Hyperlocal and Heritage-Driven: How These Bali Restaurants Redefine Sustainability
In the dynamic hospitality landscape of Southeast Asia and the Asia-Pacific region, a few trailblazing establishments are redefining sustainability, community engagement, and innovation. Locavore NXT, Begawan Biji, and John Hardy The Long Table in Bali serve as exemplary case studies, demonstrating how fine dining and luxury experiences can harmoniously align with environmental stewardship and cultural preservation. These businesses provide valuable insights for restaurants striving to place sustainability at the heart of their business.
Partnering with Sustainable Event Specialists: A Guide for Hospitality and Travel Professionals
Sustainability in Meetings, Incentives, Conferences, and Exhibitions (MICE) goes beyond reducing plastic waste or ticking compliance boxes. True sustainability integrates actions that benefit the environment, empower local communities, and invigorate economies. Finding partners who share these values is a key part of the process.
This guide provides useful strategies, actionable advice, and insights from industry leaders to help MICE professionals build impactful partnerships.
Bali’s Winning Formula: Sustainability Meets Sophistication
Bali is long celebrated for its natural beauty and cultural heritage. As one of Asia’s earliest international travel destinations, the island has a hospitality ecosystem that is as resilient as it is creative, constantly setting benchmarks for the region.
While busy and crowded as it appears in certain parts of the island, many brands in Bali have demonstrated an ability to combine sustainability with profitability, crafting ventures that captivate global travelers while offering invaluable lessons for industry professionals.
Previously, we explored the innovative practices of trailblazers like Desa Potato Head and Fivelement, Bambu Indah and Alila Uluwatu — brands that have not only minimized environmental impact but also created unique product offerings by integrating sustainability into their core strategies.
From reducing plastic waste to preserving biodiversity and cultural heritage, they show what it means to be a responsible business in the tourism sector.
How Can Asia’s Tourism Adapt to Climate Change? Six New Year’s Resolutions for Your 2025 Climate Action Plan
Climate action thrives when everyone plays a part as it’s more powerful and lasting than depending on a handful of highly dedicated individuals and companies. If 100 people each give 10%, sustainability becomes part of everyday life, it will spark bigger change and strengthen our collective resilience. When more people get involved, it pushes cultural and policy shifts forward while preventing burnout and keeping momentum going.
Can Thai Hospitality Lead the Sustainability Wave Across Asia and Beyond?
Thailand’s hospitality industry has long been celebrated for its signature warmth and unparalleled charm. Today, however, it stands on the cusp of an even greater transformation — moving beyond traditional service benchmarks to embrace and excel in the rapidly evolving sustainability movement.
This shift is not merely about adaptation but about leading the way in redefining what responsible hospitality can achieve on a global scale.
The momentum is driven by an ideal environment: increasing consumer demand for environmentally conscious travel, cutting-edge eco-technologies, and a growing recognition that sustainability is no longer optional but essential.
Thai hospitality groups are leveraging this trifecta to redefine their roles—not just as service providers but as stewards of the environment and communities they call home.
What GSTC2024 Singapore Taught Us About Hosting Sustainable Events
Sustainability has become an important factor in the MICE (Meetings, Incentives, Conferences, and Exhibitions) industry, and the recent GSTC2024 in Singapore provided a platform to explore this pressing issue. The Sustainable Events session brought together a panel of experts who shared actionable tips for hosting eco-conscious events, focusing on how to actually put them into practice.
The discussions ranged from practical ways to reduce food waste to making the most of local resources, giving event planners an easy guide to staying sustainable and community-focused.
A Thailand Blueprint for Responsible Travel Service Providers
In 2023, Thailand welcomed over 28 million international arrivals, solidifying its status as a favorite destination for international travelers. Thailand’s travel service provider landscape is as diverse as its visitors, ranging from internationally renowned companies like Intrepid to small, independent operators catering to everyday travelers to niche traveler segments.
While nearly all operators share a unified vision of showcasing Thailand’s beauty to the world, only a select few approach this mission through a sustainability-focused lens. Even fewer achieve commercial success while adhering to the triple bottom line—balancing people, planet, and profit as their guiding principle.
The 2025 Travel Trends Are Out. Now What?
The 2025 travel landscape is evolving, and it’s time to rethink the way we engage with travelers. This article dives into emerging trends like noctourism, detour destinations, wellness retreats, JOMO (Joy of Missing Out) travel, unique hotel dining experiences, and multigenerational travel, revealing their impact on the industry and the new opportunities they bring.
Designed for hospitality business executives and marketing professionals, the article offers actionable strategies to adapt, innovate, and stay ahead in a rapidly transforming market. Don’t miss these essential insights to future-proof your brand.
Osaka Shines Bright: IGLTA’s Most Globally Diverse Convention Amplifies LGBTQ+ Travel Opportunity in Asia-Pacific
With attendees representing over 50 countries and territories, the International LGBTQ+ Travel Association (IGLTA) 2024 Global Convention in Osaka, Japan, was the organization's most globally diverse convention ever and highlighted the Asia-Pacific region as a dynamic and rapidly emerging market for LGBTQ+ travel.
Inside Tourism Cares’ Meaningful Travel Map: Success Secrets from Thailand’s Hospitality Leaders
The Tourism Authority of Thailand, in partnership with the U.S.-based NGO Tourism Cares, has taken steps to make purpose-driven tourism in Thailand more searchable and accessible to travelers and travel advisors alike.
They introduced 15 Thai Impact Partners to the Meaningful Travel map — a curated collection of businesses that meet stringent sustainability and social responsibility standards.
The Asia Sustainable Travel team visited Krabi to meet with the founders of two Meaningful Travel properties, Varana and Anana. The two visionary hoteliers shared insights into their motivations, their approach to blending purpose with profitability, and their vision for a more sustainable future in Asia’s travel industry.
Tuu Eco Stay Awards: Elevating Hospitality with Data-Backed Sustainability Practices
With 30 awards spanning four categories—Environmental Impact, Sustainability Planning, Local Community, and Cultural Heritage—the Tuu Eco Stay Awards aims to celebrate and honor the broad spectrum of sustainable achievements by hotels.
Brand-Led Movement Seeks to Preserve Thailand’s Crown Jewel for Future Generations
Considered the crown jewel of Southern Thailand, Maya Bay became emblematic of overtourism’s destructive impact. Many quickly point to the 2000 movie The Beach starring Leonardo DiCaprio as the beginning of Maya Bay’s rise to the top of the must-visit list of travelers coming to Thailand.
Be One With Nature at Panchabhuta Retreat
Panchabhuta Retreat is an eco-friendly retreat located at the doorstep of the Aghanashini estuary and the cul-de-sac (dead-end street) of Nirvana Beach in Western Ghats, India. The entire place is designed to embrace the natural environment where it lies. But the true magic of the Retreat unfolds only when you visit it.
GSTC Aims to Cement its Sustainable Tourism Leadership at #GSTC2024Singapore
The Global Sustainable Tourism Council (GSTC), established by the United Nations to manage global standards for sustainable tourism, is returning to Asia to host its highly anticipated Global Sustainable Tourism Conference in Sentosa, Singapore, from 13-16 November 2024. This event takes place at a critical juncture, as the very standards of sustainability in tourism appear to be at a crossroads.
Thailand’s Tourism at a Crossroads: Can Sustainability Shape its Future?
Amid growing concerns about the effects of climate change, biodiversity loss, and cultural disruption, can Thailand harness its tourism success while also setting a new standard for sustainable, responsible travel? Will this model pay off? If so, in what ways?
In our special series, Thailand’s Best-Kept Sustainable Travel Stories, we uncover hidden gems, businesses, and communities leading the charge toward a more conscious tourism model. From Phuket’s idyllic beaches to the bustling streets of Bangkok, we’ll explore how sustainability can redefine travel in Thailand.
Designing the Future: Innovations and Sustainability at the Hotel Design Summit HPC2024
The 7th Hospitality Philippines Conference (HPC2024) at Marriott Manila gathered over 500 professionals and nearly 100 speakers to explore strategies in the hospitality and tourism industry. Highlights included Hotel Investment Summit, Hotel Design Summit, and Hotel Revenue Summit. The event emphasized the importance of integrating cultural and environmental elements into hotel design and using technology and data analytics to boost profits. This article focuses on the key takeaways from the Hotel Design Summit.