UNWTO chief Taleb Rifai said “forces of darkness” should not be allowed to result in strengthened borders, and Tui Group’s Fritz Joussen warned that insularity and xenophobic sentiment – regarding difference as danger instead of diversity – is detrimental to the industry. But for me, any reference to building walls took on an interesting nuance that morning, just hours after we learnt the result of the US presidential election.
A pledge to build a wall between the US and Mexico was a critical part of Donald Trump’s campaign, while last year he controversially called for “a complete shutdown of Muslims entering the US”.
Of course, Trump was threatening immigrants and supposed terrorists, not tourists, and we have no reason to suspect he’ll want to make it harder for holidaymakers to visit. But could his views deter tourists from the US? Around half of TTG readers said yes, with several commenting that clients have already cancelled or changed their holiday plans.
We are yet to see what Trump in the White House could mean for the US tourism industry, and that of Canada and Mexico. But in light of Rifai and Joussen’s comments, perhaps shunning the US as a holiday destination only adds to any sense of a division. And we need fewer walls in this world, not more.
Red in tooth and claw
The other battle that transfixed the nation last week was the horrifying scene in Planet Earth II in which a newly hatched marine iguana was chased by a pack of racer snakes. I’ve heard friends call it “more terrifying than The Walking Dead”. But having just come back from the Galapagos, I’d like to reassure you that I only saw one tiny snake, and they are harmless to humans. Explore this ecological wonderland on pages in this week’s magazine.
