From the young man embarking on an 18th Century Grand Tour, to his modern-day equivalent setting off on his O.E., travelers have been seduced by the lure of the unknown and the promise of adventure. But while the impetus for travel may remain the same, the tourism experience has changed beyond all recognition.
Digital technology, especially that designed for use on the move, offers the contemporary tourist a raft of new ways to experience his journey. But technology has also fueled a global tourism boom that some warn may destroy the very places tourists treasure most.
For the past week the world’s eyes have been turned toward Copenhagen, where leaders hve gathered to come up with a plan to limit global warming and head off possible catastrophe. While nation states are the focus of the talks, the Climate Change Summit is also drawing attention to the polluting sins of private industry.
One sector that has come under increasing scrutiny in this regard is aviation. While air travel is one of the most energy-efficient forms of transport, it still accounts for 11% of the United States’ transportation-related greenhouse gas emissions. Every long-haul flight pumps hundreds of kilos of carbon into the atmosphere as the jet burns oil, a finite and fast-depleting natural resource.
Faced with a backlash from environmentally-aware customers, the industry is taking steps to convince a sceptical public of its green credentials. The website of Finnair, the national carrier of Finland, now features an emissions calculator aimed at its lucrative business flier market.
The application allows customers to compare the environmental impact of routes via different transit airports, particularly those on popular Europe-to-Asia routes. This kind of emissions-reduction guidance is sure to become increasingly valuable as companies face the expenditure implications of imminent carbon-trading schemes.
While corporations consider how best to spend their multi-million dollar travel budgets, private travellers are also pondering the environmental impact of their choices. The past decade has seen an explosion in the budget sector of the air travel market, particularly in Europe, where no-frills carriers like Ryanair and Easyjet have removed the cost barrier to international travel for millions of new customers.
With the airspace above mainland Europe now criss-crossed by low-cost, quick turnaround air routes, environmentally conscious travellers are wondering just how much damage their new frequent flier habit is doing.
The answer, at least according to Euro Investor, is not as much as they may have feared. The site quotes research showing that, according to almost every metric, budget airlines are more energy efficient than standard carriers.
Those who gripe about lack of legroom may be comforted to learn that the tightly-packed seating configuration enables cheaper airlines to carry significantly more passengers per flight, thus lowering their overall carbon footprint. Similarly, their cheaper fares mean planes fly with a higher proportion of seats filled, creating further efficiencies.
Alongside environmental concerns, modern tourists also commonly worry about the damage they are doing to the indigenous culture of their destination. As almost every part of the world becomes accessible to those with deep enough pockets, the authentic character that initially attracted travellers is inevitably compromised.
Confronted by McDonald’s and souvenir shops, adventurous travellers in search of authenticity seek out more obscure destinations. As these places likewise gain in popularity their authentic appeal is compromised – and the cycle begins once again.
Blogger Christine Gilbert considers the concept of authenticity in a post about the South American state Belize, wondering if authentic experiences should be the sole preserve of backpacking adventure tourists:
“Is the only way to go “authentic” to forgo comfort? Can luxury and culturally appropriate go hand in hand? … Can you have 500 thread count sheets and learn how to make Mayan chocolate, like you would if you stayed with a local family? Can you spend the day at the spa, but know that the products used support local businesses and profits are helping to restore a forest?”
While environmental and ethical concerns are significant issues in 21st Century tourism, it is technology that has made the most obvious impact on the way we travel now. Twitter, GPS mapping, online social networks, user-review websites – all have transformed the way we plan, undertake and document our journeys.
One of the most recent technology trends goes by the slightly sci-fi name ‘augmented reality’. These applications (or “apps”) create a data overlay through which smart phone users can view their surroundings in a whole new light. As Guardian writer Benji Lanyado discovered, they use the phone’s interior compass and GPS capabilities to produce real-time information on any street or place of interest at which the phone is pointed.
Most apps use augmented reality technology to identify and recommend bars or restaurants – useful enough for tourists – but the Wikipedia-enabled Wikitude offers the most exciting prospect for international culture vultures. In Lanyado’s video report, he demonstrates how by simply pointing his iPhone at the British Museum, the institution’s Wikipedia page instantly appears.
With technology like Wikitude at their fingertips, tech-savvy travellers are beginning to reconsider whether the traditional guidebook is as indispensable as it once appeared. In October, Australian blogger Kimble Young argued that the brick-like resource was facing imminent extinction. Instead of lugging 1000 pages of information – 950 of which he likely would never use – through England, France, Portugal and Spain, he used his Nokia E71 smart phone to store everything he needed.
Using the phone’s mapping feature, Young was able to plot the route from train station to hotel ahead of time, and then create interactive 3D maps of his destination. Before leaving, he saved pages from the collaborative Wiki Travel site for offline use, or downloaded electronic guide books from established publishers such as Lonely Planet or Rough Guides.
When it comes to web mapping applications of the kind Young used, one name stands head and shoulders above the competition: Google. Before the internet giant launched its Google Maps service, maps for personal use were static, two dimensional objects. Now the online map is a dynamic, interactive resource, able to be manipulated in a dizzying number of ways.
Google has created a position of seemingly unassailable internet dominance by keeping people engaged through constant updates and improvements. In July, for example, Google Maps introduced a new ‘continuous search’ feature that allows users to add additional destinations to an A-to-B route.
In the example created for the This Way Up blog, first directions from Wellington to Wanganui were found and then destinations along the route were plotted onto the route. The feature should prove invaluable for planning food, coffee and rest stops on long road trips.
Mapping software is likewise at the heart of many of the most interesting developments for mobile phones. In August GPS manufacturer TomTom introduced their iPhone app to the New Zealand market. Rather than buying a separate in-car unit, iPhone owners can spend around $180 for the app and transform their phones into GPS navigation devices instead.
But, as technology blog Mashable remarks, the new service could make the company the architect of its own demise, with the app’s success sending the hardware on which TomTom built its success towards the scrap heap.
While you are finding room in the attic for your GPS unit, you may also want to consider how necessary to your travel plans a separate camera really is. Many mobile phones already feature photo capabilities that are the equal of mid-market digital cameras.
But with neither a flash nor zoom, the iPhone has lagged behind in this regard. However, as travel website Jaunted found, new apps such as Snapture (a zoom substitute) and Autostitch (which automatically creates panoramas from multiple images) are making the iPhone increasingly photographer-friendly.
As exciting as these techie toys are, only a lucky few can at present afford them. The opportunities offered by online social networks, on the other hand, are far more democratic in nature. While every social networking site enables users to make new connections at the click of a button – ideal for world travellers – the one that has made the greatest impact on the way we travel now is Twitter. The site’s simplicity makes it easily adaptable for mobile use, with users able to tap into the ‘wisdom of the crowds’ at a moment’s notice and wherever in the world they might be.
Four months before he was investigating augmented reality iPhone apps, The Guardian’s Benji Lanyado was taking a “TwiTrip” to Blackpool. The concept is simple: with his day entirely unplanned, Lanyado arrives at a destination and puts himself at the mercy of the tweetosphere. His Twitter contacts become a dynamic, on-the-go guidebook, their tips and suggestions governing the direction of his day.
For many, like the New York Times’ Thomas Friedman, a major appeal of travel is the chance to break free from the tyranny of digital networks, tech gadgets and permanent connectivity. He argues technology drives a wedge between tourists and the place they have traveled so far to see. But technology doesn’t have to be so intrusive. Used well, digital gadgets make travel a simpler, less stressful, more interesting experience.
And there’s always an ‘off’ button.
