LCT: Last Chance Tourism

Spoiler Alert: Jumping on the FOMO bandwagon while in denial

Travel Writing

Spoiler Alert: Jumping on the FOMO bandwagon while in denial

Photo by Haseeb Jamil on Unsplash

Calling all travelers to heed the warning.

Yes, climate change is real, we all know that. It’s affecting travel.

The question I want to ask you is; Is it more important to travel to places that are disappearing due to climate change before they totally vanish?

For example there are glaciers melting in the French Alps. Should you drop that location from your bucket list? Or should you figure out a way to get there and see it before it collapses further?

Photo by Karsten Würth on Unsplash

Greenland is melting

I want to see Greenland. It’s on my travel bucket list. I had met a young man when I went to ATTA’s event in Sweden in 2019. This young man was a representative for Greenland’s tourism board. He was in his 20’s. The stories he told me about what is happening to his country was astounding. How much has melted just in his lifetime alone. I was shocked. He told me I could still visit, where I could go, what to see, etc. Up to that fortuitous meeting, I hadn’t really considered going to Greenland before.

Now it was on the forefront of my mind. Should I go or not?

If I go, would I be guilty of “Last Chance Tourism”? He didn’t seem to mind to want tourists to come to his country. He didn’t even go on about LCT. Instead, he spoke truthfully. He wanted to engage me in further discussion, answering all my questions. My takeaway was that he was informing and educating politely, without sadness or disdain. It is what it is — Greenland is melting.

The Adventure Travel & Trade Association (ATTA) has a lot to say about this subject. They’re all about sustainable travel and adventure and discussing these *sensitive* topics. Like in this article; There’s a Reason Why Last-Chance Tourism Happens, But We Still Need to Talk About It

So let’s talk about it. Leave a comment with your thoughts on the topic.