Wildlife tourism – and how to do it with a clear conscience

“Habituation of the great apes is essential for the species to thrive,” says Amos Wekesa, CEO of East African specialists Great Lakes Safaris. “Local communities need a reason to protect the species that are stealing their crops and stopping them from hunting in the forests.” If not handled properly, however, tourism can be damaging. Over […]

Bring back VAT-free shopping for tourists, says Priti Patel

She pointed to data from Visit Britain showing that spending by overseas visitors was down 10 per cent in real terms in the third quarter of 2023 compared to the same period four years earlier, just before the pandemic. “Unless tax-free shopping is reintroduced, British businesses and brands will continue to lose out to their […]

Heathrow accuses Sunak of tarnishing Britain’s reputation with tourist tax

Sir Jacob Rees-Mogg, a former business secretary, said: “It [the tourist tax] costs more than it raises. It’s an economically inefficient tax. Foreign visitors coming and spending money on all sorts of other things is very beneficial, so I would certainly encourage the Government to scrap it. “If the Treasury took a more dynamic approach, […]

Tourists forgot how to behave themselves in 2023

Still, one would like to hope that people wouldn’t, for example, deface temple walls at home, or spend a drunken night at their country’s most famous landmark. It is borne out in statistics that people feel liberated on their travels, and so indulge in ways they might not in “ordinary” life. That used to mean […]

Tourists brave six inches of snow to take Lake District open top bus tour

The pair ended up walking to Ambleside as freezing temperatures made the road impassable to drivers, and were taken in by a B&B owner. “I’m big on the mountains but Andrew had only done a few so I said I’d take him out and we’d do Helvellyn together,” Me Renfrew said. “We went up early […]

Scotland’s far north has already reached peak tourism

“The North Coast 500 has helped create jobs in communities right across the North Highlands, grow awareness of the area and boost tourism numbers, particularly for attractions on the main route,” a spokesperson told me. “However, there are many places to visit off it. The ambition of local stakeholders, including VisitScotland, is to inspire visitors […]

Andalucia is asking for influencers – and will live to regret it

As influencers increasingly present destinations in an idealised way – often getting up at dawn to take photos before the crowds arrive or photo-shopping images to remove ugly details – many popular resorts are facing a backlash from disappointed travellers.  “I’d seen all these Instagram photos of Santorini and it looked amazing, but they don’t […]

King’s shoemaker criticises Rishi Sunak’s tourist tax as losses continue

The chief executive of Britain’s oldest shoemaker has blamed Rishi Sunak’s controversial “tourist tax” for holding back its recovery since the pandemic, after auditors warned about its future. Auditors said there was a “material uncertainty” over Tricker’s “ability to continue as a going concern” after the 194 year-old business posted a pre-tax loss of £311,365 in […]

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