Oct 24, 2019 | Cultural Exchange, Destination development, GenZ Travellers, International Students, Members, Millennial Travellers, News, Study Abroad, Volunteer Travel, Work and Travel
News WYSE Travel Confederation hosts global events for the youth travel industry. Click the logos below to learn more. Interview with Johann Besserer, PhD – Founder and Executive Director Tell us your story. How did Intercultural Outreach Initiative (IOI) get...
Sep 6, 2019 | Cultural Exchange, Destination development, Members, News, Tour Operators
News Awareness of environmental issues are all around us these days. We see it in the news where we are reminded of the issues with plastic waste, polar bears becoming extinct, our sea life is suffering in so many ways from the waste disposal issues to rising sea...
Aug 15, 2019 | Cultural Exchange, Destination development, Members, News, Tour Operators
News When Secret Paradise was formed in 2012, local tourism was at the beginning of its journey. Our co-founder, Ruth Franklin, was conscious that however the business was developed, we needed to be mindful of promoting local tourism in line with Maldivian culture and...
Jun 3, 2019 | Members, News, Partners, UNWTO
News Press releaseMadrid, Spain – 3 June 2019A global survey conducted by the World Tourism Organization (UNWTO) and IPSOS shows a positive picture of local residents’ perceptions towards urban tourism. Looking at 15 countries worldwide, the research also...
Apr 25, 2019 | Alpha Travellers, GenZ Travellers, Millennial Travellers, Youth Travel
News At what age should you pay for your own vacation? A Bankrate survey of Americans suggests that the magic number is 20 – three years earlier than you should be expected to pay for your own health insurance and student loans. Young travellers tend to have fairly...
Apr 24, 2019 | Destination development, News
News This past Sunday Sri Lanka suffered horrific terrorist attacks where 359 people tragically lost their lives and many more were injured. Earlier this week we reached out to our member organisation based two hours south of Colombo, Shakthi Eurasia Exchange, for...
Apr 11, 2019 | Alpha Travellers, GenZ Travellers, Millennial Travellers, News, Youth Travel
News The year is 2030. Close to 2 billion travellers are traversing international borders. Cash is obsolete. Biometrics are firmly rooted. Mobility-as-a-Service has matured. Airbnb finally found a way forward with cities to the mutual benefit of residents and...
Apr 11, 2019 | Destination development, Members, News
News Turning a negative into a positive: 80 volunteers work with GROUND Asia to turn single-use plastic into something useful. A group of 80 environmentally-conscious locals gathered for an ecobrick workshiop in Hanoi on 6 April. The workshop at UP Co-working Space’s...
Apr 11, 2019 | Alpha Travellers, GenZ Travellers, Millennial Travellers, New Horizons, News, Youth Travel
News Recently BBC Capital put the question on the table as to how many days you should take off work for the optimum holiday or vacation trip. What is the perfect trip length that leaves you with maximum satisfaction and avoiding disappointment? While there are many...
Apr 5, 2019 | GenZ Travellers, Millennial Travellers, News, Travel Safety, Youth Travel
News Youth and ‘the younger generation’ were among the most-used buzzwords of the World Travel & Tourism Council’s 2019 Global Summit- not least by the Summit’s distinguished guest of honour, former US President Barack Obama.Hosted in the city of Seville, Spain,...
Feb 22, 2019 | Alpha Travellers, GenZ Travellers, Millennial Travellers, News, Youth Travel
News “Australian tourism has grown from strength-to-strength in recent years to the point where we are now welcoming more than 9 million international visitors annually, generating $43.2 billion in spending.” – John O’Sullivan, Managing...
Feb 22, 2019 | Cultural Exchange, Members, News, Tour Operators
News TourRadar, the world’s largest online travel agency for multi-day tours, is searching for two complete strangers to go on the trip of a lifetime as part of its Tour the World campaign. These two participants will travel across the globe together, participating in...
Sep 7, 2018 | Accommodation, New Horizons, Youth Travel
News We are excited to announce HI USA has recently opted to become an Elite member of WYSE Travel Confederation. As HI USA sets its path to becoming recognised as an advocate for youth travel, they are now better positioned with the tools, resources and networking...
Aug 8, 2018 | Cultural Exchange, Members, Volunteer Travel, Work and Travel
News WYSE Travel Confederation member GROUND is bringing dozens of new community and educational programme offerings to Asia. GROUND is a travel operator focused on educational travel that develops resilience and global citizenship skills for high school pupils. It...
Jul 26, 2018 | Advocacy, NWW-News, Partners, UNWTO
Tourism4SDGs.org is a newly created online tool designed to advance the achievement of the Sustainable Development Goals through tourism. Developed by the World Tourism Organization (UNWTO), with the support of Switzerland’s State Secretariat for Economic Affairs...
Jul 3, 2018 | Global Youth Travel Awards
News The 2018 Global Youth Travel Awards (GYTA) are now open and this year entrants have a chance to win in two new categories. The GYTAs recognise outstanding work in 10 nominated award categories and four consumer-voted categories. The two new nominated award...
Jun 28, 2018 | Members, Partners, UNWTO
News The World Tourism Organization (UNWTO), in partnership with Globalia, the leading tourism group in Spain and Latin America, have joined forces to launch the first and largest initiative devoted to identifying new companies that will lead the transformation of the...
Jun 21, 2018 | Accommodation, Members, Youth Travel
News Hostelling International USA (HI USA) is setting out to change the way people around the world take showers. The project is called the “Million Gallon Challenge” and it began with a plan to address a crisis in California. “In 2014, we were looking for innovative...
May 28, 2018 | Members
News Interview with Gregory Bakunzi – Owner & Founder Tell us your story. How did Red Rocks Rwanda get started? Red Rocks started in 2010; I was thinking of linking community, tourism and conservation for the sustainability of the local population in the Nyakinama...
Apr 19, 2018 | UNWTO
WYSE Travel Confederation “Without equity there is no development” – The 63rd Ministerial Meeting of the Americas focuses on Women’s Empowerment in Tourism The World Tourism Organization (UNWTO) held its 63rd Regional Commission for the Americas (CAM) in Madrid,...
Apr 17, 2018 | UNWTO
News Former UNWTO Secretary-General Dr. Taleb Rifai has been named the chairman of the International Advisory Board at the International Institute for Peace Through Tourism (IIPT). Dr. Rifai was head of the UNWTO from 2009 through 2017. “IIPT is most honored that Dr....
Apr 11, 2018 | Cultural Exchange, NWW-News
The European commission wants to recognise innovative, inclusive, culturally diverse and sustainable practices in tourism development by European cities. That’s why, on the initiative of the European Parliament, the Commission has now launched the European...
Mar 25, 2018 | Cultural Exchange
News The George Washington University International Institute of Tourism Studies, in collaboration with The Ras Al Khaimah Tourism Development Authority is expanding the 2018 Ras Al Khaimah Tourism Innovation Challenge. The initiative now is not only aimed at...
Feb 23, 2018 | Members, Volunteer Travel
News Volunteer Forever, a WYSE Travel Confederation Elite Member, has launched a new platform enabling young travellers to directly book volunteer holidays, long-term service projects, degree-related internships, and even TEFL certification and teaching placements....
Feb 21, 2018 | Members
News Although South Africa’s Western Cape is facing a severe water shortage, government officials and tourism businesses are working to ensure that the tourism sector doesn’t run dry. The government said there is adequate water for tourists’...
Jan 2, 2018 | UNWTO
News Participants from around the world joined the Official Closing ceremony of the International Year of Sustainable Tourism for Development 2017 at the Palace of Nations, in Geneva, Switzerland. The event reviewed the year’s main achievements and discussed the...
Dec 12, 2017 | UNWTO
News H.E. Ms. Eliza Jean Reid, First Lady of Iceland has been nominated as Special Ambassador for Tourism and the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). The appointment took place at the second UNWTO/UNESCO World Conference on Tourism and Culture, an official event of...
Dec 8, 2017 | Research
News When African Impact set out to find solutions for the extreme poverty and inadequate infrastructure in Livingston, Zambia, they created a unique model for a simple and sustainable volunteer project. The Build-It volunteer project launched in March 2016, after 10...
Dec 8, 2017 | Advocacy, Partners, Tour Operators
News Youth travellers value experiences and that’s not going unnoticed by online travel agents (OTAs). Tour booking OTAs such as GetYourGuide and Viator have experienced a growth surge in recent years which has led to rapid consolidation and acquisition within the...
Dec 1, 2017 | NWW-News
Sanrio’s best-known character, Hello Kitty will help promote UNWTO’s 2017 “International Year of Sustainable Tourism Development” campaign “Travel. Enjoy. Respect”. “Travelling opens our minds and our hearts, and lets us see how we are equal.” said Hello...
Nov 8, 2017 | Members, Tour Operators
News Northern Australia-based Small World Journeys has received a small business federal grant and special recognition by the Australian government. The WYSE Travel Confederation member was featured in the annual Our North, Our Future white paper, which was recently...
Oct 13, 2017 | Accommodation
News As part of the world’s largest budget accommodation network, YHA Australia has fully embraced 2017 as the UNWTO’s International Year of Sustainable Tourism for Development. Even though the Hostelling International member has had an official environmental policy...
Sep 14, 2017 | Accommodation, Advocacy
News Amsterdam’s proposed tourist tax increase is not a remedy for mass-tourism WYSE Travel Confederation recognises the challenges local governments face as they address exponential growth in a relatively new and rapidly changing industry. However, the...
Sep 14, 2017 | UNWTO
News UNWTO appoints new Secretary-General Zurab Pololikashvili, current Ambassador of Georgia to Spain, Morocco, Algeria and Andorra, has been appointed Secretary-General of the World Tourism Organization (UNWTO) for the period 2018-2021. He was elected by consensus...
Sep 13, 2017 | UNWTO
News UNWTO General Assembly welcomes more than 1300 delegates to Chengdu The 22nd World Tourism Organization (UNWTO) General Assembly has convened in China. The organisation says five intense days of discussions and meetings in Chengdu will aim to guide the tourism...
Sep 4, 2017 | UNWTO
News China to host the 22nd UNWTO General Assembly “A unique opportunity to get the sector united towards the common goal of making tourism a true driver of sustainable development.” This is how the World Tourism Organization (UNWTO) Secretary-General, Taleb Rifai,...
Aug 29, 2017 | Members, Volunteer Travel
News Shakthi Eurasia Exchange has been offering volunteer opportunities in Sri Lanka since 2013 when the organisation was established in a small coastal town called Ambalangoda. This WYSE Travel Confederation member is a leading force in community development and...
Aug 24, 2017 | Members
WYSE Travel Confederation members International Volunteer HQ (IVHQ) and World Nomads have teamed up to offer a Wildlife & Conservation Volunteer Abroad Scholarship for travellers who are passionate about supporting the protection of fragile ecosystems and species...
Aug 23, 2017 | UNWTO
The World Tourism Organization (UNWTO) has announced the official launch a consumer-oriented campaign aimed at raising awareness of the value and contribution that sustainable tourism can make towards development. The ‘Travel.Enjoy.Respect’ campaign wants to engage...
Aug 17, 2017 | UNWTO, Youth Travel
On the eve of International Youth Day, WYSE Travel Confederation joined with the United Nations World Tourism Organisation (UNWTO) and Hilton to discuss the impact of the growing youth travel market and the influence young travellers have on developing sustainable...