What Makes a Destination Truly Sustainable According to Travel Professionals & Sustainable Experts

Originally published on August 5, 2026 | Last updated on August 5, 2026

What Makes a Destination Truly Sustainable? Discover expert insights from travel professionals, sustainability consultants, and hospitality leaders on how to identify genuinely sustainable destinations, avoid greenwashing, and support communities, nature, and long-term positive impact.

I have asked a few sustainability experts and professionals in the travel and hospitality industry what makes a destination truly sustainable.

Sustainability is a hard subject to the extent that even sustainability experts tend to define responsible tourism differently. That’s fair enough, because nobody holds a single opinion around this very important topic.

So we’ve interviewed experts about the future of sustainable tourism.

While we were seeking responses from different stakeholders, ranging from scholars to professionals, we didn’t manage to quote all opinions.

Who did we contact?

• Sustainability consultants
• Tourism boards
• Environmental scientists
• Hotel sustainability directors
• Conservation organizations
• Destination managers

What were the questions we asked?

• How should destinations define sustainability?
• Which sustainability initiatives have delivered measurable results?
• What common mistakes do destinations make?
• How should travelers evaluate sustainability claims?

How can travelers identify genuinely sustainable destinations?

“If a place really wants to be in business for the long term, it should tell you exactly how it is doing with some hard facts. This might include where the money from all the people who visit is going to help with the environment, and making sure that most of the people in the local community get to run their own tours and sell their own products. It should also say how many visitors it’s allowing into the most sensitive parts of the area,” says Johan Siggesson,  a travel expert and award-winning wildlife photographer, Founder & Owner of My Safari Lodge.

How should destinations define sustainability?

“I believe the most meaningful definition of sustainability is this: What impact remains after the tourists leave? Does tourism create lasting positive effects on local residents, the natural environment, and the economy? Sustainability is not simply a checklist of environmental, social, and economic goals. The true measure of sustainable tourism is its long-term legacy. If tourism leaves communities stronger, protects natural resources, and contributes to a resilient local economy even after the tourists leave, then it can genuinely be considered sustainable.”, emphasizes Arthur Aharonov, VP at Bein Harim Tourism Services

How should travelers evaluate sustainability claims?

“From a destination perspective, sustainability should be measured by the direct positive effects on the community it represents. If tourism can maximize the amount of economic benefit it puts into the hands of locals and reduce leakage from tourism, then it becomes more sustainable. This is measured by local consumption, local ownership of restaurants, hotels, and activity providers, as well as formal employment for locals,” says Harry Alvarez, COO at Offbeat Travel

“The creation of good tourism employment especially contributes to the sustainability of a destination. After all, without locals, there is no tourism. Investment that encourages local stakeholdership is also extremely important; otherwise, destinations run the risk of profits leaving the local community via economic leakage, which can also lead to less tax revenue for the government and thus less investment in infrastructure, which can positively impact the lives of local populations.”   he adds.

What do Scholars Say about what makes a destination truly sustainable?

James Demastus, PhD, Professor of Sustainability at Les Roches Hospitality University in Crans-Montana, Switzerland, and Professor of Sustainability at the Universidad de Deusto in Bilbao, Spain. He primarily researches and teaches how sustainability is actually applied in business, and how to steer away from greenwashing.

Destinations should use the Brundtland definition: development that meets the needs of the present without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own needs. Any other definition is a convenient rewrite, and rewriting the definition to fit your marketing is greenwashing.

The initiatives that hold up are the ones measured against strong sustainability accounting, where natural capital is treated as non-substitutable rather than something you can trade away for economic capital. Methods grounded in ecological limits and carrying capacity, rather than offset-based or eco-efficiency reporting, are what let you separate real results from relabeled business as usual.

The biggest mistakes are greenwashing, a lack of transparency, and assuming the customer is stupid. Travelers notice when the claim doesn’t match the experience. When a hotel proclaims that not washing your towels every day is a sustainability effort, customers know this is actually an effort guided by savings to labor and water costs.

Honestly, they genuinely cannot. Reporting standards are low, and the hospitality industry lacks transparency, so travelers are being asked to audit an industry that does not disclose enough to be audited.

Biggest mistake “Sustainable” destinations make?

According to Caterina Sullivan, Director at Strategic Sustainability Consultants, believes that sustainability is a continuous commitment.

Sustainability is ongoing work for every organisation. The moment a destination calls itself “sustainable” as a finished fact, it has misunderstood the word. A truly sustainable operator is one committed to improving its practices continually because there is always something that can be done better to create a more sustainable economy, society or environment.

This is where some “sustainable” destinations go wrong. They treat sustainability as a badge to earn once, then market. A system built to last is never static. It keeps interrogating its own practices and finds the next thing to improve.

For travellers, it is important to be mindful of businesses that call themselves sustainable with no evidence to prove it or no evidence of ongoing commitment to improve processes. We recommend looking for businesses that are transparent about what is not working, targets to reach, and honesty about the gap between current practice and better practice.

Sustainable Destination Means Big Reliance on Local Brands and Shops

Sam, Founder @ Earthava, an online platform dedicated to teaching people about the environment and sustainability, provides insights on what a sustainable destination means.

As we all know, aviation and travelling are responsible for a great amount of footprint, so it is truly beneficial to encourage sustainable tourism actions, along with sustainable destinations. For me, what makes a destination truly sustainable is when I see ease and availability of public transportation; for me, this is the key.

When I am visiting a country, I would like to board a bus or an underground train that can take me anywhere I want; a city where requesting a car is a must to go around is not feasible, let alone more expensive. Also, when I am traveling between cities, is booking a flight a must? Or can I board a train to travel from one city to another?

A sustainable destination for me also means big reliance on local brands and shops as well; they are definitely more sustainable and have the fingerprints of the city’s traditions and culture as well, and are also cheaper, so it is a win-win.

Lastly, I love nature; a city with a lot of green landscapes speaks volumes to me.

Countries around the world can market their sustainability efforts all they want to attract more people, and the only way to back up these claims is to go and see for yourself. It could be greenwashing; it could be real. Some countries don’t even market their sustainability efforts, yet you go and find true actions of sustainability there.

It is not a one-rule-fits-all. My takes are straightforward rather than complicated, a reminder that we don’t have to be perfect nor dig deep into countries’ rules and laws. I would say being aware of your surroundings and actions and being fairly educated are the needed steps towards more conscious travel.

How to Check Sustainability in Tourism?

Tom Griffin, Executive Director at VA GreenTravel Alliance, a Virginia green tourism partnership run jointly with VA Tourism.

Which sustainability initiatives have delivered measurable results?  Our awards program and technical assistance projects require partners to provide measurable data. Otherwise, it’s often hard. Some of the brand sustainability tracking programs are good, such as Hilton’s Light Stay program.

What common mistakes do destinations make? In general, local tourism staff don’t do a good job “packaging” up the green-focused businesses and trip plans for visitors. Our program provides some core partners, and they can easily link with local outdoor recreation and agri-business to create “eco-tourism” offerings for their communities.

How should travelers evaluate sustainability claims? Talk to operational staff. Ask questions and show interest. If expectations are not met, provide constructive feedback. If nothing else, this industry is responsive to customer feedback.

Powered by