This article originally appeared in BSR Insight.

Perhaps no other industry is more dependent on climate than travel and tourism. From warm, sunny, beachfront resorts, to majestic, snowy mountains, and turbulence-free flights, nearly every aspect of the industry is better off and more profitable when the weather is stable and predictable, and travelers can move about safely and without disruption.

According to a 2008 study by the UN World Travel Organisation, tourism will likely move toward higher latitudes and altitudes, where negative climate change impacts will not be as drastic. If that happens, the competitive position of vacation spots will change, leaving some areas to decline as others become more popular.

Climate change is also predicted to result in greater weather volatility and related risks to infrastructure. Increased costs, primarily for fuel, will lead to corresponding erosion of consumer demand for travel, and longer-term shifts in weather and climate will affect the value of different destinations. Apart from these direct impacts, climate change will indirectly affect biodiversity, water resources, and changes to the landscape.

These changes, coupled with the ripple effects on communities (including the possibility of destabilization in developing countries), will impact many aspects of popular travel destinations. High-volume hotel and resort destinations will experience increasingly erratic weather, water scarcity, and changes in seasonality. The stakes are particularly high for coastal and island destinations, which are more vulnerable to rising sea level, hurricanes, severe storms, flooding, water shortages, and beach erosion. And many of these regions -- especially in developing countries -- have a low capacity to adapt to the changing climate.

Likewise, in areas that depend on wintry conditions and activities for tourism, reduced snow cover and shorter cold seasons directly impact business performance. As noted in the journal Nature Geoscience, white and reflective snow cover is crucial to keeping the Earth cool, but as snow melts with warmer temperatures, the planet's reflective capacity is reduced, and the warming is further increased by the less-reflective surface of the planet. This spells trouble for the winter sports tourism industry.

In spite of these changes, there are opportunities for beachside and mountain-based regions alike to adapt to the changing climate. Coastal destinations can construct resorts at a given height above sea level, store food for emergencies, implement disaster training and preparedness for staff, and modify existing infrastructure to standards that can withstand major weather events. And mountain-based businesses can take a "four-seasons" approach by offering diverse activities like indoor sports, trekking and biking in warmer months, and increasing retail and spa offerings for visitors. There are also opportunities for airlines and online travel companies.

Hotels and Resorts

Hotels and resorts are vulnerable to rising sea levels in coastal areas and changing weather patterns for properties ranging from waterfront to high elevations. With so many assets located in places that are exposed to the elements, hotels and resorts stand to experience major costs when a massive storm comes ashore, or when snow cover recedes -- which is already happening in the western United States. It will be difficult for such companies to secure property and casualty insurance for high-risk geographies, and for locations where damage does occur, premiums will skyrocket.

But some forward-thinking hotel companies are working on strategies to address climate risks and reap opportunities. Companies such as Starwood Hotels not only report their carbon emissions and risks, they also use their disclosure as a chance to talk with business partners about growth opportunities. Gina Edner, Starwood's associate director of environmental sustainability, said her company receives a lot of requests for environmental information from business partners. "In talking to corporate clients that have experience with climate reporting, a company [in the tourism industry] might discover new areas to grow its business," she noted.