Festival and Event in sustainability of Tourism

Title: Festival and Event in sustainability of Tourism: Penang Hot Air Balloon Festival

Tourism is an activity that can have a really huge effect on sustainable development. Sustainability of tourism includes for reaching cooperation between visitor organizations, traveler destinations and national, provincial and local authorities so as to cover a wide group of difficulties and in the meantime to stay focused. Opportunities for sustainable tourism development and protection of its competitiveness, is generally affected by the nature of the earth, to protect and alluring common and cultural heritage and different qualities, merchandise and assets. For sustainable it is viewed as any sort of tourism that contributes forever for the assurance and advancement of the nature, common and different assets, social qualities and respectability of the nearby group.

The study of festivals and events is presently a critical and productive territory of tourism exploration enquiry. Festivals and events have thrived in recent decades and enthusiasm for comprehension their essentialness in the tourism foundation has risen as needs be. A festival is a celebration of life. Festivals convey peace and bliss to the masses. They break the repetitiveness of life. Festivals and events give credibility and uniqueness, particularly with events in view of investment indigenous qualities, helpful neighborliness and moderateness, theming and images for members and observers.

As per Brundtland Commission in our basic Future, 1987, sustainable means addressing the needs of the present without bargaining the capacity of future eras to address their own particular issues. Some individuals characterized “event and festival tourism” as activities, planning, and management practices associated with public, themed events. UNWTO characterizes sustainable tourism as “tourism that makes full note of its present and future financial, social and ecological effects, tending to the needs of guests, the industry, and nature and host groups. Subsequently, sustainable tourism ought to make ideal utilization of natural assets, regard the socio-cultural validness of host groups and give reasonable, long-term financial profits to all. Sustainable tourism development addresses the issues of present tourists and host regions while ensuring and improving opportunities for the future. It is imagined as prompting to administration of all resources in such a route to the point of economic, social and aesthetic needs can be satisfied while keeping up cultural integrity, essential ecological processes, biological diversity and life support networks, (WTO, 2002e).

Festivals are seen as apparatuses set up advertising and destination image making, and are esteemed for their capacity to animate urban areas, resorts and attractions (Andersson and Getz, 2008:200). The overall public of urban centers facilitating festivals from time to time to determines any vocation opportunities from festival tourism (Janiskee and Drews, 1998). Festivals are being more generous for regional tourism planning activities. It plays various part of significant roles in a town or area. Getz (1997) distinguishes these as “attractions, picture producers, artists of static attractions and impetuses for further advancement.

Penang Hot Air Balloon Fiesta will give guests a chance to have a great experience. There will be 15 hot air balloons over a 2-day festival and this event is open to all ages from 6am to 9pm at Padang Polo (Polo Ground) with balloon set-up at 7am and free-flying balloon shows that will amazement you at 7:30am. The event is upheld by the Penang state government in collaboration with the Penang Island Municipal Council and the Penang Global Tourism in a joint effort with Tourism Malaysia. This is also the first time that the island is having the Penang Hot Air Balloon Fiesta 2015.

Marketing and motivation

In the recent decades, festival and event tourism has been one of the quickest developing segments of the world recreation industry (Getz, 1991; Nicholson & Pearce, 2001), and has gotten expanding consideration by scholarly researches. In addition to commonly targeted topics, for example economic impact, promoting marketing strategies of mega-events, and festival management (Ralston & Hamilton, 1992). There is a developing stream of research concentrating on the inspirations of attendees. It has been concurred that understanding motivations, or the “internal element that arouses, coordinates, and incorporate a person’s behavior” (Iso-Ahola 1980, cited in Crompton & McKay, 1997, p.425), prompts better planning and advertising of festivals and events, and better division of members.

From a tourism point of view, events clearly require audiences. As Faulkner, Chalip, Brown, Jago, March and Woodside (2000) argue, the destination improvement caused by an event is to a great extent driven by the participation it is required to create. Then, as Whitelegg (2000) notes, the effect of mega events on global tourism is identified with their ability to attract worldwide groups. Consequently, the advancement and advertising of events is a key territory of investment, and the inquiry in the matter of what motivates people to go to the events has been an imperative social mental inquiry going back to the early 1990s.

Tourism motivation is conceptualized as an element methodoloy of internal psychological factors (needs and wants) that produce a condition of tension or disequilibrium inside people. The festival’s purposes are two-fold. To begin with, it is to show and honor social custom. The second purpose for the festival is economic. Approximately 1.62 million visits are recorded at festival events.

Is sustainable tourism achievable?

Tourism will never be completely sustainable as every industry has impacts, however it can work towards getting to be more sustainable. Sustainable tourism is about re-focusing and adjusting. A balance must be found in the middle of points, so that continuous changing, checking and planning guarantee that tourism can be overseen. This requires thinking long-term 10 or 20+ years and understanding that change is frequently cumulative, steady and irreversible. Economic, social and ecological aspects of sustainable development must incorporate the interests of all stakeholders including indigenous individuals, local communities, visitors, industry and government.

Events and give various profits to a group and tourism area including expanded appearance and consumption, diminished seasonality, repeat visitation, elevated regional awareness and word of mouth recommendation. They can also give the jolt to extra infrastructure development in the local area and building community pride. Understanding the inspirations of event attendees and event exhibitors is vital in developing an appropriate event or festival that aligns with community values. Potential event attendees and exhibitors may be affected by an extensive variety of elements including substance and topic, area and access, event reputation, perceived quality and value for money, safety and security and support facilities. It is also essential to understand and deal with the effects of events for nearby groups.

Events require physical settings in urban or provincial ranges, in forest, by streams, in open fields and purpose-built amenities. Media scope produced by events helps destinations fabricate certainty and a positive image in the tourism marketplace. Festivals are appealing to groups looking to address issues of urban configuration, local pride and character, heritage, conservation, urban reestablishment, employment generation, investment and financial improvement. There is a developing enthusiasm for the idea that festivals and events represent the host community’s sense of itself and sense of place. The arts and cultural industries, particularly through festivals and special events, can offer something for the tourism sector to endavor experience (Reiss, 1993).

Early Discoveries

In the first issue of “Festival Management & Event Tourism”, two papers (Uysal, Gahan & Martin, 1993; Mohr, Backman, Gahan & Backman, 1993) on South Carolina events were considered as “ a beginning stage for understanding the inspirations individuals have for attending festivals” Scott, 1996, p.122). Utilizing the 1991 Corn Festival as a study case, Utysal et al. decreased arrangement of 24 motivations to five elements.

In the same vein, Mohr et al. (1993) studied a hot air balloon festival and identified a comparable bunch of inspiration subscales, however in an alternative request. Motivations were found to be a capacity of guest sorts. Huge contrasts existed between first time and repeat visitors as for the inspiration measurement of “excitement” and “event curiosity”, and their relating fulfillment levels. In particular, the attendees who never went to other festivals yet were repeat visitors to the hot air balloon festival showed an extraordinary inspiration structure.

Penang Hot Air Balloon Fiesta 2015

Without precedent for Penang, a unique experience can be found at the Penang Hot Air Balloon Fiesta. There will be 15 hot air balloons over the two-day festival and they will float against the pleasant background of the UNESCO World Heritage Site of George Town. Other than the impressive hot air balloons, there will likewise be family-friendly activities such as fun inflatable playgrounds, imaginative workshops, photography rivalry and more! Penang is the place that festivities never end and in this year of festivals, the Fabulous February Fiesta sees Thaipusam, the Hot Air Balloon festival where visitors have the capacity to experience floating above strong ground alongside the effectively vigorous Chinese New Year celebrations and Tropfest SEA festival that showcases original short films.

In conjunction with Penang Hot Air Balloon Fiesta, the Penang Hot Air Balloon Fun Run held without precedent for Penang Padang Polo. The run will give members a chance to have a unique experience on running with balloon together witness the hot air balloons take off in Youth Park and Padang Polo. There will be eight local and three international flying balloons and additionally four tethered balloons. This event is open to all ages and will incorporate other side exercises such as fun inflatable playgrounds, imaginative workshops, photography rivalry, kite flying and more.

Problem statement

Nowadays, to be a host for any worldwide tourism event is no more a benefit for certain developing countries. The position is coveted by numerous developing countries in view of the upcoming advantages the country will get toward the end of the day. The accomplishment from facilitating any prominent tourism event will not only make the country proud yet it additionally expands the financial result and exceeds the political effects. Economic factor is one of the critical components in advancing prominent international events as the monetary measurement of event has dependably been connected to economic growth and making new outskirts for the economy.

As what we can see over the previous decade, Malaysia had been developing interest and intensive government investment in tourism industry (Ishak, 2005). However, other than all the positive impacts of facilitating event and festival, there are some negative impacts on the economy that need to be considered.

Why organise a sustainable event?

Organizing sustainable events diminishes their environmental impact, as well as advantage the main factors involved. Such profits include:

Financial advantages – Conserving energy, diminishing waste, purchasing local products and basically expanding less – all can bring out in money saved. In spite of an occasionally higher investment of assets to research new frameworks or put resources into new apparatuses, applying sustainability standards can bring immediate savings (e.g. by printing less material and having less waste to collect). They can likewise have long-term financial benefits, because of the more proficient utilization of assets and simply access to credit lines and sponsors.

Positive reputation and enhanced image – Promoting the way that you are arranging or facilitating a sustainable event will raise the profile of the event, draw in members that are getting to be progressively aware of sustainability issues and potentially connect the media’s consideration. It might likewise be increased in value by the general public as in addition partners and potential contributors.

Social advantages – If arranged and executed precisely, the event can give advantages to the region by creating jobs, empowering neighborhood, including local Small and Medium Enterprises (SME) and can advance better meeting expectations conditions and social incorporation. It can also act as a catalyst for empowering ecological and practical best practices over the locale, and also enhancing the relationship between the coordinator and the local community.

Opportunities for International Hot Air Balloon Festival

The possibility to connect with more than 250,000 visitors going to the event more than a four day period.
The huge number of side-events at the festival and throngs of guests to the festival which originate from all walks of makes it conceivable to streamline your organization to its intended interest.
Cost compelling method of connecting with your target market with a substantial return-on-investment (ROI).
The chance to coordinate your organization’s message with visitors’ experience.
The festival gives a gigantic chance to systems administration with different corporations, individuals to take your association on to more prominent statures.
The four-day period of the festival, including two weekend days (Saturday and Sunday) gives the possibility to connect with repeat visitors.
Sponsorship has been ended up being one of the strongest manifestations of publicizing and advertising to customers.
The chance to connect with potential clients directly with the collaboration between your organization and guests at the festival.
The chance to enliven your customers and corporate visitors with frienliness sponsorship bundles.
The chance to showcase and show your product or service to guests.

Sustainability in an event

Sustainability can be characterized numerous ways yet the fundamental thoughts and ideas continue as before: adjusting a developing economy, protection for the nature, and social responsibility, so they together prompt an enhanced personal satisfaction for us and future eras.

Event Location Selection:

At the point when choosing a venue, search for one that has embraced sustainability policies and practices. An area that already is endeavoring efforts that harmonize with your event objectives can just serve to benefit you in attaining to what you need. Identify areas that are easily accessible from public transportation. Event locations that can be accessed by walking; by transport, or train will ease not just the strain on nature caused by car pollution, additionally can be cost beneficial if your venue charges for parking.

Event Materials:

Utilize new media and electronic innovation at whatever point conceivable to eliminate paper utilization. Ideas include making a conference web site; offer electronic registration and confirmations; and promote utilizing the web or email. Be sure to survey which materials will be need for the participant packets. If information must be offered in print format use environmentally sound paper and make sure to print double-sided. Plus, incorporate data about sustainability objectives in the materials. Name identification holders can be reused from event to event. Ask your visitors to give back their name badge holders toward the end of your event and give a container to them.

Waste

Reduce, reuse and recycle as much as you can; your local authority or local community group might have the capacity to help; attempt to enlist a group of green volunteers who will help deal with the recycling during and after the event; verify you have enough bins and do not give them to get too full, otherwise people will just throw their waste into the nearest available container.

At the Venue:

Ask the office to give visible and available diminishment, reuse and recycling services for paper, metal, plastic and glass. Put recycling bins in prominent areas and make declarations during the event reminding your visitors to recycle and direct them to bins. Avoid utilizing dates on signage so that they can be utilized again for different events.

Transport

Encourage people to go to your event by public transport, to walk or cycle. Give a lot of secure bicycle parking and minimal parking for; if outside, you could utilize bike rickshaws for transporting merchandise around the site and consider utilizing local contractors so you are not driving marquees all the way across the country just because it might save you a few quid!

Getting ready for sustainable tourism development really alludes to environment protection planning and in that capacity incorporate a mixture of research activities and analysis before the choice for deciding the direction of the advancement. All these exercises are attempted so as to keep from the intensive utilization of assets in some particular territory, without previous care for the protection of the assets.

An indicated by Hall, sustainable development and the utilized term “conservation” clearly endeavours to review the conflicting quality positions regarding of the environment. The author depicts sustainable development as a “essentially disputed idea”. Sustainable development could be seen uniquely in contrast to everyone, and is effortlessly acknowledged by any group. An indicated by few authors, this idea is seen as the development and intensification of tourism, while others understand this idea as an alternative tourism to the advancement of mass tourism.

Planning and sustainable development can be investigated from two viewpoints, specifically:

In terms of the local community
In terms of the idea of the nature of tourism

The local community must be included in the planning procedure and the development of tourism, particularly when it comes to the advancement of those segments of the tourist community which will bring advantages for the community. Such planning methodology ought to be applied mainly.

We can enhance the sustainability of the event in order to make sure that next time while the event held at Penang, we will get more response from the local people as well as the tourists.

Conclusion

For a traveler destination to be sustainable, among other, it ought to make a solitary personality. You need to have a decent condition for residence which are not in “conflict” with other natural values, to emphasize the uniqueness of their way of life and heritage and depicts its population as very kindly. The extension and significance of tourism unmistakably demonstrates that it is insufficient just to develop new types of alternative tourism, regarding minimizing unfavorable impacts and build positive effects of tourism development. The whole tourism sector must be developed and must be managed with it thus does not destroy the natural and socio-cultural environment, it is a commitment and responsibility of the tourism economy of anywhere in the world.

Sustainable development can only work effectively when four of its constituent components, economic, social, cultural and environmental parts have roughly equivalent significance and strength and conditioning and interconnection without the domination of any part of these components. Sustainable tourism development basically relies on upon the capacity of the environment to guarantee a stable and lasting basis for development.