Explora Journeys, the luxury travel brand of the MSC group, today announced its partnership with Travelife for Tour Operators, the training, management and certification program for sustainable tourism.
Michael Ungerer, CEO of Explora Journeys, stated: “Working to offer more sustainable travel experiences to our customers is an important part of our vision to become a truly defining and highly sought-after luxury travel brand. Our primary motivation for travel is our immense admiration for the ocean, and because of our deep respect for local communities, we design our destination experiences to leave a positive impression and impact.”.
Explora Journeys' purpose is to generate among its partners a strong awareness of effective sustainable planning, so that they maximize the social and economic benefits for the local communities that their ships visit, enhance cultural heritage and reduce environmental impact.
Naut Kusters, CEO of Travelife, added: “Travelife’s sustainability management system naturally complements Explora Journeys’ commitment to creating sustainable destination experiences. Travel agencies, tour operators, travel advisors, and ports are crucial to supporting the sustainable implementation of each measure and will therefore receive training and incentives.”
Thanks to the partnership with Travelife, all Explora Journeys tour operators and travel advisors will have free and unlimited access to Travelife's virtual platform and will be able to enjoy a range of benefits related to sustainable tourism. Additional in-person training will be provided in European destinations as part of the EU-supported SUSTOUR project. This includes a comprehensive learning platform with 16 on-demand modules on sustainability, with final exams and certification upon completion of each module; checklists for different types of excursions and activities that meet internationally recognized sustainability standards; applied reporting and action planning tools for effectively implementing sustainability practices; and examples of best practices in the travel and tourism sector.
In September 2021, the MSC group's cruise division reaffirmed its extensive commitment to sustainability by pledging to reduce net greenhouse gas emissions in its ocean cruise operations to zero by 2050.
