gINKgo I The RARE Newsletter I Announcing BRIDGES for Conscious Travel 2026 I Vol 113 I Sep 2025

Announcing BRIDGES for Conscious Travel 2026

Sept 16,17,18 - New Delhi

After much deliberation, we are thrilled to announce the ninth edition and third iteration of RARE India's showcase of the subcontinent's best in tourism and hospitality.

BRIDGES for Conscious Travel 2026 will continue to support the catalytic shift towards sustainable travel.

Based on feedback from our exhibiting partners and supporting DMCs, we have moved the dates to September, as the weather is expected to be better suited and will allow for a longer window of impact.

Who should attend?

Changemakers, come together! BRIDGES will continue to attract those dedicated to transformational travel and sustainable tourism. Delegates will have the opportunity to engage with leaders in the field, contribute to emission offset initiatives, and explore new dimensions of responsible tourism.

Calling all change-makers, collaborators, hoteliers, potential sponsors, and worshippers of transformational and slow travel to save the date and register their interest with us and their partner DMCs in India and Nepal.

How to register?

Believe sustainable travel is possible? Commit to join us !.

Please register as a delegate for BRIDGES 2026.

1. Hoteliers with a stellar record of sustainable practices in design and operations: write to Megha Abrol: bridges@rareindia.com
2. Global promoters for tourism to the subcontinent: connect with your DMC partners in India and Nepal.
3. DMCs from India and Nepal: partner with us to invite your overseas partners. Connect with Joseph Rajan Passah: headofsales@rareindia.com
4. For media attendance, associations, collaborations, and sponsorships: connect with Shoba Rudra: shoba@rareindia.com

BRIDGES for Conscious Travel 2025, hosted at The Roseate, New Delhi, was a pivotal three-day conference bringing together hoteliers, experience curators, and travel designers committed to slow and conscious travel. The conference emphasised sustainable and responsible tourism through talks, awards, and success stories from small, owner-run hotels and experience curators.

The conference also aimed to be carbon-neutral, with NettZero Environmental Advisory Technologies Pvt. Ltd. overseeing emission reduction, auditing, and offsetting. A total of 25 tCO2e (tonnes of carbon dioxide equivalent) was offset by retiring high-quality carbon dioxide removal credits, purchased from the Biochar Project on the CSI Registry, against the event's scope one and scope two emissions.

The lessons learnt from BRIDGES 2025 are manifold.

The Good Points:

1. Strong attendance for a boutique event, with notable support from DMCs in inviting their FTO partners.
2. High interest from hoteliers and experience companies in participating in BRIDGES.
3. For the first time delegates engaged with NGO partners such as Waste Warriors and Wildlife SOS, exploring solutions and opportunities to collaborate on conservation initiatives.
4. A total of 3,131 meetings were scheduled and completed through the BRIDGES App by Cvent during the three-day conference.
5. Conference halls maintained comfortable temperatures between 22°C and 24°C, unnoticed by delegates, despite outside temperatures reaching 36°C–39°C in April.

The Challenges:

1. We couldn't entirely move away from the traditional "pamper-all" trade event design, and our minimal-waste menus were not widely appreciated.
2. The absence of printed programs, event gifts, and giveaways drew some criticism despite prior communication by email.
3. Technology and push notifications on the BRIDGES app helped streamline meetings and saved considerable time; however, a few delegates found the platform less intuitive to use.
4. Repeated requests for delegates to offset emissions from airlines and other modes of transportation met with limited response, resulting in a higher emission count.
5. BRIDGES 2025 aimed to retire high-quality carbon dioxide removal credits for event offsetting. As these credits are more expensive, we were able to cover Scope 1 and Scope 2 emissions only.

IMP: The reason to highlight challenges is to understand where we stand with sustainability and technology as an industry. In the dynamic flow of change, no one is exempt — for this is how change looks in the beginning: chaotic, resistant, and evasive until we make the essential shift !