Overtourism has been a hot-button topic in recent years, with high leisure travel numbers contributing to crowded destinations, especially across Europe and the Asia-Pacific region.
On this episode of the Next Gen in Lodging podcast, host Chris Henry spoke with Sebastien Favre, vice president of development, project management and construction in South East Asia and Pacific at Club Med, and Kansas Henderson, hotel manager at the Mauna Kea Beach Hotel in Waimea, Hawaii, to get their perspectives on overtourism and how they manage it.
Henderson said overtourism is a topic that should be on everyone's mind.
Mauna Kea Beach Hotel has the Moku Pulama Fund, which funds local culture, art and sustainability endeavors. The hotel donates, and every guest has the opportunity to donate as well.
The hotel has been working with the Hawaiian Legacy Reforestation Initiative to plant endemic trees, with a goal of reaching 1,200 acres in Mauna Kea and Mauna Loa. Through a collaboration with the Hawaii Island Land Trust, it recently purchased 652 acres of land in the Mahukona district that will be held as a conservation area, he said.
"We were really proud to have taken part in that purchase and continue to look for more opportunities like that to help the preservation here on the island," Henderson said.
Favre said Club Med takes engaging guests and the local culture into consideration before even opening a property.
"When we work on the design of a property, on the construction of that property, we make sure that we're not doing any copy-paste," he said. "We are actually trying to make sure that we're working with interior designers ... who are based locally, and have a perfect understanding of the local culture and are able to bring to this specific Club Med sort of a unique character to it."
Favre referenced a recent study conducted by Evaneos and Roland Burger that provided solutions hoteliers can undertake to help prevent overtourism. Some of those solutions include: improving a property's offerings during low-demand seasons; creating new destinations for travelers to explore; and working with local communities to improve sustainability.
"We have a very focused approach where we look for the right plot. We look to make sure that this plot is sustainable for the next 30 to 40 years," he said. "We're very committed to that location and develop strong ties with all the communities locally."
For more from Henderson and Favre, listen to the full podcast at the link above.
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