The Hindu Business Line : Evaluation system to assess hotels on tourism norms

The Blue Yonder, a Bangalore-based travel company, is all set to launch an evaluation system to identify and promote hotels that follow the principles of responsible tourism.

Called The Blue Yonder Associates, this venture is being launched in response to the growing interest in responsible tourism, said Mr Gopinath Parayil, CEO.

Responsible tourism is about adopting strategies that maximise the positive effects of tourism and minimise the negative economic, social and environmental impacts of tourism, he said.

Many travellers, particularly those from abroad, express a desire to stay in hotels that follow responsible tourism practices, he added. The Blue Yonder Associates is an attempt to meet this demand by creating an online catalogue of hotels that practise responsible tourism. Stressing that the venture is not a classification system, he said that both guests and property owners would be involved in evaluating how `responsible' each hotel is.

PROCEDURE

Every hotel that joins this scheme will have to declare its responsible tourism policies on its Web site and in promotional material. The emphasis is on a measurable, visible and declared responsible tourism policy, Mr Parayil said.

Once a hotel meets the membership criteria and pays an annual registration fee, it will be featured on the Web sites of both The Blue Yonder and The Blue Yonder Associates. Any hotel or homestay that receives a booking through a reference from The Blue Yonder is expected to pay the company a small commission, he added.

Similarly, all promotional material developed by The Blue Yonder will also feature hotels that are part of the venture. Travellers who visit a hotel or homestay that is part of the scheme will evaluate the property and provide feedback to both the property owner and The Blue Yonder Associates.

If the feedback is negative, property owners will have to take corrective action. If there is repeated negative feedback about a property, it will be removed from the venture.

While the scheme will help travellers find hotels that practise responsible tourism, it will also be especially useful to small and medium-sized properties that cannot afford to spend much on marketing.

Several Kerala-based hotel companies have expressed interest in joining this scheme, which will be formally launched at the Kerala Travel Mart later this month, he said.

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