ABSTRACT
This chapter starts with the heading of “tread lightly” and that applies to consumers and the destinations and businesses in tourism. It begins with a discussion of sustainable tourism, since this is the overall background for much of the discussion of ethics and social responsibility in the tourism sector. Sustainable tourism development is the application of the principles of sustainable development to tourism, which is highly dependent on the natural, cultural and human resources of destinations. Tourism marketers and their organisations must behave ethically; they must adhere to an ethical code of conduct and practise ethical tourism. There are two sides to ethical tourism. First, ethical tourism must be a concern of the people travelling to destinations, the tourists or guests. Second, ethical tourism must be practised by those in the tourism sector: the hosts and all those connected with the hosts, including transport companies, travel agencies and tour operators.
