Excited to talk more when things are less crazy! Especially about what different perceptions of voluntourist experiences, spots becoming overrun with visitors(your point about the temple becoming less holy was interesting), and subversion and agency in creating hypertourist/‘inauthentic’ experiences. Forgot to comment but also about your backpacking post. Have so much fun in japan🤩
This is brilliant! I’ve wondered similar things about voluntourism / the fine line between tourism and exploitative “cultural immersion”, but I guess (as you’ve implied) that there isn’t really a right answer; the absence of tourists could well do just as much, if not more, damage to a popular travel destination. (Although we can all agree that international “volunteer” opportunities which cost the volunteer more than the recipient of the service might earn in a week or more are unequivocally done in poor taste and contribute very little.) It’s a difficult conundrum: you don’t want to be one of those tourists who knows nothing about the culture and people of the country you’re visiting, but nor do you want to regress to “cultural immersion” à la Julia Roberts in Eat Pray Love.
Excited to talk more when things are less crazy! Especially about what different perceptions of voluntourist experiences, spots becoming overrun with visitors(your point about the temple becoming less holy was interesting), and subversion and agency in creating hypertourist/‘inauthentic’ experiences. Forgot to comment but also about your backpacking post. Have so much fun in japan🤩
Me too!! can't wait to catch up
After the last 10 weeks in Greece, I’ve been thinking about this for quite some time. Would love to share experiences once we’re back in the Bay!
This is brilliant! I’ve wondered similar things about voluntourism / the fine line between tourism and exploitative “cultural immersion”, but I guess (as you’ve implied) that there isn’t really a right answer; the absence of tourists could well do just as much, if not more, damage to a popular travel destination. (Although we can all agree that international “volunteer” opportunities which cost the volunteer more than the recipient of the service might earn in a week or more are unequivocally done in poor taste and contribute very little.) It’s a difficult conundrum: you don’t want to be one of those tourists who knows nothing about the culture and people of the country you’re visiting, but nor do you want to regress to “cultural immersion” à la Julia Roberts in Eat Pray Love.
Exactly that! Well stated.