Sustainable Tourism in Benin – First steps to become a sustainable travel pro –

The world is looking with fear and anxiety on Eastern Europe. We truly believe that cultural understanding and leadership are necessary to provide a broader perspective and enable us to take responsibility. With our interview we would like to encourage you to travel, understand the locals and see connections instead of barriers. Enjoy reading and share your thoughts with us!

2Morrow Trip is a tourism agency located in Cotonou in the Benin Republic. We provide sustainable and authentic travel experiences by jumping into Benin’s rich culture. Benin is a Western African country with a particularity of a stable peace. Our mission is to engage more young Beninese people in tourism by changing their behavior regarding their country. Most of them do not know our history and tourist places of interest. The Tourism sector is an industry that provides jobs to many people. It is also one of the main industries and receives investments from the current government.We are a travel agency that offers different services to help people explore Benin. We offer a variety of trips and tours for people who want to meet new cultures, network with others, and collaborate for a better world.The services we provide, are:

• Sightseeing tours/excursions: we organize individual/group visits to the best and hidden tourist places in Benin
• Team retreats: We organize weekend team buildings and outdoor activities for enterprises/organizations in the need to boost their employees’ self-confidence and motivation.
• Virtual trip to Benin: Visit Benin digitally is a project we are building currently. The aim is to invite the world to Benin by helping them to jump into our rich culture.

2. What kind of negative externalities are caused by traveling?

The tourism industry provided 272 million jobs worldwide and is one of the biggest industries, but it has also had some negative impacts. The negative impacts of traveling are the erosion that occurs because of the depletion and the natural habitat loss due to building development. Tourism can lead to increased consumption.Let me give you some examples. When we build roads and highways, they have an impact on the surrounding environment, because nature has no place in this area anymore. Plants and animals disappear where highways seal off the fertile soil below the cement.The same thing happens when we build hotels and theme parks; this is all just to accommodate people who are traveling.

When we travel, our cars also have an impact on the environment, because they cause pollution from exhaust fumes. This pollution can lead to soil erosion in areas where there are no trees or vegetation to protect it from rainwater runoff. Here are also some examples of the negative impact we cause while we are traveling:

• Pollution increases: air, water, plastic, noise
• Increased demand for imported goods for tourists, which can lead to the loss of local products
• Life is expensive in the areas where tourists appear, increased prices on goods and services
• The pressure on the resources of the area when too many tourists stay too long in a place
• Loss of the cultural identity: customs and traditions. Locals want to copy the tourists and behave like them by copying their way of living
• The exploitation of animals to entertain the tourists

Travel produces short term revenue and is not sustainable for locals

3. What is the main difference between Beninese travelers and European tourists?

European tourists generally expect the same quality services that they have in their home country. The Beninese tourists look to improve their lives and provide a better life for their children. The tourism industry is a key sector of the Beninese economy, but its development is hindered by the lack of facilities and infrastructure. This is where European tourists come in: they offer both a market for products and expertise to develop this sector.

As a result, there has been an increase in tourism from Europe to Benin over the past decade, both from individuals and groups of people traveling through Africa on what are called “safaris”.

Some points must also be considered to learn more about those differences:

• • Budget: most European travelers have the habits of savings to go on holidays
  • Habit to travel outside of their country or discover a city/country
  • European travelers can easily move around the EU and have easy access to other parts of the world. Beninese tourists can get into West African countries without any further VISA procedure but have some difficulties accessing other parts of Africa and the world.
  • Transportation: There are different options to move around with easy access compared to Beninese travelers for whom flight tickets are expensive.
  • Consciousness about the impact of their traveling within most European countries.
  • Beninese and European travelers, both are looking for quality services with Europeans have a different lifestyle living.
  • Beninese travelers do not often complain compared to European ones who have higher life standards
  • EU travelers consider taking insurance before traveling
  • EU travelers have the particularity to travel in family and with their pets

4. What needs to change in the future?

5. What needs to change in the future?

• We can travel more sustainably by adopting certain behaviors. Some are easy, some are hard, but we will all benefit from that:
• Decrease our carbon footprint by taking non-stop flights or eco-friendly transportation
• Go green and use reusable items made from bamboo, wood, or glass
• Educate people about sustainable ways of traveling
• Support local restaurants by enjoying local food and getting to know them
• Buy beautiful souvenirs from local stores and support the local economy
• Walk where possible: During my tour, I used to ask the participants to walk and go to some places without the car
• Travel more locally: explore your country first
• Say no to plastics
• Take care of every place you visit

6. Which trends do you see in the future?

The most important thing I see is the rising demand for digitalization and the use of technology. I can put in this point: the growth of contactless payments, virtual tours or virtual reality tourism, safety and hygiene rising. Some destinations may be chosen based on how the country dealt with the increase in COVID-19 numbers, and people will probably choose to stay local than travel abroad.