Amplifying messages that help inspire all to use their travels as a positive force is why I created BOUTECO. So as a journalist I’ve been sharing thoughts on how best to support each other in any way we can right now through Condé Nast Traveller.
—Delay! Don’t cancel. At the start of these troubled times, I called on those who had trips booked, to consider postponing plans rather than racing for a refund as it might mean a lifeline for someone somewhere. If you have a holiday booked — simply pushing it back could be the kindest thing to do right now. Rather than seeking a refund, postponing plans might be a greater help than you could imagine. It may not feel right even thinking about travel right now — but we will want to. And until we do, there are a lot of people out there relying on us. “We’re in this together” — that’s the sentiment and spirit.
I’m not suggesting for a moment folks who need the cash from the cost of their holiday should surrender their consumer rights, but if you can afford to, keeping your holidays on the horizon may seem a small thing to do but it could be a significant saviour for travel providers or those least well off at the end of the supply chain. Huge thanks to who is best at steering us to where best to travel and for letting me shout about the HOW and WHY it’s important to use our trips as a force for good, now more than ever. Many of us will need to take holidays from our mortgage repayments, but those who are still in employment and can afford to delay their holidays to 2021, here’s how and why you might be helping…
—Ten per cent of the world works in tourism. And most of the hospitality sector kinda lost their jobs without notice. Not just the travel agents or flight attendants currently on unpaid leave for an indefinite amount of time— the indigenous Maasai guide, the Macchu Picchu porter, the cinnamon-stick souvenir seller in Sri Lanka — they all rely on tourism, and might still be oblivious to the scale of the world’s turmoil. Soon they’ll have nothing.
READ the follow-up article: My holiday is cancelled: why don't you just give me a refund?
These trouble times have brought into focus the importance of the southern African word and Nelson Mandela’s philosophy Ubuntu. It means more than its literal translation of 'humanity' from the Nguni Bantu language. In essence, it represents a sense of belonging and consideration for each other. It means ‘I am, because of you’ — and feeling connected feels more important than ever.
READ the article on Ubuntu.
What’s been heart-warming in these fraught times is to see how those involved in the hospitality sector are showing tremendous kindness to those on the frontline. Filoxenía is the Greek word for hospitality, and it translates, roughly, as showing kindness to a stranger – the word ‘xenos’ meant ‘guest’ before evolving to mean ‘foreigner’. In Ancient Greece, filoxenía was prized as the most important of virtues, and the respect and love shown by host to visitor is the genesis of hospitality.
READ the article on how London’s hospitality industry is helping hospitals and health workers.