Why you should stop geo-tagging your travel destinations on Instagram
It’s not unusual to find inspiration for our travels on platforms such as Instagram, Facebook, and Pinterest. We see travel bloggers, influencers, and friends posting beautiful destinations and follow the geo-tags to see how we might be able to experience it for ourselves.
While geo-tagging can seem like an innocent action, it can cause significant damage when not done responsibly.
We’re here to share our love of travel with you, to encourage sustainability, to inspire you with our visuals and our words, and to share our recommendations through our in-depth travel guides. But, being dedicated to eco-tourism, occasionally there are places that shouldn’t be specifically shared…
What is geo-tagging?
Many people document their travels online by geo-tagging, which is when your geographical location — down to the longitude, latitude, and altitude — is embedded into the digital file. While sometimes it’s intentional, other times it’s done unknowingly, so it’s a good idea to look at your privacy settings.
Once these photos, videos, or other forms of media content are uploaded to social sharing sites like Instagram, users can also choose to make the name of the location visible at the top of the post. When clicked by other users, a map will open, and recent posts from other users at the same location will appear in a feed.
How is geo-tagging harmful?
GEO-TAGGING FUELS MASS-TOURISM
It’s a story told over and over again. Once tranquil spots have turned into overcrowded attractions filled with tourists touting selfie-sticks taking the same photos that have been shot a thousand times before.
Where a secluded beach would once have maybe ten visitors in the middle of peak-season, is now chaotic with hundreds or even thousands of people, disrespectful vacationers that don’t care about their impact on the place they’re soon leaving, and plastic pollution and other garbage littering the sand only to be washed into the sea at the end of each day.
By not geo-tagging your location, you’re helping to preserve the quality of your scenic destination, so that those who come after you can have the same magical experience.
GEO-TAGGING CAN ENDANGER WILDLIFE
Safari Guides will often require travelers turn off geo-tagging functions and not disclose locations, as the GPS locations are monitored by poachers tracking sightings and can lead them to endangered animals. In other areas, it’s not unusual for previously-serene spots in nature to spike in popularity, causing parking lots to be built where forests once stood. With various species displaced from their homes, more animals are killed by speeding tourists on congested roads.
These are just some examples of how geo-tagging can cause a negative impact on local wildlife.
GEO-TAGGING CAN CAUSE DAMAGE TO THE LAND
Imagine this: After a warm and wet spring the wildflowers are in a particularly bountiful bloom and the location goes viral. Suddenly tourists are flocking to this previously undisturbed meadow to get that shot. ‘Foraged’ flowers are stolen en mass and cannot go to seed for the next season. Picnic blankets ruin pristine grassland. Suddenly a once thriving location has become trampled and dead.
As these locations — pristine forests, small hiking trails, or crystal-clear lakes — go viral, our fragile eco-systems are put at risk of erosion.
When is it ok to geo-tag your photos?
When it comes to the hotel you’re staying at, a restaurant you’re dining in, the small business you’re shopping from, and even some of the sights you’re seeing — businesses that benefit from added foot-traffic — geo-tagging can be a positive thing, for sure! But when it comes to remote beaches or those lesser-known areas in nature where the peace, quiet, and solidarity is part of what makes it special, use the above information to consider whether a geo-tag could create a negative impact.
Leave no trace
When you happen upon a breathtaking view or once-in-a-lifetime moment, it’s understandable that you’ll want to share it on social media! But what can you do to help protect our environment from damage caused by human beings?
One option is not to geo-tag at all and leave the location tag off completely. As an alternative, use a broader tag, such as a city and state over the specific location. Doing so helps ensure these local spots don’t get overrun with tourists, keeps the wildlife safe, and shows courtesy to the people that live nearby. Consider why you want to tag the location. If the answer is simply to get your photos in front of new eyes or grow your following, there are better ways to do it. For example, use hashtags or tag related accounts in the photo instead of adding a specific location.
When you do find these places, act as though you live there — with respect and consideration of our planet. Pick up trash you see or create, observe wildlife from a distance so they don’t feel the need to flee, and leave the environment how you found it (or better!). Abide by the seven principles of Leave No Trace.
Do your research
It’s not about entitlement (“we researched until our eyes bled, so you should too”), but about being a steward of the earth. If you want to find a unique, out-of-the-way destination, we implore you to do you your research. Take the time to do the work — go onto Google Earth, browse guide books from decades ago, ask for stories of adventures from people you meet, or work with an in-the-know travel designer that can tailor your dream vacation!
Lastly, if you see a beautiful location on Instagram that’s not tagged and are curious as to where it is, it’s okay to message the account owner to ask, but remember not to become disrespectful if they decline to answer.
