4 Ways Responsible Travel Advisors Enhance Your International Travel Experience
Let’s talk about what makes a responsible travel advisor, and why you might want one. To start, I did research on the definition of “responsible”, so I could explain better what a responsible travel advisor is and does. I liked the Brittania definition the best. It says that to be responsible is “having the job or duty of dealing with or taking care of something or someone.” There are a lot of travel advisors out there, but Beyond Tourism’ considers itself a responsible travel agency. It’s specific goals in taking care of you are to find you a travel experience that will challenge you, grow your understanding of the world, be aware of the ecological impact of your trip, increase your cultural intelligence, and your ability to communicate cross-culturally. Here are four ways responsible travel advisors can enhance your travel experience.
Responsible travel advisors can ease your worries and keep you informed. There are a lot of worries when planning an international trip. Will I be safe? Do I need a visa? Will I be offensive? Do they like Americans? What if I don’t speak the language? What about CO2 emissions? Do my dollars actually help the community, or do they make things worse? Responsible travel agents can give you the information you need to make the best decisions for your own travel. They can tell you where to put your attention, and where you can relax. An informed traveler knows how to enjoy a carefree vacation while staying safe, and trusting that their hard-earned dollars are improving the world in a unique way.
Responsible travel advisors can find the right high-contrast experience for you. Everyone has different interests, goals, and comfort levels with travel. The trick is to find the right high-contrast experience to challenge you. A high contrast experience is when travelers experience things that differ dramatically from their daily life. When we have an experience that takes us far away from our status quo, we begin to reshape what we see as possible or real or valuable. This is key for increasing your cultural intelligence. Going to places that are are very similar to home may not provide you with the growth you are looking for when you travel.
Responsible travel advisors prepare you with cultural intelligence. When traveling to another country, it’s important to know both the “above the iceberg” cultural information, like how to say “thank you” in another language or how to use the subway. It’s also incredibly powerful and helpful to know the “below the iceberg” cultural information, like how a culture’s perspective of hierarchy impacts their queuing process or how collectivist culture impacts public transportation. With Beyond Tourism, we prepare travelers with cultural intelligence training targeted to the traveler’s home culture and the culture where they will be a guest. This sets the traveler’s mind at ease and gives them confidence to interact with locals, enhancing their experience and understanding of the country they’re visiting.
Responsible travel advisors help you reflect upon return. A travel experience where you have cultural exchanges can be confusing, and can leave you with questions about yourself and the world. People in other countries behave differently, and if you don’t like how they do a particular thing, you may find yourself struggling with feelings of frustration or negative assumptions toward the people of the country, which can be a strange feeling for a traveler, if they’ve always seen themselves as an open-minded and accepting person. Reflecting on the high-contrast experiences you had overseas should not be overlooked. A responsible travel advisor will make sure you aren’t left hanging with big, overwhelming questions, and will make sure you have a chance to debrief and reflect on your trip in a way that leaves you understanding the world and yourself in a better way.
“The stranger only sees what he knows.” West African Proverb.
(If you know what culture teaches this proverb, let me know. The internet didn’t help when I did research, and attribution is important.)