Filed Under Activism

VolandoVa: The First Travel Portal Where You Don’t Travel

A brilliant fundraising campaign by MSF Spain. VolandoVa offers a wide range of destinations where nobody would like to go, including Syria, South Sudan, and Yemen. As they say: “We don’t ask you to come. We ask you to take us.”

Sure, when it comes to relieving the effects of wars and famines, it’s better that they do it. We can just support and praise their great altruism and creativity.

Remapping the City to Highlight Community Initiatives

We can look at a city as a simple repository of buildings, monuments, streets, restaurants, shops, squares, and green spaces devoid of life but with a glorious past. As tourists though, it’d be nice if a city map could reveal something more, such as places and cultural initiatives creatively shaped by the local community.

Los Madriles: A Map of Madrid and Its Community Initiatives
Remapping the City: A Map of Madrid and Its Community Initiatives – Illustration by Los Madriles

An alternative mapping project like that of Los Madriles in Madrid, Spain can then become a new way of looking at the urban territory and fully understand its great diversity. All major cities should have one, don’t you agree?

Banksy’s Hotel Invites You to Enjoy Activist Tourism

And who knew that street artist Banksy opened a temporary hotel in Bethlehem? Same as any fashion designer does, uh? No. The Walled Off Hotel is located just feet from the barrier that separates the West Bank from Israel and does not aim to generate money but to raise awareness of the situation in that area.

Entrance to the Walled Off Hotel by Banksy in Bethlehem
Entrance to the Walled Off Hotel by Banksy in Bethlehem – Photo Courtesy: Addy Cameron-Huff @ Flickr

Prices range from $60 to $965 per night and bookings can only be made until February 1, 2018, but the museum and art gallery are also open to non-residents looking for selfies. From active to “activist tourism” then, just when Palestine is the world’s fastest-growing tourist destination, according to the UNWTO.

Update: bookings at the Walled Off Hotel have been extended to November 30, 2018.