Nichlas Kontis with Peter Greenberg at the International Travel Crisis Management Summit
Recently, I was invited to attend Travel Weekly’s inaugural International Travel Crisis Management Summit or ITCMS in London, where topics were surrounded around how we as an industry respond to negative global events around the world.
It was stated that we have limited control over global events, and as an industry, we are susceptible not only to the impact of major incidents but also to changing market trends.
When crisis’ around the world occur, we must not take a passive stance, we must act swiftly to change perceptions, putting in place proper in fracture and strategies to ensure we must be prepared to respond, whatever the circumstances of such negative events.
The ITCMS attempts to bring together major players in the travel industry to work more closely to be prepared to respond to negative world events.
The forum was an open conversation among industry leaders to the growing threat brought by terrorism, natural disasters, and civil unrest throughout the world. The more we bring these negative events into the forefront of travel, the better prepared we are when such pessimistic predicaments happen.
Panel discussions included the various forms of crisis from the perspective of security, media, political and economic points of view. Discussed were the three phases of crisis: Pre-Crisis, Crisis Response, and Post-crisis.
Among the panel of luminaries were: Peter Greenberg, Travel Editor, CBS News; Dr. Taleb Rifai, Secretary General, UNWTO; Elena Kountara, Minter of Tourism, Greece; Robin Tauck, US Commissioner; Founder, TRIP Foundation; & Co-Owner Tauck Inc.
During times of crisis, the solution is not to panic. Peter Greenberg and I think alike, the majority of the time the U.S. State Department is completely off base with its assessment of unsafe regions of the world. The U.S. State Departments can hurt local economies by overacting to negative global events.
A few years back our state department red flagged Thailand, putting it in the same vein as Afghanistan. How ridiculous was that? I live part of the year in Mexico. Again, Mexico is mostly a safe nation for travelers. Sadly, it’s the media that paints a negative portrayal of destinations. Travel journalists must wield any power to debunk unfounded state department warnings.
Furthermore, the more tourists integrate with people the safer we are as a society. Some of the safest times to travel are immediately after a conflict, natural disaster or epidemic issue.
During the bombing in Nairobi, a few miles away travelers were on safely experiencing a safari.
During the SARS epidemic in Hong Kong, once again there was an extreme overreaction. No, the world was not coming to an end. People were not falling over, nor dying on the streets.
Statistics prove that you actually have a better chance of getting hurt while at home.
Case In point, last year I was about to leave for Greece. I should mention that I part of the year in the Napa Valley. I was cutting down some branches when a tree fell on me. This as a day before travelers to Greece, Egypt, and Turkey.
I did not cancel the trip, and I can say that all of the fear mongering about travel to Athens, Cairo and Istanbul were unfounded, at least on my travels. I found these so-called unsafe destinations to be quite contrary, very safe.
As we prepare for a new U.S. president, it should be noted that no one group or one man can stop people from traveling.
When a crisis happens governments must not hide, instead of getting in front the issue.
The media also must paint a truer picture of so-called “crisis destinations” and not solely portraits of fear.
Nicholas Kontis is the author of Going Local: Experiences and Encounters on the Road. Find Nick’s book on Amazon.