不如多欣賞、認識並進而愛惜你所居住的，及其鄰近地區的自然美境、生態和村落地方的文化、風土、人情，以最低度環境影響的方式前往，乘坐當地人士使用的公共交通及步行、踏單車，使用當地民居作住宿之用，享用當地人的食物和用品。時不時重遊舊地，及多逗留一、兩天，讓自己熟悉當地的自然美境和民情，並與之建立起深厚的感情，這就是其中一種生命的深度體現，這就是生態渡假。
其他地區旅遊發展的經驗教訓:
世上普遍的旅遊發展概念似乎都是五星級酒店、賭場、酒吧、舞廳、紅燈區、購物商場等事物。結果是,
資本集約的投資只有大財團可以參與,
其創造的職位亦不會太多,
以致地方人士可以分享到的旅遊收益並不大。可是, 另一方面,
地方上原有的人文面貌卻遭受到大大的破壞, 例如:
一:
做成色情濫泛、問題青少年、人的行為普遍劣質化(詐騙式營商手法、將他人看成取得利益和慾望滿足的工具)等。
二:
為了吸引、方便遊客而建的各種酒店、遊客接待處、公路、購物商場等結果卻把原有地方的人文面貌轍底破壞,
遊客看到的盡是各種旅遊設施,
反而遊客應看的倒被這些設施弄得七零八落。
三:
居民漸漸多到賭場、酒吧、舞廳、紅燈區、購物商場等地方作消遣,
原有的消閒生活漸漸被棄揚。
上述現象使到當地的文化和社會發展方向自原來的軌跡給扭曲、拉扯至西方都會模式,
這對促成全球各不同社群自原來多元而且殊異的局面走向單元而且劃一的社會、文化發展方向,
發揮了頗大的作用。
當地的自然環境亦因而受到大大的破壞。
上述現象可以在肯雅的蒙巴沙、中國的桂林市和泰國的曼谷等地見到。
Ecotourism And Value Orientation
Our commercial society values the maximization of
material production and consumption as this is the necessary means that private firms can maximize their profits and governments can still manage to
harness the unemployment rate from rising quickly. Traveling from 5-star hotels to 5-star hotels is in fact a social trend promoted by capitalists and
governments rather than a genuine human need. People also simply lack the resource and means to think and act alternatively in terms of traveling. This
artificially created value (the max. of production and consumption) make people alienate their genuine selves and act to fulfill those "invading
values". One's value or status in the society is also judged by how much one produces and consumes materially, so people also usually take traveling as a
means to establish their value or status in the society. They simply find it worrisome that other people will look down upon them if they have to admit
that they haven't been to other places for several years. How can you really enjoy your travel if you have to go to 7 different places in 7 days and on the
way you can only spend 10-20 minutes at each scenic spot? But this is usually the case when Hong Kong people join the touring groups. Why?
They are alienated. This itinerary is not served to maximize their joy of traveling, but by doing so they can establish themselves quantitatively (I
have been to so many places)!
This alienation gradually make people unable to adjust themselves as
well as the society to tackle problems facing us. Environmental crisis is one of them. Your diligent students are also mostly alienated. Their aim is not
knowledge, but flying colours in their certificates. In the end, the meaning in the certificates is also the maximization of material production and
consumption. When the invading values spread wide enough in the society, the public will in turn generate positive feedback back to the governments
and capitalists, that is, the more the governments and capitalists promote the values, the better their goals can be achieved. The invading values are thus
strengthened through interactions among the three: the source of power and authority--the government, entrepreneurship in the production sector, and
the general public's value orientation. These three may be called the
economic-political-cultural complex. This complex has mechanism of it's own. In order to live in this complex, human beings have to adapt and adjust
their thinking and behavior, or in other negative words, to alienate themselves. And no matter whether we are willing to , all of us have to
spend our lives in this complex. So, endless struggles around meaningless routines, extremely stressful life, etc., are the fate of modern human beings.
We simply have no way to escape except dismantle or restructure this complex..
Experiments and theorizations to restructure or dismantle this complex
has been under way for some years. Culturally we have the so called simple living movement,
but as the modern society depends so much on increased spending and economic competition for its survival, is it any hope that this movement can
gain ground in the economic- political-cultural complex? If you ask me, O.K., granted the existing difficulties, is it still any key switch by which I
can press so that I can start to have a little positive influence on our Culture? I would say: Be authentic, that is, be true to your real self. How
can we accomplish this as we have all been socialized to such degree?
Ward off those invading values: The goods and bads other people bestow upon you.
Look for your uncontaminated true self. If you could find your uncontaminated
true self, live with her.
I think this is the basic most founding philosophy of
ecotourism as viewed by me. Since by going into the wilderness, guessing the history of some old
remnants in the countryside, climbing hills and mountains, fording streams, searching high and low, following
pathways (Some sayings are stolen from the song Climb Every Mountain), enjoying sunrises , sunsets and
natural beauties, I can find my uncontaminated true self.
生態度假：
走馬看花式的豪華旅行團根本不可能令參加者有多少真正得益，除了一些很容易淡忘的浮光掠影，一大疊供炫耀親朋的相片和錄影，可以向別人跨耀的眾多旅遊地點外，去過與沒有去過並沒有什麼分別。途中的那種歡樂，像享受五星級豪華酒店，絕對不用跑到老遠的地方去也可以找得到。然而，這種做人為威給別人看的文化，要付出的代價可大呢！就個人言，這會令個人的人生失掉甚多本來參加深度旅遊所可以帶來的深度滿足和美感經驗。就地球言，這種走馬看花式的豪華旅行則會帶來環境和文化的破壞。十多天時間大都花在坐車坐船坐飛機之上，所耗用的燃油已經比整年公共交通往返所耗用的還要多；旅遊發展商也大力開發道路、大建五星酒店，以迎合豪華遊客的需要，也因此帶來極多不必要的環境破壞。其次，供遊客享用的遊樂設施亦會吸引到地方上的人士使用，從而在不知不覺間改變了他們的消閒方式、經營方式以致整套生活文化，令到地球上各不同地方的文化愈來愈趨向劃一。
所以，這樣的走馬看花式豪華旅遊亦必須棄揚，代之以生態度假。到老遠的歐洲、美洲旅行，一生人一次經已太多，犯不著要年年去。不如多欣賞、認識並進而愛惜你所居住的，及其鄰近地區的大自然和村落地方的文化、風土、人情，以最低度環境影響的方式前往，乘坐當地人士使用的公共交通及步行、踏單車，使用當地民居作住宿之用，享用當地人的食物和用品。讓自己熟悉當地的自然美境和民情，並與之建立起深厚的感情，這就是其中一種生命的深度體現，這就是生態渡假。
