In our journey towards a more sustainable world, “impact travel” solutions can provide travellers with experiences that positively mark the destinations they visit. However, there are a few considerations that are crucial to a major breakthrough in impact travel: 1. The paradox that “going mainstream” is not sustainable by its very nature (e.g. mass tourism) 2. Protecting the authentic essence and brand value of “impact travel” so it doesn’t become another marketing tagline 3. Moving beyond simple KPIs to ensure we make a measurable, positive change in the real lives of people Do you think "impact travel" is feasible for the tourism industry to achieve at a wider scale? What other challenges does impact travel face to become a significant force and transform people's lives and society? Appreciate your feedback! PS: If you are interested in this topic, we invite you to join the TravaPowa impact travel community (follow the links in my profile).

In response to last week's newsletter titled "Is Food Tourism making a comeback?" Food tourism has always been a part of the travel experience and it's not new. Since 2015, I have been writing about local and authentic food experiences on Authentic Food Quest, a food and travel website I co-founded at www.authenticfoodquest.com The goal has always been and continues to be about inspiring people to seek out local food and culinary activities on their travels. We share content about cooking classes, food and wine tours, recipes of emblematic dishes all aimed at helping people experience local culture through food. Since the pandemic and also keeping with the rise in travel, we've seen an increased consumption in our content. And, when traveling and participating in various culinary activities around the world, we see more people and a higher interest in learning about local foods and drinks. The key is not to make food tourism a "passing fad." The plat du jour that will be replac...

I've been multilingual since I was young, with three fluent (or nearly fluent) languages under my belt, like many Malaysians. I also self-studied Japanese from a young age. Recently I delved into learning French after conversing with native speakers (in English). I was fascinated to understand why French-speakers articulated things the way they did in English, by matching the vocabulary and structure to their native French. I also learned about idioms and phrases through language podcasts. I've only visited a few cities in France — however learning the culture through the language made me feel like I'm actually experiencing the country. Does anyone else feel the same about language-based tourism?