the Responsible Travel Principles. As Travellers, We Must Respect them.
Thinking about tourism today, it is no longer possible to reduce it to the simple concept of moving people from their place of residence to a different one for at least one night. It is now a too simplistic concept. In the past, people traveled for necessity or cultural training for recreational purposes. Today it is more seen as an exaltation of our freedom, which leads to discovery, access to something new and original.
The 1900s were characterized by mass tourism, which invaded and ruined many places of interest. Often the mass tourist has corrupted the indigenous forms of life, not respecting the populations and traditions of the sites visited.
For this reason, Majolica promotes tourist experiences carried out in harmony with the territory, natural heritage, and ecosystem protection. There is a Global Code of Ethics for Tourism, and it is our duty, as Tour Operator, to respect it and make it respected.
Responsible tourism and its definition were discussed in the Cape Town Declaration in 2002. This document clarifies specifically what responsible tourism is:
- minimizes the negative impact from an economic, social, and environmental point of view;
- it involves the local population and increases their financial well-being;
- contributes to the conservation of the cultural and natural heritage, ensuring its use also for future generations;
- offers travelers the opportunity to create connections and relationships with the local population, promoting mutual respect.
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Majolica wants to practice the definition of Responsible Tourism, limiting the excesses of tourism and the maximum number of participants allowed on our tours, avoiding activities that could damage the environment and artistic wealth in Sicily.
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The First Step is to Stop Thinking that Holidays are a Period in which Ethics also Goes on Vacation.
The concept of Sustainable Tourism is also present in the Global Code of Ethics for Tourism, which promotes explicitly healthy and continuous economic growth. Sustainable Tourism embraces four dimensions: environmental, social, economic, and artistic. It is necessary to constrain the impact of tourism activities in two ways: not to alter what is already there; do not prevent the development of what is not yet there.
Tourism is a powerful development tool, which should actively participate in the sustainable development strategy, respecting the fragile balance that characterizes many tourist destinations. A clear example in Sicily is the Scala dei Turchi which over the years has suffered continuous mistreatment by both locals and visiting guests, forcing the institutions to ban access definitively. And this could also happen to our islands, small corners of paradise with a delicate balance. Tourism should ensure respect for natural resources, biodiversity, and the capacity to absorb the impact and residues produced.
Sometimes the tourist load is not monitored. Therefore, several tourists, a more significant number than those that can be supported and welcomed by the destination, negatively impact the sites with irreparable consequences.
Let's always remember that we have inherited the historical, artistic, cultural, and natural heritage, and we are fortunate to admire them. But this also presupposes the great duty of preserving these treasures for our future generations. Neglecting all this is an offense to humanity.