Interest in Safaris Growing Amidst Environmental Concerns, Adventure Trade Group Says

Enterprise Reporting from the New York Times Travel Show

by John Otrompke

Interest in safaris by “adventure travelers” is growing by double digits amidst concerns about over-tourism(1), according to speakers at last month’s New York Time’s Travel Show.

According to a 2016 survey(2), only 13% of respondents had gone on a “safari,” but 44% planned to do one in the future, according to Casey Hanisko, president for business services and events at the Adventure Travel Trade Association (ATTA), a Seattle-based membership organization of tour operators.

The ATTA has more than 1,300 members in 100 countries, said Hanisko, who spoke at a forum called “Focus on Adventure Tourism” on Friday, January 26. 

But the organization doesn’t vet the tour operators individually for participation in canned hunts or hunting safaris. “We don’t screen them because of the time it would take, but we do have all of our members sign a value statement,” Hanisko explained. The association is also part of the US Wildlife Trafficking Alliance, she noted.

     Money Spent on Travel Growing at Double Digit Rates

The growing interest in ‘safaris’ is accompanied by other measures indicating increased growth in adventure travel. The same study predicted that the “adventure travel” industry is growing at the rate of 17% per year, and would be worth $674 billion by 2017. “We think that’s a conservative estimate, compared to the figure of $953 billion reached by Euromonitor,” Hanisko said.

In some quarters, the economic sector is growing even more rapidly. “REI Adventures’ growth rate is in excess of 20% per year, and growth for 2018 for safari is definitely in excess of 30%,” said Justin Wood, manager of program development and operations at REI Adventures. The company, a member of the ATTA with over 100 retail outlets, began offering trips in 1987, he added.

REI’s safaris are an educational experience, and no aspect of them involves hunting animals, explained Wood, unlike other tour operators.

“We just sent out the survey for our 2018 snapshot, and we fully expect it to trend positively,” noted Hanisko, who said that large members of the association are expanding women-focused trips and conservation elements, such as the elimination of plastic water bottles.

¹ “Coping with Success: Managing overcrowding in tourism destinations.” World Travel and Tourism Council and McKinsey & Co. Dec. 2017.https://www.wttc.org/research/policy-research/managing-overcrowding-in-tourism-destinations/

² “North American Adventure Travelers: Seeking Personal Growth, New Destinations, and Immersive Culture: October 2017 Update,” Viren P, Murray A, Brown T. (research director, Outside Magazine), Beckmann C. (ATTA).