Kauai residents see tourists and the tourism industry in an overwhelmingly positive light when viewed through the lens of so-called “regenerative tourism,” a travel philosophy that seeks to provide visitors with opportunities to counterbalance social, economic or environmental impacts of tourism via enjoyable, educational activities, according to a new University of Hawaii study.
What You Need To Know
In Hawaii, regenerative tourism might involve visitors replanting native tree species to offset the carbon footprint of flying to the state, removing invasive plant species from hiking trails, or working in a loi kalo to learn more about Hawaiian culture
Results from the study were published in the June 2022 edition of Journal of Travel Research
The survey is one of the first to collect resident responses to an emerging tourism sector that has not been broadly researched
Overall, the study found that regenerative travel positively affects residents’ support for tourism development; regenerative travel positively affects tourist attractiveness; and travel shaming tempers the effects of regenerative travel on tourist attractiveness
In Hawaii, regenerative tourism might involve visitors replanting native tree species to offset the carbon footprint of flying to the state, removing invasive plant species from hiking trails, or working in a loi kalo to learn more about Hawaiian culture.
