With the increasing popularity of ecotourism in the past few years, more of the world's desirable holiday destinations are looking to become part of the industry. Fascinating locations such as Sri Lanka have been preferred destinations for more traditional tourism but people have been booking ecotourism trips to this island nation as well. It would be safe to say that Sri Lanka is an ecotourism choice.



What needs to be in place for a site to operate as a desirable ecotourism location? In the simplest terms, there must be a certain type of recreational opportunity close to, or in, a natural environment for the concept to work. One of the most attractive factors for tourist destinations, of course, is the amount of revenue generated by visitors. Ecotourism has started to attract attention as a source of significant amounts of money because the eco-tourist is increasing the amount of money put into local economies.

While traditional recreational tourism has always generated huge amounts of cash for local businesses, ecotourism currently provides only a fraction of this amount. But the long-term benefits to the local populations are quite important too, in that the lower impact of ecotourism on the natural surroundings and resources leaves much more for the future.

One factor that ecotourism has in its favor is the possibility of becoming a destination without the major construction projects that traditional tourism often demands. In addition, sites that are far from the wealthiest countries become desirable as ecotourism stops for relaxing, rather than being bypassed as too far away for a holiday trip.

While there will always be changes and issues that result from any level of tourism, the hope among ecotourism proponents is that this slightly different focus will preserve and protect nature and culture in a way that hasn't been possible with traditional tourist activities.

Some studies and research efforts indicate that, in the next several decades, ecotourism will attract 600 million tourists or more, with revenue possibly totalling in the $500 billion range. In anticipation of this growth, numerous potential destinations are starting to look at their beaches, forests and other natural wonders as great places to take a break from the work routine. In this future ecotourism world, locations that can boast of marine biodiversity, unspoiled beaches and fascinating wildlife will become quite desirable for an extended vacation.

Marketing efforts are already being fine-tuned to fit the needs and desires of current and future eco-tourists. Smaller countries and those in the so-called "undeveloped" world are seeing their sun and sand with new eyes. These often-neglected sites may now have tremendous potential as ecotourism spots. Some who are watching this industry closely feel that countries will develop marketing plans on a national scale, providing guidelines for handling the number of tourists and tourist dollars that will be coming.

A 1997 document that came out of the World Tourism Organization established a vision for the industry that definitely includes an increase in ecotourism activity. The plan sees this sector as a component that is attracting a growing number of tourists from across the oceans.

Local populations have started to see that their future prosperity may depend on ecotourism and the way they handle the revenue from it. Some indigenous populations are already changing their philosophy from selling examples of their culture. In more and more instances, the revenue is being generated from showing culture and displaying nature in unchanged form.