The thorny issue of selling animal attractions, was also raised, with top tips from an expert and TTG Sustainable Travel Hero ambassador on how to have those awkward conversations with clients – and open their eyes to more ethical ways of experiencing wildlife in its natural habitat. Here are the top five takeaways from the week-long event...

1. The small but important steps businesses can take

Travel Counsellors sustainability and impact lead, Joe Whittle, and Jennifer McCartney, a senior travel consultant at Barrhead Travel’s Silverburn branch, both argued companies don’t have to invest hundreds of thousands of pounds to embed sustainability in their daily operations.

They outlined some of the small but important steps businesses can take to reduce their carbon footprint. These included light switch-off policies or installing LED bulbs which might seem trivial but ultimately go a long way and are quick to introduce.

For example, McCartney and her colleagues have worked hard to promote sustainability. They help customers set up apps on their phone to manage their bookings and show clients videos and pictures instead of printing quotes and brochures.

“Digitalisation improves customer experience anyway as anything you put on paper is very static, there’s only so much you can do in terms of improving [customer’s experience],” Whittle added. “That’s one of the ways you can align sustainability and customer experience really well, it’s an easy switch to make.”

2. How to challenge suppliers 

EasyJet holidays senior environmental social governance (ESG) manager Scott Lawson believes agents should feel confident enough to ask suppliers what they are doing to minimise their environmental impact. 

“We need to start judging people’s actions rather than their words," Lawson said. "Agents need to start getting beneath the surface of some of [suppliers’] claims." 

Lawson explained that the tour operator was more focused on its own impact – rather than the whole industry’s. “We’re really focused on making a difference, where we can have the most impact,” he said.

As part of its commitment to promoting sustainable holidays, the tour operator has recently expanded its collection of Certified Sustainable hotels to 1,736 properties. 

Launched in 2022, the scheme shows all the properties in easyJet holidays’ portfolio that meet the Global Sustainable Tourism Council’s (GSTC) criteria, which is a mix of accessibility and environmental requirements.

3. Speak in a language customers understand

Iberostar business development director Aishling McCoughlin insisted travellers don’t consciously book stays at Iberostar properties because of the company’s sustainability initiatives.

But she added: “They’ll get there and they’ll come back with stories about how impressed they were and how they love being in a single-use plastic free environment," and this will inform their future decisions. 

McCoughlin’s words were echoed by Lata head of sustainability and impact Megan Parkinson, who told agents that customers might never come into their shop looking for a sustainable holiday. 

She stressed the word "sustainability" is an industry term and not in the consumer’s mind when they make a booking. 

“Responsible travel initiatives really enhance [customers’] experiences and when they come back then they want to book a similar holiday in the future,” Parkinson added.

Both McCoughlin and Parkinson believe agents have a fundamental part to play as they can entice customers to travel differently without taking the relaxing and fun part out of a holiday.

“Sustainability is an in-depth topic. Speak to customers in a way that they can understand,” McCoughlin continued.

4. How to steer customers away from animal attractions

Daniel Turner, co-founder at animal welfare consultancy Animondial, urged agents to write out a list of alternatives to animal attraction parks and keep the list close by. 

He argued this would help promote responsible and safer travel while, at the same time, ensure agents don’t lose bookings. 

Agents, he added, should assess the animal activities they sell. If they carry a potential threat to tourists or animals alike, they can steer clients to more ethical ones. 

“If you have that table at hand, it gives you something to turn to," he said, addressing agents directly. "If you say ‘I’ll come back to you’ – then you’ll lose your client,” he said. “Do a bit of work, have that product in your mind and then use it on a daily basis.”

Agents should manage their clients’ expectations, especially when it comes to activities that have an impact animal welfare.

“At the beginning of conversations with clients, you should say ‘It’s fantastic that you want to go see these animals, but I’m going to suggest a different way to do it rather than the one you’ve come to me with,” explained Not Just Travel consultant Lewis Jones.

“It’s really important that travel agents understand the issues. Their reputation is at risk if they’re selling something that is detrimental to animals or their guests,” Turner added.

5. Try and make it easy for customers

Mirjam Peternek-McCartney, founder and chief executive of travel PR firm Lemongrass, called on audiences to make it easy for people to choose responsible travel.

“People want to make the right choice but currently the right choice is more difficult for consumers to make because it tends to be more expensive or complicated,” she said. “It’s incumbent upon us to do the hard work in the background and then make it super easy for the end consumer.”

For consumers to choose a more sustainable way of travelling, companies need to have price parity between responsible products and less responsible ones.