Tourism has entered an age of restless reinvention. Across the global industry, from UN Tourism to the World Travel & Tourism Council (WTTC) and international networks such as Skål International, a consistent message is emerging: travellers are seeking experiences that feel authentic, human, and rooted, rather than packaged or predictable.
Thailand-based Italian tourism thinker Roberto Causin expresses this shift with sharp clarity. He argues that the traditional formula of flights, hotels, and buffet breakfasts no longer satisfies modern expectations. Today’s travellers are looking for journeys that shake off the routine, open the senses, and connect them with real people and real places.
More than a decade ago, the Mekong Tourism Forum (MTF) was already championing this movement, pioneering programmes that placed local communities at the heart of tourism’s value chain. Farm-to-table dining, meet-the-maker experiences, artisan engagement, and village immersion all grew from these early innovations. They helped lay the foundation for what is now widely known as regenerative tourism, an approach in which tourism strengthens destinations rather than merely using them.
Tourists helping to make local village (OTOP) products. A very hands-on experience.
Thailand’s long-running OTOP (One Tambon One Product) programme is a strong example. By empowering villages to produce unique cultural goods, from textiles and pottery to herbal remedies and snacks, OTOP transforms heritage into income and dignity. It remains a benchmark of booming community-based tourism in Asia.
Proximity Tourism: The 10,000-Kilometre Realisation
One of Asia’s most compelling attributes is the global rise of proximity tourism. Travellers are beginning to realise they do not need to fly 10,000 kilometres to feel amazed. They are rediscovering the beauty of the nearby landscape, driven by environmental awareness, value-for-money thinking, and a growing interest in roots tourism, as people explore ancestral places and explore their personal identity.
Moving Beyond the Instagram Moment
The world may still chase the perfect sunset shot, but travellers increasingly want substance behind the image. They want reassurance that the oceans will remain blue, that cultural heritage is respected, and that communities genuinely benefit from tourism rather than being overrun by it. In short, they want authenticity with integrity.
AI Is Impressive – But It Is Not Hospitality
Village pottery- additional income opportunities.
Technology now shapes every stage of the travel journey. Yet, as Roberto notes, AI without people becomes merely a GPS without a trip.
“Without genuine smiles and sincere hospitality, AI is only a tool. It cannot deliver the experience itself.”
Travel remains fundamentally a human-to-human exchange.
Destinations Must Think in Synergy
Modern travellers are seeking destinations that feel coherent, meaningful, and whole. That requires synergy, blending cuisine, culture, community products, landscape, and hospitality into experiences that tell a genuine story, not just a slogan.
Tourism is ultimately a living ecosystem of people, landscapes, flavours, stories, and small miracles. And today’s voyagers want to be guided to places where locals live quietly, beyond the billboard and beyond the algorithm.
by Andrew Wood – (c) 2025
Read Time: 4 minutes.
About the Writer
A Yorkshireman by birth and a Bangkokian by choice, Andrew J Wood has been exploring Southeast Asia’s hospitality and culinary landscapes since 1991. A seasoned travel writer, raconteur, and hotel reviewer, Andrew combines old-school courtesy with a dry wit that’s unmistakably English.
His love of gracious service and good manners, traits he believes the world could use more of, shines through every word he writes. From the gleaming hotel lobbies of Bangkok to the bustling markets of Hanoi, he finds joy in the details: a warm smile, a well-brewed cup of tea, or a perfectly folded napkin.
For Andrew, travel isn’t just about movement; it’s about meaning, memory, and the gentle art of slowing down. In his book, the perfect Sunday is unhurried, well-fed, and always finished with something sweet.
