The impact of environmental awareness on young tourists’ sustainable travel choices

Abstract

Increasing interest in the environmental protection in recent years due to the worsening situation with climate change put pressure on many industries, tourism including. Tourism can lead to major environmental pollution and damage of the natural environment and it is also one of the biggest contributors to the climate change. With the recognition of need for the environmental protection the consumer behaviour is changing and people now seek more sustainable purchases. Recent years have noted a new wave of tourism, the youth tourism, which is becoming increasingly important in the tourism industry. Young tourists are believed to be the future of the tourism industry and they will lead the development of the sector. It is, therefore, essential to understand the new generation of tourists and to determine their environmental awareness and perception of sustainability, as they are the drivers of future tourism development and potentially the promoters of sustainability within the industry. Following an analysis of 85 surveys collected from a random sample of people aged between 18 and 30, this study aimed (a) to asses to what extend young tourists are aware of the environmental impacts of travel, (b) to analyse the relationship between their environmental awareness and their consumer behaviour while traveling and (c) to evaluate to what extent otherwise environmentally friendly young tourists considers sustainability while travelling. The quantitative data analysis uncovered patterns in young tourists’ behaviour, confirming that young people have generally a high level of environmental awareness and tend to have well established sustainable habits in their everyday lives, however, they do not seem to practice these to a large extent when travelling. Therefore, the study revealed a gap between youths’ sustainable believes and their behaviour in leisure settings, such as on holidays