Tourism has always been a leading sector in the international economies, serving as a bridge for cultural exchange as well as a direct way to expand personal knowledge and cultural baggage. Like any other sector in the global market, tourism is subject to and depends on the fluctuation of the traveler’s demand and necessities and international tendencies. The latter two, nowadays are converging toward digital and technological innovations.

We are now experiencing on a global scale what experts and media define as the Fourth Industrial Revolution, the Digital Revolution, and tourism has been one of the pioneer sectors in digitalizing business processes and implementing new technologies and platforms for information and communications (UNTWO). 

Booking plane tickets, hotel rooms, or guided tours online are just a few simple examples of tourism digitalization, nowadays it goes far beyond that. New technologies are being implemented in each field of the tourism industry: from collecting and managing travelers’ preferences and information through Big Data analysis tools like Blockchains to advertising and marketing on social media; from customer support and travel organizations using Artificial Intelligence, to the use of Augmented and Virtual Reality to offer tourists unique experiences (Kindzule-Millere and Zeverte-Rivza, 2022). 

The digitalization of the tourism sector affects both customers and business companies, for ones because it primarily involves engagement through websites, mobile apps, and social media; for others, it involves reliance on online channels and the implementation of digital tools (Sugathapala, 2024).

Although the use of technology in this sector has many positive sides, for both travelers and the tourism industry – such as greater accessibility and convenience, more information in the shortest possible time, personalized experiences, improved efficiency for companies in streamlining operations, and better decision-making – it is relevant to consider also the negative aspects, which are often overlooked. In particular, besides social and technological considerations about privacy issues, iniquities in access, and technology dependence, the long-term sustainability of using such digital tools should be investigated (Bekele and Raj, 2024).

The integration of tourism and digitalization called Tourism 4.0, is often described as sustainable since the implementation of technology and sustainable business practices usually enables organizations to reduce their reliance on physical resources, reduce carbon emissions, decrease energy consumption, and reduce waste production (Bekele and Raj,  2024 – Kindzule-Millere and Zeverte-Rivza, 2022). 

This analysis, however, focuses mainly on the industry side and partially omits a holistic view that also includes the consumer perspective. As travelers and tourists, we should be aware of our impact on the natural environment while we use digital or technological instruments to plan our holidays or trips. Every time we ask a question to any AI we are consuming large amounts of water and producing CO2 emissions.  According to studies by the University of California, on average, a data center uses about 519 milliliters of water for each email, and around 0,5 liter of water is used for each 20-50 questions to ChatGPT (Danelsy, 2023). These are just a few examples that can help travelers understand their impact on the natural environment, but not all data about AI or the use of digital tools are available, and tech companies are not always transparent.

Based on UNWTO data, between January and July 2023, around 700 million tourists traveled at the international level. If each tourist asked just one question to ChatGPT about their trip, between 140 thousand and 875 thousand liters of water would have been used. It is important to consider that we are taking into account only international tourists, not national ones, assuming a one-query chat on Chat Gpt, and focusing solely on water consumption, not the overall production of CO2.

This kind of analysis is particularly crucial in the tourism sector since it involves countless people all around the world each year and, as mentioned above, it is one of the pivotal sectors in the current digital transformation. 

In the future, the travel industry will continue to evolve in an increasingly digital environment. Young generations, known as digital natives, are – and will continue to be – protagonists of this digital revolution, and as such they need to be aware of the importance of sustainability in the tourism industry, considering its vital contribution at the economic, social, and cultural level.

REFERENCES

Bekele, H. and Raj, S. (2024), Digitalization and digital transformation in the tourism industry: a bibliometric review and research agenda, Tourism Review. https://doi.org/10.1108/TR-07-2023-0509   

Danelsy D. (2023). AI programs consume large volumes of scarce water. University of California Riverside News.  

https://news.ucr.edu/articles/2023/04/28/ai-programs-consume-large-volumes-scarce-water

Kindzule-Millere I. and Zeverte-Rivza S. (2022). Digital Transformation in Tourism: Opportunities and Challenges. Proceedings of the 2022 International Conference “ECONOMIC SCIENCE FOR RURAL DEVELOPMENT” No 56 Jelgava, LLU ESAF, 11-13 May 2022, pp. 476-486 Digital transformation in tourism: opportunities and challenges

Sugathapala M A S H (2024). Navigating the Digital Frontier: Assessing the Impacts and Opportunities of Digital Transformation in the Tourism Industry. Vol-10 Issue-1. IJARIIE-ISSN(O)-2395-4396 https://www.researchgate.net/publication/377808338_Navigating_the_Digital_Frontier_Assessing_the_Impacts_and_Opportunities_of_Digital_Transformation_in_the_Tourism_Industry 

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