Friday, August 26, 2011

Promoting Eco-tourism

By Carl Drotsky


Eco-tourism requires that a person will conserve the environment he or she visits and leave it unmarked when leaving it. It necessitates that you don't change anything or leave waste or litter behind. The only thing this kind of tourist will leave behind is footsteps and the only thing they will take, is pictures. In other words it focuses on being a responsible tourist. When exhibiting this attitude a tourist is someone who acts in an ecological responsible manner. It is essential that people realise that you cannot visit a country or natural destination and do as you wish. You will have to stay in appointed areas, mind your step and support the local people to benefit from tourism.

When Tomas Cook undertook the first excursion in London, he surely did not even think of a term such as eco-tourism. In fact, it is nothing but tourism which involves visiting natural areas without having an ecological effect on the place, its inhabitants or wildlife. On the other hand, eco-tourism requires much more.

Many countries have already put eco-tourism programs into practise. There are many important reasons for this kind of tourism. One is that more and more people are interested in visiting natural destinations and governments are aiming at minimising the impact of tourism on the environment. Tourism has many economic benefits for a country, but sometimes it has a negative impact on the environment. Eco-tourism will give tourists the opportunity of enjoying a country without causing any damage to the area. Countries like South Africa offer a lot to an eco-tourist. South Africa a land of stunning natural beauty with many places to visit. Tourist can expect to see animals in South Africa that most people will only see in the zoo. Seeing an animal with no constraints and no limitations in its natural environment is one of the best experiences in the world.

There are several regions in South Africa that are open to eco-tourism. One region is the Limpopo. Anyone who is familiar with Rudyard Kipling will remember the Limpopo River as the place where the elephant got his trunk. Not only is the Limpopo river the place where the elephant got his trunk, it's also the province that is the furthest north in South Africa. Any further north and you end up in Zimbabwe, Botswana, or Mozambique. The Limpopo is one of the best places to go for this kind of tourism. Not only is it a beautiful region, it is also packed with history. While the history is great, it's not the main focus of eco-tourists. The main attraction is the wildlife.

Many tourists visit the Limpopo province and that is why it is a hot spot for eco-tourism. The main reason for this is that the Kruger National Park is situated in Limpopo. This park covers 20 000 square kilometres, is 360 km long and 65 km wide. The park consists of four regions of which the central region is the most popular. There are many camps in the central region of the Kruger national Park because this region is so rich in fauna and flora. There are hundreds of antelope, zebras, wildebeest and giraffes in this area which form the main diet of the big cats. There are more than 60 prides of lion and a great population of cheetahs and leopards. This increases your chance of seeing one of the big cats or even a pride of lions in the park.

Conservation and management of resources is becoming a priority in many countries. It focuses the attention on preserving nature and having no impact on nature in order to preserve our earth's riches for the younger generations. The tourist can choose from many different countries to take an ecological trip. South Africa should definitely also be an option for the eco-tourist.




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