What local tourism students know about Phuket that global sustainability leaders do not

April 30, 2026

What do local tourism students know about Phuket that global sustainability leaders do not? A Gemini-generated image. "GT" added the words.

Trans­ition­ing from an emer­ging hot­spot to an estab­lished tour­ism-led eco­nomy is complex. 

Ken Drew exam­ines the grow­ing pains of Phuket, Thai­l­and where loc­als, includ­ing his former tour­ism stu­dents, too often find them­selves in danger.

Fol­low­ing last week’s Glob­al Sus­tain­able Tour­ism Coun­cil con­fer­ence on the island — planned amid reports of deadly land­slides, tox­ic fires, and poor air qual­ity — a ques­tion arises …

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Posted in "Good Tourism" in Thailand, "Good Tourism" in Asia, "GT" Destinations & Places, Insights & Best Practices
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A sustainable stay: Thailand’s Anurak Lodge embraces ‘4Cs’ in regenerative quest

April 7, 2026

Sustainable stay: Thailand's Anurak Lodge embraces ‘4Cs’ in the Long Run's regenerative travel quest

Anurak Com­munity Lodge, a 19-key nature-based eco­lodge loc­ated on the edge of Khao Sok Nation­al Park in south­ern Thai­l­and is guided by the ‘4Cs’ of con­ser­va­tion, com­munity, cul­ture, and com­merce; a frame­work developed by The Long Run.

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Posted in "GT" Destinations & Places, "Good Tourism" in Asia, "Good Tourism" in Thailand, "GT" news & events, "GT" news from Asia, "GT" Partner messages, Anurak Community Lodge, Downloads
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Changing places: Responsibility, nostalgia, and the right to complain | BiteX: War

March 23, 2026

Changing places: Nostalgia, responsibility, and the right to complain. A Gemini-generated image for a "Good Tourism" Bites compilation. "GT" added the word "bites".

Who has the ‘social licence’ to claim a place has changed for the worse? Does it mat­ter if that change is driv­en by tour­ist visas, employ­ment visas, or migration? 

Is ‘nos­tal­gia’ a val­id stake­hold­er in a destination’s future? And does travel & tour­ism have a respons­ib­il­ity to val­id­ate these feel­ings, or is change the price of ‘pro­gress’?

Thanks to the six respond­ents for their con­sidered thoughts. Their responses are lis­ted in the order I received them. For BiteX: war. 

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Posted in Insight Bites, Insights & Best Practices
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What is good tourism? “Good Tourism” & “GT” Travel January-February 2026

February 24, 2026

What is good tourism Good Tourism GT Travel January February 2026 Gemini Generated Image

Wel­come to the Janu­ary-Feb­ru­ary 2026 wrap of “Good Tour­ism” & “GT” Travel news, insights, and exper­i­ences shared by friends and Part­ners of The “Good Tour­ism” Blog. [You too can share.]

What is good tourism?

The travel industry is com­plex, so it is a good idea to open one’s mind to per­spect­ives one may nev­er oth­er­wise encounter.

This is the “Good Tour­ism” mis­sion. It’s “GT”. And go!

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“GT” Insight Bites: Is a tourism career a ticket or a trap?

February 23, 2026
2 Comments

Travel & tourism career: Ticket or trap? A Gemini-generated image.

Is a career in travel & tour­ism a tick­et to the world or a trap? What is your hon­est advice to a young per­son enter­ing the industry?

That’s a “Good Tour­ism” Insight Bites question. 

Thanks to the four respond­ents writ­ing in from Canada and South­east Asia for their con­sidered thoughts. And thanks to Dav­id Beir­man from Aus­tralia for his “GT” Insight BiteX on academia’s rela­tion­ship with sustainability.

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News and questions (without answers) from the week ending February 15, 2026

February 15, 2026

Travel & tourism news and questions (without answers) from the week ending February 15, 2026. A Gemini-generated image.

The phe­nomen­on of ‘last chance tour­ism’ — rush­ing to see a site before it dis­ap­pears — has long been an uncom­fort­able mar­ket­ing hook. This week, research has quan­ti­fied the irony, high­light­ing how melt­ing gla­ciers are draw­ing record vis­it­or numbers.

As cli­mate change alters the phys­ic­al product of tour­ism, will the industry pivot to pre­ser­va­tion, or sell tick­ets to the end of the world?

Read More News and questions (without answers) from the week ending February 15, 2026
Posted in "GT" news & events
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