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The Troubles with Tourism………….

Tourism has become a major world industry. We are traveling further and in far greater numbers than ever before. We journey into the heart of rainforests and up the highest mountains, soak up the sun on tropical beaches and dive in coral reefs. We gaze in wonder at the mighty ruins of ancient civilizations and get up close and personal with the most amazing wildlife on earth. According to the World Travel and Tourism Council, tourism – and associated activities – generates over 10 percent of Global Domestic Product and employs 200 million people. There are nearly 700 million international travelers a year, a figure which is expected to double by 2020.

The trouble with tourism is that it is so massive, complex and global that almost every supra-national body sees itself as having some role to play in it - hence the UN, World Bank, EU etc. Below you will find a selection of initial entry points only - the larger sites have their own search engines for you to use! You will need a very clear idea of what it is that you are looking for!

Let us now take an insight into the various factors that impact the tourism industry.

·         Nature - Descriptive data provided by the research conclude that, Climate and weather are most important factors that impact the tourism industry, coz they in turn affect the choice of destination of the traveler. These factors influence the attractiveness of a potential vacation region (good weather and plenty of sunshine are among the most important expectations in connection with vacations), require or enable certain kinds of facilities to be offered at the destination, and can also have an effect on accessibility, depending on the time of the trip. Climate change effects could have an influence, either directly or indirectly (through reactions of the persons concerned): attractiveness, e.g. a slight increase of the air and water temperature during summer could increase the attractiveness of the North German coastal region as a vacation destination; available facilities, e.g. a higher probability of precipitation could lead to an increase in weather-independent recreational facilities, such as indoor fun pools; and accessibility, e.g. a higher sea level could threaten the existing infrastructure, e.g. destruction of roads. As climate change will be manifested in weather, this is one of the most important factors with potential influence on tourist behavior. Nicely warm, but not too hot, sunshine and no rain and a light wind seems to be the leisure activity optimum.

Tourism is largely dependent on climatic and natural resources. For example, “warmer'' climates generally constitute preferred environments for recreation and leisure, and natural resources such as fresh water, biodiversity, beaches or landscapes are essential preconditions for tourism. Global environmental change threatens these foundations of tourism through climate change, modifications of global biogeochemical cycles, land alteration, the loss of non-renewable resources, unsustainable use of renewable resources and loss of biodiversity. This has raised concerns that tourist flows will change to the advantage or disadvantage of destinations, which is of major concern to local and national economies, as tourism is one of the largest economic sectors of the world, and of great importance for many destinations. In consequence, an increasing number of publications have sought to analyze travel flows in relation to climatic and socio-economic parameters. The ultimate goal has been to develop scenarios for future travel flows, possibly including “most at risk destinations'', both in economic and in environmental terms. Such scenarios are meant to help the tourist industry in planning future operations, and they are of importance in developing plans for adaptation.

·         Natural Disasters - Natural disasters are destructive, often tragic events that harm people, the environment, and economies. Natural disasters always alter the building blocks of economic production. Personal tragedy through injury or death decreases the size and quality of the labor force. Damage to buildings and machinery reduces the amount of capital needed to provide goods and services. Natural disasters often destroy property, contaminate air and water, kill fish and wildlife, and damage other natural resources. Tourist areas suffered damage from both the 2004 tsunami in Southeast Asia and Hurricane Katrina. Only time will tell what the long-term impact will be on New Orleans’ estimated annual $7 billion tourism industry. Tourism may not dominate a national or regional economy, but nearly every country, state, or province has some location that attracts visitors. Catastrophes like floods, earthquakes, wildfires, volcanoes, avalanches, drought and diseases can have a serious effect on inbound and domestic tourism and thus on local tourism industries. The outbreak of the foot and mouth disease epidemic in England earlier this year (2001), for instance, has severely affected Great Britain's inbound tourism market.

• Poor Infrastructure and Cost needed to improve - Due to poor infrastructure, a large number of tourists, particularly foreigners visitors, do not carry a good impression of the tourist location. The condition of roads being poor and besides, other problems faced by tourists like lack of adequate parking space, poor sanitary conditions and some other similar small problems add up to this. Developing countries are particularly are challenged by this, because they will have to compensate for a loss of long-distance travel and overcome the problems of poor infrastructure to receive tourists in places other than beach resorts. Tourism development can cost the local government and local taxpayers a great deal of money. Developers may want the government to improve the airport, roads and other infrastructure, and possibly to provide tax breaks and other financial advantages, which are costly activities for the government. Tourism can induce the local government to make infrastructure improvements such as better water and sewage systems, roads, electricity, telephone and public transport networks, all of which can improve the quality of life for residents as well as facilitate tourism.

There is no doubt that the arrival of the so called "low cost airlines" have changed the face of short haul air travel & although it pains me to say it, as they have taken away a lot of my revenue, for the better in my opinion. I have been running my own travel business for over 12 years now, mainly dealing in discounted airfares. It used to be the case that if you wanted low cost airfares that you had to stay a minimum amount of time & especially a Saturday night. This was impossible for people who only wanted to travel for short periods, wanted to travel during the week or simply wanted one way travel. Now you can get low airfares staying as long or as little as you want, travel when you want & even for one way travel, this was unheard of only a few short years ago.

The low cost airlines and their low airfares have had a huge impact on air travel and peoples flying & holiday habits with more and more people now taking lots of short breaks instead of the traditional 2 weeks in the sun during the summer. As a result of this impact the long established Airlines are following suit in offering low airfares for travel for any durations & one ways.

·         Terrorism and war - The world has lived with terrorism for decades, but in recent years things have changed. Attacks now are carried out often by international groups with sweeping cultural agendas, rather than national organizations with local goals. They are bloodier, intended more to cause mass casualties than to win support for a political cause. It seems that the number of major attacks has grown since the Iraq war began. These are worrisome trends, and they threaten the hospitality industry more than any other sector of society. Many of the most destructive terrorist incidents have struck at hospitality, tourism, and travel. This is important for hospitality providers, not just because of the threat itself, but because of the effect it has had on many of the industry’s customers. In late 2003, a poll asked more than 2,300 tourists in Southern California what factors were most important in planning a vacation or convention. On a scale of 1 to 10, with 10 being the most significant, domestic visitors gave safety an average rating of 8.9. No less than two-thirds of international visitors said that safety was their single most important concern. In choosing a hotel, 62 percent of domestic visitors and two-thirds of international travelers put safety and security at the head of the list. Here are some of the more obvious vulnerabilities: Hotels are popular targets, for good reason, Transportation is a prime target for terrorists, Major sports events are terrorist magnets, Restaurants face special risks, Militant Islam is spreading and gaining power, Technology dominates the economy and society, The world’s population will double in 40 years, International exposure creates a greater risk of terrorist attack.

Despite the horrifying headlines that regularly arrive from around the world, many companies seem to have shrugged off the risk of a terrorist attack. According to a recent survey by the Business Roundtable, 85 percent of American firms have increased their spending on security since the terrorist attacks of September 11, 2001. Yet their budgets for this purpose have risen by only 10 percent, on average, in nearly three years. Even in this time of relatively stable prices, about half of that increase has gone just to keep up with inflation. The situation is little better in the hospitality industry. Though some hotels have added security cameras to their lobbies and installed electronic locks on guestroom doors, many more have done nothing at all. For any business, the most likely security threats come from disgruntled employees and former employees. Before employees are hired, they should be screened thoroughly, not only to confirm their identity but to weed out those with significant criminal records, suspicious associations, or other potential risks. The screening procedure should be as rigorous at a hotel or restaurant as it is at an airport or airline. This will be particularly difficult for companies that hire large numbers of non-citizens, and particularly undocumented workers. Yet no company that skimps on this process can hope to be safe from attack. In a world of terrorism, this requirement extends not only to the firm’s own employees, but to those of suppliers, builders, and service contractors. Someone who comes to repair the air conditioning could also release anthrax into the system, and no one would find it easier to contaminate food than the people who deliver it. Suppliers and contractors that cannot guarantee that their employees have been screened as rigorously as the facility’s own workers should be replaced by firms that can. Having once screened their new hires, large-scale employers need to make certain each day that someone presenting an employee ID really is that worker and not an imposter. Even photographic identity cards can be tampered with, so something more secure is required. That probably means biometrics, the use of automated systems to match people with their known physical attributes. Available technologies include fingerprint and retinal scanners, facial recognition software, and pen-sized accelerometers that can measure the precise hand movements used to sign one’s name—data far more difficult to disguise than the signature itself. These techniques have undergone rapid development since September 11, and many are now deemed reliable enough for practical application. Installing a biometric identity system and training security personnel to use it is expensive. Yet it is by far the best guarantee now available that someone who appears to be an employee really is who he claims to be. Identifying guests with any certainty is still more difficult. For restaurants and other businesses where customer turnover is extremely rapid, it may be impractical or impossible. However, hotels, resorts, and conference centers all need to be certain who is staying with them. This will be easier now that most foreign visitors need machine-read visas, fingerprints, and photo IDs to enter the country. A national identity card, if one is ever issued in the United States, could make the process easier still. These changes will be especially welcome for international meetings, where asking guests for finger prints or other reliable identification has been an especially frequent and difficult challenge.

·         Lack of awareness - Many of the LDCs (Least Developed Countries) have excellent tourism potential, with a rich diversity of natural, cultural and other heritage assets. However, in the majority of LDCs, including the United Republic of Tanzania, a high proportion of the assets remain undeveloped and inaccessible to visitors. Moreover, the LDCs have yet to make a significant impact in this industry that is forecast to become one of the largest in the world. Their product offer is unknown and their industries are underdeveloped as a result of structural constraints:

·   Lack of effective promotion, both of the destination and products offered by specific businesses.

·   Weak tourism administration.

·   Lack of basic facilities, proper infrastructure and social services.

·   Lack of investment in the tourism plant and associated products (attractions, entertainment, shopping, etc.).

·   Lack of qualified, trained and skilled human resources.

·   High level of ecological fragility and vulnerability.

The solution to this is to raise awareness. One of the main challenges for LDCs is to raise awareness of potential tourists of their offerings. Most LDCs do not have an experienced tourist board to promote the destination and the private sector lacks the expertise and resources to promote their products to the tourism trade and on the Internet. Online bookings are difficult or non-existent, due to limitations in the telecommunications and Internet infrastructure. Information is not presented in a manner that helps the potential visitor to differentiate the country and businesses’ market offerings from others.

In most LDCs, there has been little training of front-line personnel (e.g., taxi drivers, tour guides, interpreters, hotel and restaurant staff, attractions staff) in customer service standards. LDCs have also neglected two issues of primary importance to foreign visitors: health and safety. For this reason, most foreign tourists prefer to travel with prepaid arrangements where an intermediary is responsible for the quality of service that they receive. This leads to a lowering multiplier effect in the host countries.

But perhaps most importantly, many LDCs have yet to embrace the concept of sustainable tourism. Conventional hotel-based tourism, restricted to the beach, is not sustainable, and it often builds resentment in the host community.

·         The impact of e -trade - E-trade is having a profound effect on the tourism industry. Consumers have adopted online travel planning faster than any other online retail activity, and leisure travel bookings online are expected to exceed US$ 29 billion (or 12% of industry revenues) by 2003. Increasingly, tourist destinations are offering ‘virtual reality’ samplings online of the ambience and their tourism products, before consumers make a travel commitment. Consumers now expect not only to make destination selections online but also to make travel, accommodation and local transportation arrangements at the same web site.

It’s easy to assume that our holidays are insignificant compared to the enormity of the global travel and tourism industry. But a single trip can make a difference to someone’s life… the mountain guide, the village market trader, the local community group that receives a donation from a tour operator. Responsible travel and positive actions by travelers can reverse the impact of destructive tourism, can genuinely contribute towards good global development and can help preserve the beauty of the world for future generations.

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