Travel Agency Online Expansion Options

Slide 1 – Introduction

The individual giving the presentation is called John. The focus of this presentation is to consider the options for expansion online for a travel agency business that has traditionally operated from a high street shop.

During this presentation the aim is to consider the reasons and potential scope for an internet-based travel agency. The presentation will then move on to consider the types of products that would be best suited for the Open Skies Travel Agency given its current strategic position within the market. Once the scope and positioning has been established, the presentation will move on to look at the potential costs and benefits of the possible expansion and change of strategy. This will include consideration of both the financial and practical implications with implementing the new online venture[1].

Slide 2 – Online Trends

Despite the current economic trends, the travel industry and more specifically the online purchasing of travel services has boomed, in recent years. The amount of money being spent online in relation to travel services has increased by 12 percent in 2007 and it is anticipated that this trend will continue between 2007 and 2012. This is not surprising when all factors are considered[2].

The travel sector is vast with multiple suppliers offering a range of different products which lend themselves perfectly to online selling. As travel is perishable (i.e. it cannot be stored and used at a later date), companies will be keen to ensure that all seats on flights and all hotel rooms are fully occupied. This leads to incremental and ever changing prices which require immediate update and these are facilities from which online travel agencies benefit.

Package holidays sold through the high street travel agency have reduced by approximately 20%. This means that traditional agents such as Open Skies must embrace these new trends in order to maintain their market share. Correspondingly, however, the number of package holidays booked online has increased by 19%, showing that the market is still strong; it is simply the purchasing patterns that have changed[3].

The scope online is much greater and this is widely recognised by many tour operators. In fact, travel services and agencies currently make up around a quarter of all online advertising, showing that there is an increasing recognition of the power and extent of the online travel sector.

When considering high internet users, i.e. those who use the internet for at least 16 hours per week, 66% of these people have booked holidays or travel services online[4]. A further 10% of people will look for information about travel on the internet, before then going on to purchase the products in a traditional high street environment[5].

Slide 3 – Product Mix

One of the major benefits that internet users cite about using the internet to plan holidays is that it allows for dynamic packages. This means that various flight options can be looked at alongside different accommodation options. By allowing for this degree of flexibility, customers are able to create their own packages that are individual to their own specific needs[6].

Open Skies is a customer-friendly travel agency that has a high reputation for offering excellent personal advice to its local customers. This unique selling point need not be lost by having an online presence. Although there are several large online based companies such as Thomas Cook that have the advantage of a much larger network of offices and suppliers, they do not have the same personal relationships with their clients. Open Skies needs to look at the way in which it can capitalise on its added value customer service, while also allowing customers to investigate their various options for creating their own dynamic packages.

Open Skies is a locally based company and will physically remain so. Therefore, the main products being offered online will be no different from those currently offered in the high street. The travel industry is fiercely competitive in terms of pricing, which means that local high street travel agents such as Open Skies have to add value to their product mix by ensuring that they offer additional security and advice to customers. Having a website is an opportunity to capture a wider range of customers who can then contact the agency directly to finalise their booking. For this reason, it would seem prudent that the main focus of the Open Skies website should be to have an informative online presence that encourages customers to believe that Open Skies offers genuine additional value to their travelling experience[7]. This will enable Open Skies to set itself apart from the larger online travel agencies that merely offer cheaper and price competitive travelling options.

Slide 4 – Costs and Benefits

Setting up the initial infrastructure to manage the website will require a degree of additional expenditure. There will be the need to purchase computing equipment to run the website software as well as the need to design, manage and regularly update the website. A basic website is relatively cheap to establish and can be updated and maintained with relative ease. As Open Skies already has a computer system in place and already makes use of the email system, it is possible that the expertise and infrastructure to manage the website is already in-house. This possibility should not be overlooked before outsourcing the tasks[8].

Additional staffing will be necessary. Firstly, it will be necessary to maintain up to date and accurate information on the website, if customers are going to be able to trust and respect Open Skies Travel Agency. With increased traffic on to the website, it will also be necessary to ensure that there are staff members prepared to respond to booking requests within an acceptable timeframe.

Users of the internet are much more instantaneous in their needs and expectations. If Open Skies is to maintain its current position as offering value added products, then it will need to adapt its structure to be able to respond to this faster pace of trading. This will inevitably mean a larger, more flexible workforce[9].

However, this expansion will be funded by the considerable increase in the number of customers and trade that will pass through the website. By establishing a web presence, Open Skies will potentially gain customers from across the country and even internationally. Customers are no longer limited by geography and this will naturally be reflected in the volume of custom that will come to Open Skies. This additional influx of customers will not be reflected with a similar increase in costs of servicing these customers. As bookings will be largely done online and over the phone, there will be no need to have additional office space (except to house the additional staff). Therefore, the returns from these additional customers will be greater and will continue to increase in line with the number of customers that are gained[10].

Slide 5 – Strategy into Action

Whilst it is clear that there are benefits to Open Skies from obtaining an online presence, it will require careful planning if the reputation of the company is not to suffer. Firstly, Open Skies will need to ensure that the infrastructure and back-up procedures are in place. Customers will need to trust that the systems are accurate, efficient and secure; any breaches in this respect would lead to a loss of trust which would impact on the value of the company.

The current workforce will need to be considered in terms of how the individual members of staff can adapt to this new way of working. It is almost certain that additional staff will be required to manage the increasing number of customers and the immediacy of the demands of online customers. This increase in workforce will need to be managed carefully so as to ensure that the costs of the expansion are evenly matched by the increase in revenue[11].

Continuous monitoring and updating will be necessary to ensure that the information is accurate and that Open Skies is making the most out of its new online arm.

Slide 6 – Conclusions

Online travel agencies are experiencing a continuing boom, despite the current economic downturn. For a company such as Open Skies, gaining an online presence is vital, if it is to maximise the potential in the market. Depending on the current infrastructure in place, the costs of set up and maintenance could be relatively little. Security and back-up processes will be important, if it is to maintain its current high level of customer service and reputation.

New staff will almost certainly be required to deal with the increase in trade and to continue to offer the high level of customer service that it currently offers. The need to go online is clear and Open Skies needs to embrace the changing trends. However, embracing new, online technologies needs to be planned carefully so that the value added services can be maintained and customers will be prepared to pay more for these services, meaning that Open Skies will not have to compete with the low prices offered by the larger organisations.

Bibliography

Bharadwaj, Prashanth Nagendra, Soni, Ramesh G., E-Commerce Usage and Perception of E-Commerce Issues among Small Firms: Results and Implications from an Empirical Study, Journal of Small Business Management, 45, 2007

Buhalis, Dimitrios, ETourism: Information Technology for Strategic Tourism Management, Pearson Education, 2003

Duray, Dave, Vering, Matthias, The E-Business Workplace: Discovering the Power of Enterprise Portals, John Wiley, 2001

Frew, Andrew J., Information and Communication Technologies in Tourism 2004: Proceedings of the International Conference in Cairo, Egypt, 2004, Springer, 2004

Goeldner, Charles R., Brent Ritchie, J.R., Tourism: Principles, Practices, Philosophies, John Wiley and Sons, 2006

Kozak, Metin, Andreu, Luisa, Progress in Tourism Marketing, Elsevier, 2006

Rayman-Bacchus, L., Molina, A., Internet-Based Tourism Services: Business Issues and Trends, Futures, 33, 2001

Tate, Will, Rosen, Cheryl, Frame a Travel Strategy: Find the Delicate Balance between Avoiding Travel Costs and Keeping Travelers Productive, Journal of Accountancy, 199, 2005

Watkins, William M., Technology and Business Strategy: Getting the Most out of Technological Assets, Quorum Books, 1998

2002 Mori Survey commissioned by Association of British Travel Agents (ABTA)

Transportation System Analysis Of Sri Lanka Tourism Essay

1. Canal transportation system was the most effective and popular transportation system in the world as well as in Sri Lanka before the road transportation by vehicles. During Dutch era they developed advance canal transportation system and used very effective and efficient way to fulfill their requirements.

2. As a result of the industrialization, automobile industry and road network systems developed concurrently all over the world and it affected Sri Lanka as well. With that the road transportation became very popular. Due to the fact that it is very efficient compare to canal transportation and ability to reach any required destinations.

3. In the same time population of the world also increased gradually. Due to this people’s life style became complex and requirements increased. In the mean time urbanization was taken place with industrialization. This has affected to Sri Lanka and caused greater influence after the introduction of open economy. Because of these reasons road network system reached its maximum capacity. After that development and expansion of roads were impossible especially in Colombo city area. But vehicle density on to the same existing roads was become more and more. As a result of this, road traffic increased drastically. This caused wastage of time on roads directly affecting productivity of our country.

4. Answer to time wastage on roads was introduction of canal transportation system with existing infrastructure. And how to initialize this facility in scientific way will be discussed in this research. Also it was evident that the existing canal system could be utilized in very efficient way to afore said requirement. Finally it was found out that wastage of time in Colombo city area can be minimized by using existing canal system with some limitation.

III
CHAPTER I
INTRODUCTION

5. Thousands of people used to come from various places of the country to Colombo for different purposes. They waste lot of valuable and useful time on the way due to limitation of transport facilities and complex road network system existing at present.

25. The available highways are not able cater new coming vehicle to the roads and leads to wastage of time up to greatest extended. These roads are highly jammed during office and school time. Therefore it has to be eased up by canal transportation to reduce time and spending minimal expense and available resources. It is important to make the best use of existing infrastructure in preference to expansion, wherever practicable.

6. During recent past Sri Lanka had good water bone transport system available in Colombo area for transport men and material. This was very much significant during Dutch era. Therefore, it is evident that this method can be utilized even at present days with little modification to existing water ways.

7. In this research it is expected to prove that traffic conjunction in Colombo, can be over come by using existing canals system and can be minimize time wastage on roads. By using this existing canal system effective and efficient way, we can reduce the time for transportation in Colombo city.

CHAPTER II
METHODOLOGY
STUDY AREA

8. The study area is identified and methodology employed for data collection to carry out to research on field visits and investigations, boat rides and collect relevant data, talking to Naval Personnel, people around the canals and bus passengers, data from the Navy.

9. The study area is demarcated from Kiralapone canal which starts from Diyawanna Oya and feeding from Kotte canal. This Kiralapone canal flows and diverts into two and created Heen Ela from Rajagirya, then 1km down below it is created one more branch and made Dematagoda canal and Kiralapone canal flows further and again making two branches at Havelock town and continue to Wellawatta and other one continue till Dehiwalla. The research was conducted by using cleared area of Wellawatta to Nawala canal. During site visits in two occasions, the following details are gathered and most of the measurements taken the Naval team available at the Canals. The Salient features are as follows.

a. Length – From Wellawatta to Nawala – 1.8km

b. Width – 9 meters (mean Value)

c. Depth – 2.1 meters at high tide condition

d. Special feature – At rains no tide difference take place

SCOPE

10. The canal transportation will reduce time and lead to ease up the road traffic at city centre, minimize pollution and helps to reduce respiratory deceases, attracts tourists to the city and make new ventures like boat building industry.

11. This congested canals should be converted into scenic beauty for the city, avoid flood taking place at city centre and protect flora and fauna belongs to these area. The recreational purposes also can be achieved and it will support make health people at the city. This is one of the great opportunities to develop a social integration plan to evaluate living personals close to the canal area by them selves to value their life style. Another added advantage is to promote fishing among the people around the area.

PROBLEM STATEMENT

12. The available highways and road network system unable to cater new coming vehicle to the roads and leads to create heavy road traffic and hence it has happened to waste lots of time at the Colombo City.

HYPOTHESIS

13. Time factor can be reduced by using canal transportation spending minimal expense, with available resources and the best use of existing infrastructure.

GENERAL OBJECTIVES

14. During the research it is expected to find out that usage of canal for transportation will reduce time to move point A to point B, where canals are available.

SPECIFIC OBJECTIVES

15. As a result of this canal transportation will reduce traffic congestion, improve environment condition either side of the canal, develop the boat industry and related other employment opportunities and improvement of this canal will help the reducing the flood affect in Colombo city.

CHAPTER III
BACKGROUND

16. The good olden days canals were used for cultivation and irrigation work. The first recorded canal was built in Mesopotamia circa 4000 BC or modern day Iraq and Syria. The Indus Valley Civilization in Pakistan and North India (circa 2600 BC) had sophisticated irrigation and storage systems developed, including the reservoirs built at Garner in 3000 BC. In Egypt, canals date back at least to the time of Pepi I Meryre (reigned 2332-2283 BC), who ordered a canal built to bypass the cataract on the Nile near Aswan.

17. In ancient China, large canals for river transport were established as far back as the Warring States (481-221 BC), the longest one of that period being the Hong Gou (Canal of the Wild Geese), which according to the ancient historian Sima Qian connected the old states of Song, Zhang, Chen, Cai, Cao, and Wei. By far the longest canal was the Grand Canal of China, still the longest canal in the world today. It is 1,794 kilometres (1,115 miles) long and was built to carry the Emperor Yang Guang between Beijing and Hangzhou. The project began in 605 and was completed in 609, although much of the work combined older canals, the oldest section of the canal existing since at least 486 BC. Even in its narrowest urban sections it is rarely less than 30 metres (98 ft) wide [1] .

18. Canals were important for the industrial development. That’s why the greatest stimulus to canal systems came from the Industrial Revolution with its need for cheap transport of raw materials and manufactured items.

19. In Europe, particularly Britain and Ireland, and then in the young United States and the Canadian colonies, inland canals preceded the development of railroads during the earliest phase of the Industrial Revolution. The opening of the Sankey Canal in 1757, followed by the Bridgewater Canal in 1761, which halved the price of coal in Liverpool and Manchester, respectively, triggered a period of “canal mania” in Britain so that between 1760 and 1820 over one hundred canals were built.

20. The history of canal transportation in Colombo City was started in Dutch era. It was exclusively used to transport goods from hinterland to coastal area by Paru (Small Vessel driven by manpower). This tremendous and environmental friendly transportation system is still used some areas of the country in smaller scale.

21. After industrial revolution auto mobile transportation system became popular and with that development of road network system also took place. Presently number of vehicles increased but road network system became limited due to space problem. This causes the traffic congestion especially in Colombo city and as a result, people waste their valuable and useful time in between their destinations. To overcome this problem it can be used existing canal system for transportation men and material in Colombo city.

22. Except Kirullapana – Wellawatta canal, rest of the canals are still being used for water draining system of the Colombo city. However, recent past none of these canals have being properly maintained. Presently Sri Lanka Navy is undertaking to clean the Wellawatta canal, Dehiwella canal and Dematagoda canal.

23. The “Japan Jabara” is the main dilemma which need permanent solution and should be removed 100% from the canals. If not it may leads to suspend operation due sudden engine failures [2] .

24. The passenger transportation by boats in canal will reduce time and road traffic congestion at Colombo city. Also this may help cargo transportation by canal reducing road traffic in the city centre.

Lt WPHE WIJAYALATH
Index No : 10680
CHAPTER IV
DATA

25. The available highways are not able cater new coming vehicle to the roads and leads to wastage of time up to greatest extended. These roads are highly jammed during office and school time. Therefore it has to be eased up by canal transportation to reduce time and spending minimal expense and available resources. It is important to make the best use of existing infrastructure in preference to expansion, wherever practicable.

26. In Colombo city traffic congestion depends upon place to place. Therefore it is important that identify those roads and get the overall picture about traffic congestion and use available canal system to minimize the time in effective way.Traffic congestion roads are identified and details indicated down below.

a. Galle road congestion is intensified after Moratuwa and stagnated after Dehiwala

b. High level road congestion is intensified after Maharagama and stagnated after Nugagoda.

c. Low level road congestion is intensified after Kaduwela and stagnated after Kotikawatta.

d. Kaduwela road congestion is intensified after Malaba and stagnated after Battaramulla.

e. Kandy road congestion is intensified after Kadawatha and stagnated after Kiribathgoda.

f. Negambo road congestion is intensified after Welisara and stagnated after Wattle.

29. Traffic data

Traffic data within the canal corridor was taken from Road Development Authority (RDA) and it is tabulated below.

LOCATION
Daily Traffic
2002
2003
2005
2010(projected)
Domino’s Pizza Sri J’pura Rd

59408

61321

68957

85487

Open University Nawala Rd
29734
30660
34548
44648
Wall Tiles Narahenpita

20234

20770

23903

32705

Apollo Hospital Baseline Rd

23849

24632

30059

36813

Weaving Mills Havelock Rd

48968

50273

56241

67309

Wellawatte Bridge Galle Rd
51298
52937
56941
60311

Table 1

Chart 1

39. Time taken to travel from Wellawatta to Diyawanna by various vehicles, within special time periods during a day.

VEHICLE
SPECIAL TIME PERIODS OF THE DAY
0630-0830hrs
0830-1600hrs
1600-1800hrs
Public transport(bus)
1hrs 15min
1hrs
1hrs 30min
Official transport(van)

45min

35min

50min

Personnel vehicle(car)

45min

35min

50min

Motor bike

35min

30min

40min

41. Time taken to travel from Wellawatta to Nawala by various vehicles, within special time periods during a day.

VEHICLE
SPECIAL TIME PERIODS OF THE DAY
0630-0830hrs
0830-1600hrs
1600-1800hrs
Public transport(bus)
1hrs
50min
1hrs 10min
Official transport(van)

50min

40min

1hrs

Personnel vehicle(car)

50min

40min

1hrs

Motor bike

40min

30min

45min

CANALS AND DETAILS

30. Wellawatte Canal – The canal 1.8 km in length, and 25 meters wide and the banks are strengthening by Gabion Boxes, Steel sheets and Masonry wall. The open side to the sea is protected by two jetties preventing the formation of a sandbar. Some times canal mouth is stuck by sand due monsoons rains and wind. However it is not created flood hazard for the city centre. On other way this is the most important path way to discharge and regulate water when flood occurred at the City. The canal passes through a residential area and giving fabulous scenic beauty to residence over there. This is fully cleaned and dredged by the Navy and transportation is taking place by the Naval Dingy Boats. Details are as follows.

a. Morning starts from Wellawatta – 0730 hrs to 0930 hrs

b. Evening starts at Open University, Nawala – 1600 hrs to 1800 hrs

c. FGD (Fiber Glass Dingy) is propelled by 40 Horse Power of Out Board Motors (OBM) using to transport 08 passengers at a time.

d. 2.4 liters of fuel burns for the Journey

e. Depth of water at centre – 2.1 meters at high tide

f. People around area are highly supporting the project and putting garbage to the canal is very minimal at the moment.

35. Dehiwalla Canal – The canal 3.7 km in length, and 10 meters wide and the banks are strengthening by Gabion Boxes, Steel sheets and Masonry wall. The surrounding area is highly polluted and after putting tremendous effort by the Navy 3.2 km totally cleaned up to 01st July 2010 and rest of the distance in progress. Details are as follows.

a. Depth of water at centre – 2.7 meters at high tide (as per 01st July 2010)

b. Cleaning is taking placed from both the side of the canal.

Banks should be strengthen in some places

38. Dematagoda Canal -The canal 8.6 km in length, and 10 meters wide and the banks are strengthening by Gabion Boxes, Steel sheets and Masonry wall. This is already cleaned up to Royal Park by the Navy.

TIME TAKEN TO TRAVEL BY BOAT
FROM
TO
TIME DURATION

Wellawatta

Nawala

15 min

Wellawatta

Diyawanna(Battaramulla)

30 min

40. Approximately Rs. 26.00 will cost to travel from Wellawatta to Diyawanna (Baththaramulla) and Wellawatta to Nawala Rs. 22.00 by public transport (bus) according to present condition.

DETAILS ABOUT CANALS

Under mentioned details of canals also have to consider to improve time and to continue with transportation.

31. Work Scope and Action Plan for the Rehabilitation / Maintenance of Wellawatta Canal

32. General Details are as follows.

a. Total length : 1.8 km

b. Side wall height from water line – 5?-7?

c. Depth of water at center – 1 meter at low tide condition

d. Width – 8 to 10 meters

e. Middle of the canal itself and surrounding area was highly polluted and congested and cleaned by the Sri Lanka Navy.

34. Renovating and cleaning is in progressed and contributing lot from the Navy.

a. Vegetation is already removed by the Navy and cleaned the surroundings more 90%.

Japan Jabara was removed and two branches of Bodi trees at the banks should be sharpened up to avoid disturbance while boats moving.

Dredging should be done very sensitive and systematic way considering tide factor.

d. Gabion boxes are not the must for each and every place of the banks and ensure to get expert advice from the civil engineers on this matter and renovation should be done accordingly.

36. Work Scope and Action Plan for the Rehabilitation / Maintenance of Dehiwala Canal General Details are as follows.

a. Total length – 3.7 km

b. Side wall height from water line – 5?-7?

c. Depth of water at centre – 2? – 3?

d. Width – 8 to 10 meters

e. Middle of the canal itself and surrounding area is highly polluted and congested and Navy is almost cleaned 3.2 km up to 01st July 2010.

37. Renovating and cleaning is in progressed by Navy team.

Need to be removed vegetation at banks.

Transfer removed vegetation from the site.

c. Take out and transfer floating garbage at the middle of the canal by Floating JCB (Backhoe loader) or Pontoon JCB.

Dredging should be done very sensitive and systematic way considering tide factor.

Gabion boxes are not the must for each and every place of the banks and ensure to get expert advice from the civil engineers on this matter and renovation should be done accordingly.

MISCELLANEOUS FACTORS

26. The boat and height factor of the bridges to be highly considered when concidering time and required to go through following tabulated details.

Bridge

Minimum Vertical Clearance in meters

Rainy Days

At High Tide

At Low Tide

Ethul Kotte Pizza

0.9

2.56

2.85

Water Line Kotte

Above 3 meters

Above 4-5 meters

Above 4-5 meters

Open University Gate No -01

0.5

1.7

2

Open University Gate No -02

0.4

1.8

2.1

Railway Bridge

Above 3 meters

Above 5 meters

Above 5 meters

Baseline Road at Polhangoda

0.6 meters

2

2.2

Havlock Town Bridge

0.8

2.1

2.3

Duplication Road Bridge

2

3

3.3

Gall Road

Above 3 meters

Above 4 meters

Above 4 meters

Note – This was for Fiber Glass Dingy and More capacity boat clearance will be lesser than this and give endanger for passengers in high tide conditions. In rainy days this will able to work out.

BUS PASSENGERS INTERVIEW

43. The bus passengers interview were carried out to identify bus passengers travel patterns and transferring locations including office and school time. And also to whether they are ready take up new transport mode or not. The details were gathered from people at the bus stops and the stands.

Survey Location
Number of Passengers
Remarks

Wellawatta

5

Ready to go by boat

Havlock Town

10

Ready to go by boat

Nawala

10

Ready to go by boat

Rajagiriya

5

Ready to go by boat

Battaramulla

5

Ready to go by boat

Base line road

6

Ready to go by boat

PRESENT DEVELOPMENTS

25. The Sri Lanka Navy is started the commuter service for Open University students for free of cost by using Fibre Glass Dingy from Wellawatta to Nawala. It is already made huge impact to the society and urged people to think on this fabulous environmental friendly transportation service. Due more response from the people of the society, the Navy is trying to enhanced commuter service introducing more capacity for this event. The Navy engineers were already trailed 21 number passenger capacity boats with three different types of (Out Board Motor) OBM and identified the most suitable one. The trail details are as follows.

Out Board Motors

115hp

75hp

40hp

No of Passengers

21

21

21

Approx. Time taken (From Nawala to Wellawatte)
17 Min
15 Min
15 Min

Fuel consumption

6 ltrs

4 ltrs

3 ltrs

Average cost (Rs)
35.71
24.76
18.00

TABLE-1

CHAPTER V
ANALYSIS

25. According to the hypothesis time taken by canal transportation suppose to be lesser than road transportation. Following data can be use to analyse the condition.

From Wellawatta to Diyawanna (Battaramulla)
Public transport(bus)
1hrs 15min
1hrs
1hrs 30min

Average time taken by bus = (1hrs 15min + 1hrs + 1hrs 30min)

3

= 1 hrs 15min

Average time taken by boat = 30 min

Time difference = 1hrs 15 min – 30 min

= 45 min
======
From Wellawatta to Nawala
Public transport(bus)
1hrs
50min
1hrs 10min

Average time taken by bus = (1hrs + 50 min + 1hrs 10min)

3

= 1 hrs

Average time taken by boat = 15 min

Time difference = 1hrs- 15min

= 45 min
======

Transportation In Malaysian Context

Unlike most other Asian cities, driving is the main mode of commuting in Kuala Lumpur. Hence, every part of the city is well connected by highways. As the capital of Malaysia, Kuala Lumpur has a comprehensive road network that leads to the rest of Peninsular Malaysia.

Public transport in Kuala Lumpur and the rest of the Klang Valley covers a variety of transport modes such as bus, rail and taxi. Based on the article “Prasarana to buy trains worth RM1.2bil” by The Star in 2006, despite efforts to promote usage of public transportation, utilisation rates are low as only 16 percent of the population used public transportation. Rail transport in Kuala

Lumpur encompasses light rail, rapid transit, monorail and commuter rail.

Kuala Lumpur is served by three separate rail systems which meet in the city and extend towards other parts of the Klang Valley, namely RapidKL Light Rail Transit, KL Monorail, and KTM Komuter. These lines have underground, elevated or at-grade stations around the city. The main rapid transit hub is KL Sentral which facilitates as an interchange station for the rail systems. RapidKL is the operator of two light rail lines in Kuala Lumpur and the Klang Valley, namely Ampang Line and Kelana Jaya Line which connect Kuala Lumpur to its satellite city, Petaling Jaya.

The issue of what transport system in Kuala Lumpur City Centre and Petaling Jaya has today is, people are too lazy. They are lazy to walk so they decided to park their car as close as they can to their destination. They are lazy to find car parks so they park at road shoulders, causing congestion to the drivers and also an obstacle for pedestrians and cyclists. They are lazy to walk a few miles to the nearest LRT station to go to city centre and opt to go there by car instead, despite the massive traffic especially during early morning and late evening. But they are okay with it. Because no matter how they said they hate the traffic, they would still go out using their cars, and put up hours on the road, wasting precious times.

So why would these people, simply put up with the traffic that they hate so much and deceiving the fact that they have the multi-million Ringgit worth of PUTRA LRT, which is one of the most advanced rapid transit systems in the world, and at the time of construction was the world’s longest driverless metro. Because if they travel with LRT, it may not stop approximately at their destination. There’s this term, faced by the LRT users, which are called first mile and last mile. And Malaysian hates this. So they prefer to sit in their little air-conditioned steel boxes which move slower than a bike during peak hours. Because of people’s love for their cars, finding a solution to the question of access to these buildings, to avoid being surrounded by a sea of parked cars, is therefore an important part of the problem.

According to Brian Richards in his book Future Transport in the cities (1960), he summed up the approaches that being used towards dealing with traffic problems in the cities by the authorities. These approaches are:

There is a serious and effective grass roots opposition in most countries to more urban road-building on the basis that more roads mean more traffic.

Within residential areas there has been the development of traffic calming and town yards.

Controls on parking within city centres has effectively reduced and controlled the amount of traffic entering cities.

Planning laws are banning more out of town shopping centres or random car-oriented developments.

Public transport has been maintained and improved, without which any of the other measures would be effective.

Although these measures were introduced, there are problems with the continuing growth of cars, the political strength of car lobby and the desire for people to own and use their own cars. In this selfish world, people love their cars. It gives them a retreat from the real world which partly accounts for their popularity. It provides them with a degree of comfort and privacy for the user, which public transportation did not have. It allows the user to go straight to their destination without having the hassle to change stations or switch mediums like public transportations do. As a result, these cars caused the most problems to city life. It is now that alternative ways must be sought to provide transportation systems that are good enough for people to opt out for it and leave their cars for major trips like going back to their kampung and road trips.

Another reason that makes people opt for cars is the lack connectivity of LRT in Petaling Jaya area. Realising the problem, the Government of Malaysia is now working on a Malaysia Rapid Transit project. The proposal was announced in June 2010 and was approved by the government of Malaysia in December 2010. The newly-launched Land Public Transport Commission (SPAD) will oversee and coordinate the entire MRT development in terms of cost and viability, alignment and integration, and will play the role of regulator once the project is completed. National infrastructure company, Syarikat Prasarana Negara would ultimately own and operate the MRT. A First Class Land Public Transport System Contributes to Social and Economic Development

Historical data in Malaysia and around the world indicates a correlation between GDP and mobility growth – increased population, employment and economic activity always translate into higher mobility requirements. In this context, a first class land public transport system is especially important given our immediate aims as outlined in the ETP: 6 per cent annual growth and 3.3 million new jobs by 2020. Travel vehicle demand grew from 13 million trips per day in 1991 to 40 million in 2010. Projections point towards this trend continuing in Malaysia, with the figure expected to reach a staggering 133 million in 2030.With urbanization expected to reach 70 per cent by 2020, there is a need to enable an efficient and smooth flow of people, which in turn also enables the growth of new urban areas through increased connectivity.

Beyond satisfying a growing demand, land public transport plays a catalytic role in accelerating and shaping economic growth. Provision of effective public transport services has the potential of opening up new growth clusters, enhancing the attractiveness of existing clusters, and driving urban revitalization. And there are other positive spill-over effects of increased economic activity built upon an advanced land public transport network – it yields employment and business opportunities in local economies by having synergies with other industries like advertisement, retail and property development.

Malaysia has seen a surge in ownership of cars and motorcycles across the country, which is an indication of our country’s increased prosperity, but although private vehicles contribute to the mobility solution, sustainable and inclusive social and economic development cannot be overly dependent on private vehicles. As a general rule, public transportation is more affordable and mitigate traffic congestion as well as the attendant pollution problems caused by private vehicles on the road. All this puts tremendous pressure on the land public transport system to meet the mobility and connectivity requirements closely linked to the social and economic development agenda.

Public Transport Masterplan which was being proposed recently.

MY Rapid Transit (MRT) is a proposed three-line Mass Rapid Transit system in the Klang Valley. The MRT will be integrated with the LRT, Monorail, KTM Komuter and intra/ intercity buses and will help alleviate traffic congestion by increasing the number of people using public transport in the city centre. When operational, the system targets to carry 400,000 commuters daily. In 2020, it is estimated that the population in the Klang Valley will grow from the current 6 million to 10 million. This means that if every single trip is on private transport, the roads in the Klang Valley will be in gridlock. An effective public transport system is the only solution to this as it can move people in masses and it has an optimal usage of space to carry the same number of people.

Rail-based public transport, such as the MRT, LRT or commuter train, always forms the backbone of a city’s public transport system as it can carry large numbers of people and can move people quickly because it is not hindered by road traffic. Klang Valley currently has a shortage of rail-based public transport coverage compared with most public transport-oriented cities. It has less than 20km per million population. Public transport-oriented cities such as

Singapore, Hong Kong and London have more than 40km of rail per million population. With the MRT, it will boost the rail-based public transport coverage in Klang Valley significantly.

The first line of this project is the Sungai Buloh – Kajang Line (SBK Line), which stretches 51km and have 31 stations. The line will pass through the city centre and will serve densely populated suburban areas including Kota Damansara, Mutiara Damansara, Bandar Utama, Taman Tun Dr Ismail, Bukit Damansara, Cheras, Bandar Tun Hussein Onn and Balakong, with a total catchment population of 1.2 million people. Out of the 31 stations, 16 stations will be equipped with Park and Ride facilities:

Sungai Buloh

Maluri

Pusat Bandar Damansara

Kota Damansara

Taman Bukit Mewah

Bandar Tun Hussein Onn

Taman Industri Sungai Buloh

Plaza Phoenix

Taman Koperasi

Taman Tun Dr Ismail

Taman Suntex

Saujana Impian

Seksyen 16

Taman Cuepacs

Kajang

Works on the MRT SBK line has begun in July 2011 and is expected to be completed by 2017.

The Klang Valley MRT will not only significantly increase the current inadequate rail network but will also serve to integrate the existing rail networks and expectantly alleviate the severe traffic congestion in the Greater KL metropolitan area. The new MRT system is to radically improve and transform Kuala Lumpur’s poor and sorely inadequate public transportation coverage and to propel the Greater Kuala Lumpur metropolitan area to be on par with that of a developed city. The new lines will increase Greater Kuala Lumpur’s rapid rail network from 15 km per million people in 2010 to 40 km per million people once completed. The proposal also envisages a fivefold increase in rail ridership, in line with the government’s target for public transport usage in the Klang Valley of 40% by 2020 from 18% in 2009. The Red Line will go from Damansara in the northwest to Serdang in the southeast of Kuala Lumpur, While the Green Line will be from Kepong in the northeast to Cheras in the southwest. Both lines will pass through the city of Kuala Lumpur and converge at the Dataran Perdana (Kuala Lumpur International Financial District) near Jalan Tun Razak.

The underground MRT Line 2 looping around the city of Kuala Lumpur will serve an important role to tie-up and integrate the currently disjointed LRT and monorail lines. Under the Greater KL/ Klang Valley Land Public Transport Master Plan draft, MRT 2 would cater for orbital movements around Kuala Lumpur, provide linkages to existing areas such as the Mid Valley, Mont Kiara, Sentul Timur and Ampang, as well as proposed major developments identified in the DBKL City Plan such as Matrade. The master plan draft says the circle line would be developed in at least two phases – The first, comprising 29km with 22 stations – would be the western and southern sections linking Ampang with Mid Valley, Matrade and Sentul. The second phase (12km with 8 stations) would link Ampang with Sentul Timur, completing the northeastern sector of the circle line. The master plan also says MRT 3 or the north-south

(NS) line would cater for a north-west corridor of the Greater Klang Valley, linking developing areas such as Sungai Buloh, Kepong and Selayang with the eastern half of the city centre (including Kampung Baru and Kuala Lumpur International Financial District), which was forecast to be overloaded in the future.

Sustainably Enhancing Connectivity

Public transport has an important role to play in Malaysia’s aspirations to develop holistically and sustainably. As populations in urban centres get denser, the problems of congestion and pollution will rise. Proper planning of public transport and land-use are essential to mitigate the ill-effects of population growth in urban areas and to make city-life a pleasant, healthy and environmentally sustainable one.

Under the Final Draft of Malaysia’s National Land Public Transport Masterplan, chapter 3.7 ABOUT BETTER QUALITY OF LIFE states that policy 3.7.1 is to promote healthy living.

One of the indirect benefits of using land public transport systems is that they indirectly promote healthier lifestyles. This is because when the public transportation hubs are well connected, the first and last miles’ of a public transport user’s journey are typically travelled by foot, rather than in a car or on a motorcycle.

The stretch between the public transport station and the users’ origin or destination is crucial to reduce the barrier of using public transport in the first place.

• Pedestrian facilities improvement to bus stops and railway stations will be encouraged as part of the local authority development plans. Walking structures should be defined around transit stops to increase the convenience of those locations. To enhance the accessibility of KLaˆYs public transport network, a target has been set of having 75 per cent of the population live within 400 meters of a public transport stop.

In addition to ensuring ease of access to the major transport nodes for pedestrians, fitting in cyclist-friendly infrastructure such as bicycle parking facilities and bicycle lanes will make it easier and more attractive for people to ride to the stations or interchanges. It will also increase the catchment area of these bus interchanges or rail stations as people living further away would not be put off by having to walk a distance to take public transport.”

– policy 3.7.1 : Final Draft of MalaysiaaˆYs National Land Public Transport Masterplan

First, let’s take Singapore as a reference in terms of public transportation usage and connectivity. It is easy to take Singapore as a reference to this study because of its climate is the same as Malaysia and taking Kuala Lumpur City Centre and Petaling Jaya as a place of study, it is almost similar to Singapore in terms of urbanization. Then again, how did Singapore able to encourage their people to use their public transportation? Although the approach of Singaporean government is not through cycling, however, it is still beneficial to review their integrated transport system and compare with our own transportation system.

In terms of connectivity, public transportation in Singapore is highly connected all over its main town to its suburbs. Since Singapore is a small town with a high density of population, it is possible to do so. Furthermore, because of its size, it is possible to enforce restrictions on private car ownership this, curbing congestion and pollution. To own a car, one must pay duty one and a half times the market value and bid for a Singapore Certificate of Entitlement which comes in very limited numbers. Therefore, according to Singapore’s department of statistics, only 1 very 10 people own a car. Within the absence of private cars, Singaporeans seems to live normally and manage their time effectively, to catch up with the public transportation’s schedule.

Singaporeans usually travels either by bus, taxis, trains, or maybe a combination and some of them might cycle. Although according to Tan Mike Tze in a chapter of the book THE JOURNEY: Singapore’s Land Transportation Story (2005), he says Singaporeans does not like the idea of pedal-powered bicycle as it is too hot and humid, the traffic is dangerous to the cyclist and so on. Also, generally bicycles are used by construction workers, say some. In the book, Tan Mike Tze has this thought where he wants people to imagine a world where everybody goes to work by bicycles or walking or public transportation and their companies are encouraging it by providing showers and changing room facilities allow people to freshen up before starting their work. A world with dedicated lanes and protected side road reserves for the bicycles. A world where the roads are dominated by cyclists and pedestrians and cars have to give way to them. Imagine the health benefits, environmental friendliness and sheer graciousness in such a world.

In Petaling Jaya, there are already bicycle paths and bicycle parkings at bus stops, being integrated as part of a residential area’s streetscape in Damansara Jaya. Although not many people have come to know about these facilities, it is actually a part of Petaling Jaya’s Green City big plan, where they are trying to decrease the carbon footprints produced and reduce the use of private motorised vehicles on the road. The bicycle path in Damansara Jaya is the pioneer project which tries to communicates urban parks within the Petaling Jaya area. Even though it was meant for recreation, it indirectly helps the cyclist to safely commute within that area. Children can now cycle to school without having their parents to worry about their safety on the road, thus, reducing the number of cars on the road during 7.00 am to 7.30 am and 2.00pm to 3.30pm. It is a very good example set up by the Petaling Jaya Municipalities on how to manage traffic in urban areas.

Singapore’s transport planners have occasionally toyed with this idea. The Registry of Vehicles stopped registering bicycles in 1981, but a 1955 estimate reckoned Singaporean owned about 240 bicycles per 1000 population. This puts Singapore sixth in a table with other developed countries, a table inevitably topped by the developing world’s most devoted cyclist, in Holland, with its 550 bicycles per 1000 people. But ownership does not equate with usage, of course. Most bicycles use in Singapore is recreational, and often the bikes belong to a child or teenagers but not working adults. There already is a good network of recreational bike paths in parkland areas. But only 1% of Singaporean trips were made on bicycles in 1995, way below the most other countries. In many admittedly cooler European countries, up to 50% of rail travellers and perhaps 20% of bus travellers may arrive at the station or terminus on a bicycle.

There certainly are valid safety concerns, given the current configuration of Singapore’s roads; while only 1% trips were made by bicycle, the percentage of road accident casualties for cyclists is disproportionately large, at about 4%. But these conditions could be changed. The cyclist could be protected via dedicated lanes or paths among other strategies. Road planners, of course, panic that they are already short enough of land for road-building, without sacrificing any more for aˆ-frills’ such as bicycle lanes. For engineers, all the glamour lies in rail. To some extent, this mindset can be seen in the 1996 White Paper A World Class Land Transport System. In this report, bicycles are relegated to a brief paragraph at the back, under the general heading “Supporting Measures”. The provision of more facilities for bicycles would encourage short trips of about 3km within housing estates, and possibly to the nearest MRT stations as well. It is the strength of this lobby to create future demand that ultimately will determine whether the planners really embrace the bicycle. The Land Transport Authority, had provided some 869 bicycles at 38

MRT stations by 1997, but it seems significant that bicycles did not feature in the LTA annual report after that, and that a search of the current LTA website under bicycle- does not yield any information.

” How much friendlier and nicer our roads and public spaces would it be if more of us paddled around on bicycles instead of sitting high and aloof in our four-wheeled steel boxes. It will require a national cycling strategy integrated into the national transport, health and environmental policy. The such master plan will provide for necessary infrastructure such as traffic signs and bicycle parkings, redesign roads and aˆztraffic calmingaˆY measures in built up areas and school zones to slow down motor traffic. It will require some changes to the law, most importantly, it will require safety education and training for all road users.”

– Chin Yih Ling, SingaporeaˆYs Today Newspaper, 17 January 2005

According to existing cyclists, cycling in early in the morning and late afternoon hours could be much more comfortable than walking as they can feel the breeze during riding the bike and the temperature of the surrounding is quite cool. It would extend the catchment of the LRT stations of more than 45% walking, thus making cycling a better option than walking. In Malaysia, people are allowed to take motorcycle license as early at the age of 16 and car license at the age of 18. Malaysia has cheap petrols, subsidized by the government, lots of highways and wide roads to occupy the needs of urban transportation. Therefore, people here can’t seem to find a reason to not own a car or ride one. Thus, the existence of bicycle is forgotten. Even kids are demanding to be sent and invited back home by cars. Bicycles in Kuala Lumpur city centre and Petaling Jaya are now merely for recreations, where people brought their bicycle by cars, to the urban parks, and ride it there for the sake of health benefits they claim. There are even peoples, who strived the congested roads every day after work, for the sake of riding a stationary bicycle at the gym, also, for the health benefits.

Figure 2.1.3 Copenhagen, Denmark, Mao showing 300km of cycle paths provided beside all existing regional roads and distributor streets, used by 30% of commuters daily. New cycle routes are being built, aimed at increasing the length of average cycle trips from 5 to 15km.

For those who aren’t cycling, the idea of having a dedicated bike path would make them think as if it was a waste of space and resources. But looking things at a bigger picture, having dedicated bicycle paths would encourage more people to cycle as it ensures the cyclist’s safety on the road. When more people cycles, the dependency on private cars lessens thus, reducing the number of cars on the road, and releasing the traffic’s pressure, especially during peak hour.

With just a few millions spent on providing bicycle-oriented facilities such as painting the paths and providing bicycle parking, and give 1.5 metre minimum from the existing roads to these bike paths – instead of spending billions on building more highways and flyovers – the government could save billions more and able to spend it to increase the performance of existing public transportations such as increasing the number of coaches to the train to allow more people to enjoy the ride, increasing the number of trains and platforms to allow more frequent trips and better connectivity to places throughout the city.

2.2 Kuala Lumpur

Kuala Lumpur is the federal capital of Malaysia. The city covers an area of 243KMA? and has an estimated population of 1.6 million as of 2012. At 1999, the administrative centre of Malaysia was shifted to Putrajaya as an approach to release the population pressure of Kuala Lumpur. Started as a tin mining town, Kuala Lumpur evolves rapidly as among the fastest growing metropolitan regions in the country, in terms of population and economy Malaysia.

After the big flood swept through the town following a fire that had engulfed it earlier in 1881, Kapitan Yap Ah Loy restructured the building layout of the city into new brick buildings with clay tiles inspired by shophouses in southern China, characterised by “five foot ways” as well as skilled Chinese carpentry work. This resulted in a distinct eclectic shop house architecture typical of this region. A railway line increased accessibility into the growing town. As the development intensified in the 1890s, Kapitan Yap Ah Loy spent a sum of $20,000 to expand road access in the city significantly, linking up tin mines with the city, these roads include the main arterial roads of Ampang Road, Pudu Road and Petaling Street.

Climate and weather

Protected by the Titiwangsa Mountains in the east and Indonesia’s Sumatra Island in the west, Kuala Lumpur and Petaling Jaya has a tropical rainforest climate which is hot and humid all year round. Average temperatures tend to remain constant between 31 and 33 A°C and typically receives minimum 2,600 mm of rain annually. Flooding is a frequent occurrence in both cities whenever there is a heavy downpour, especially in the city centre and downstream areas. Dust particles from forest fires from nearby Sumatra sometimes cast a haze over the region. It is a major source of pollution in the city together with open burning, emission from motor vehicles and construction works.

2.3 Petaling Jaya

Petaling Jaya is a city in Selangor originally developed as a satellite township for Kuala Lumpur, comprising mostly residential and some industrial areas. It is located in the Petaling district with

First developed by the British on the former 486 hectares Effingham Estate,as an answer to the problem of overpopulation in Kuala Lumpur in 1952 and has since witnessed a dramatic growth in terms of population size and geographical importance. The migration from Kuala Lumpur to the Petaling area had indeed started before the town was officially named in 1953 as Petaling Jaya. The satellite town began to take shape in 1952 when 800 houses were built and another 200 under construction.

By the end of 1957, there were well over 3,200 houses in Petaling Jaya, along with more than 100 shops and 28 operating factories. The year also saw the opening of the first phase of the Federal Highway (Lebuhraya Persekutuan) which divided Petaling Jaya into two. Linking Kuala Lumpur, Petaling Jaya and Port Klang, it enhanced PJ’s reputation as a strategically located town, particularly in the eyes of industrialists and the affluent searching for prime residential land.

Transportation facilities and infrastructure are well developed in Petaling Jaya. Bus services were initially provided by Sri Jaya between the early 1950s until the early 1990s. The mid-eighties saw the introduction of minibuses. The introduction of the IntraKota bus system by DRB-Hicom saw the replacement of Sri Jaya and the minibus by the early 1990s. At the same time, some of the Petaling Jaya-Kuala Lumpur bus routes were also serviced by Metrobus.

The introduction of the Putra LRT service in 1998 saw the addition of the Putraline feeder bus services. The combination of Putraline and Putra LRT brought a relief to many Petaling Jaya residents especially those who had had to rely on public transportation. In 2006 RapidKL took over the operations of IntraKota as well as both Star and Putra LRT. Today, public transportation is provided by RapidKL in the form of buses as well as the KL Light Rail Transit System – Kelana Jaya Line, which extends slightly into Petaling Jaya. There are five Kelana Jaya Line stations in Petaling Jaya.Petaling Jaya has three access points to the national highway system North-South Expressway via Kota Damansara, Damansara, and Subang. Internally, highways such as the Damansara-Puchong Expressway, Sprint Expressway and the Federal Highway also exist.

There are plans for extensions to the existing Klang Valley light rail transit network with a new 30 km line from Kota Damansara in the northern part of Petaling Jaya to Cheras (southern Kuala Lumpur) with stops in Mutiara Damansara and Taman Tun Dr Ismail, to name a few. The extension line which would connect to Subang Jaya, the Kelana Jaya Line, will start operation on April 2011 and expected to be completed in 2013.

2.4 Cycling In The City

Before the economy of Malaysia blooms and the first national car, Proton Saga, was launched in July 1985 by Malaysia’s then Prime Minister, Mahathir bin Mohamad, cars is a luxury to many, and cycle is the most common medium of transportation. People’s daily travel distances were shorter and the city is more friendly towards people, rather than machines. People in those days treated cycling as part of their utility, rather than a hobby.

Utility or transportational cycling generally involves travelling short and medium distances, which involves a few kilometres and not more, often in an urban environment. It includes commuting to work, school or university, going shopping and running errands, as well as heading out to see friends and family or for other social activities.

It also includes economic activity such as the delivering of goods or services. In big cities, the bicycle courier has been often a familiar feature, and freight bicycles are capable of competing with trucks and vans particularly where many small deliveries are required, especially in congested areas. In Yokohama, Japan, bicycle also being used as a medium of public transportation through services called “Velotaxi”. Similar to the old days rickshaw, Velotaxi provides environmental friendly transport to its user and is actually one of the main tourist attractions in the city.

Utility cycling is believed to have several social and economic benefits. According to a report by the Dutch Ministry of Transport, Public Works and Water Management, aˆ•Cycling in Netherlandsaˆ-, policies that encourage utility cycling have been proposed and implemented for reasons including:

Improved public health

Individual health and employers’ profits

A reduction in traffic congestion and air pollution

Improvements in road traffic safety

Improved quality of life

Improved mobility and social inclusiveness

Benefits to child development

In the Chinese city of Beijing alone, there are an estimated four million bicycles in use based on article aˆ•China ends ‘bicycle kingdom’ as embracing cars, China Daily on 11th November 2004, which stated it has been estimated that in the early-1980s there were approximately 500 million cyclists in China). While in aˆ•A Study on Measures to Promote Bicycle Usage in Japan

Department of Civil Engineering, Utsunomiya University, as of the year 2000, there were an estimated 80 million bicycles in Japan, accounting for 17% of commuter trips, and also, in aˆ•Cycling in Netherlandsaˆ- report, stated in the Netherlands, 27% of all trips are made by bicycle.

Figure 2.4.3 A common type bicycle in Japan where it comes with front and rear-mounted child seats. Source: Author’s own

Factors That Influence Levels of Utility Cycling

According to a book by Gregory Vandenbulcke-Plasschaert, aˆ•Spatial Analysis of Bicycle Use and Accident Risks for Cyclistsaˆ-, many different factors combine to influence levels of utility cycling.In developing economies, a large amount of utility cycling may be seen simply because the bicycle is the most affordable form of vehicular transport available to many people. In richer countries, where people can have the choice of a mixture of transport types, a complex interplay of other factors influences the level of bicycle usage. Factors affecting cycling levels may include:

Quality of infrastructure, such as the availability of bike path, safe parkings,etc.

Retail policy

Marketing the public image of cycling

Integration with other transport modes

Cycle training

Terrain condition which influences bikeability

Distance to destin

Tour Operations Sector Of The Travel Industry

The aim of this assignment is to investigate the tour operations sector of the travel and tourism industry, including the different types of operator, their products and services, the scale of the sector and how it has

been affected by trends and developments. Learners will explore the stages involved in developing a package holiday and develop skills associated with determining a selling price for a holiday and the distribution methods used by tour operators to sell holidays.

The travel industry predicts a continuing move away from packages towards independent travel coupled with Britain’s slow exit from the recession; tour operator bookings show that the desire to take holidays in 2010 is stronger than ever, as compared to December 2008 to March 2009. (Aito 2010) The demand for cheap deals are no longer the driving factor in tour operator bookings, consumers are now more concerned about customer service, and this is jumping ahead of price. Spain remains Britain’s favourite holiday destination. It is familiar to many, and easy to reach from across the UK on no-frills airlines. The Canaries Island for example is a bright spot for tour operators with a lot of new-build accommodation over the past decade and more all-inclusive than in other areas. The big two are increasingly branding major resort hotels for particular client types. The Gran Melia Palacio de Isora in Tenerife will be part of Thomson’s flagship Sensatori resorts brand from May, offering luxury for adults with an emphasis on spa treatments. First Choice is adding a new Holiday Village in Lanzarote at the Flamingo Beach hotel, offering families all-inclusive holidays in apartment-style accommodation.

Specification of Assessment

This assignment is in two parts

Task 1 – Covers Learning Outcome 1 and Learning Outcome 4 (LO1 and LO4)

Task 2 – Covers Learning Outcome 2 and Learning Outcome 3 (LO2 and LO3)

TASK 1 – You are required to write a report on Tour Operations in the 21st Century showing how the Industry has developed, the size, scale and complexities of tour operations today and to examine the implications of current trends and decision making on the industry. Within this task you are expected to address LO1 and LO4. (P1, P2, P9 and P10) Please read requirements 1 and 4 for this task.

TASK 2 – – Within the Tour Operating Industry, you are required to develop and distribute a tour operator package, explain the stages of the product development, draw up timescales, prepare a package costing, evaluate and recommend distribution. Within this task you are expected to address LO2 and LO3. ( P3, P4, P5, P6, P7 and P8) Please read requirements 2 and 3 for this task.

Requirement 1 -Investigate the tour operations sector of the travel and tourism industry

Describe the tour operations sector of the travel and tourism industry Pass – P1

1.2 Explain the effects of current and recent trends and developments on the tour operations Sector of the travel and tourism industry Pass – P2

Desmonstrate creative thinking for tour operations’ current, recent trends and future developments discussed in Q.1.2 Distinction D3

Requirement 2 – Explore the stages involved in developing packages

2.1 Describe the stages and timescales involved in developing the holiday package Pass – P3

2.2 Explain the suitability of different methods of contracting for different components of the

Package holiday and different types of tour operator Pass – P4

Determine a selling price for a package holiday from given information Pass P5

Identify and apply strategies in developing a package holiday to a particular destination as discussed in Q.3.1 Merit – M1

Present and communicate appropriate findings as required in Question 3.3 Merit – M3

Requirement 3 – Review the role of Brochures & Methods of Distribution used to sell Package Holidays

Explain the planning decisions taken for a specified brochure Pass – P6

Explain the suitability of alternatives to a traditional brochure for different types of tour
operator Pass – P7

3.3 Explain the suitability of different methods of distribution used to sell a holiday for different

Types of tour operator Pass – P8

Use critical reflection and Evaluate the different types of tour operations and different methods of

Distribution used to sell holidays and justify conclusions as discussed in Question 4.3 Distinction – D1

Requirement 4- Examine strategic and tactical decision making for tour operators

4.1 Explain the strategic decisions made by different types of tour operator Pass – P9

4.2 Explain the tactical decisions that could be taken by a specified tour operator in different

Situations Pass – P10

Apply methods and techniques used by different types of tour operators to make strategic decisions discussed in Question 2.1. Merit – M2

4.4 How to take responsibility for managing and organising activities to explicate the deliberate decision that could be taken by a specified tour operator in different situations discussed in Question 2.2 Distinction – D2

Plagiarism and Collusion

Any act of plagiarism and collusion will be seriously dealt with according to the regulations. In this context the definition and scope of plagiarism are presented below:

“Using the work of others without acknowledging source of information or inspiration. Even if the words are changed or sentences are put in different order, the result is still plagiarism”. (Cortell 2003)

Extension and Late Submission

Collusion describes as the submission of work produced in collaboration for an assignment based on the assessment of individual work. When one person shares his/her work with others who submit part of all of it as their own work.

If you need an extension for a valid reason, you must request one using a coursework extension request form available from the college. Please note that the lecturers do not have the authority to extend the coursework deadlines and therefore do not ask them to award a coursework extension.

The completed form must be accompanied by evidence such as a medical certificate in the event of you being sick.

Outcomes

Assessment criteria for pass

To achieve each outcome a learner must demonstrate the ability to:

1 Investigate the tour operations sector of the travel and tourism industry

1.1 Describe the tour operations sector of the travel and tourism industry

1.2 Explain the effects of current and recent trends and developments on the tour operations Sector of the travel and tourism industry

2 Explore the stages involved in developing packages

2.1 Describe the stages and timescales involved in developing the holiday package

2.2 Explain the suitability of different methods of contracting for different components of the Package holiday and different types of tour operator

2.3 Determine a selling price for a package holiday from given information

3 Review the role of brochures and methods of distribution used to sell package holidays

3.1 Explain the planning decisions taken for a specified brochure

3.2 Explain the planning decisions taken for a specified brochure

3.3 Explain the suitability of different methods of distribution used to sell a holiday for different

Types of tour operator

4 Examine strategic and tactical decision making for tour operators

4.1 Explain the strategic decisions made by different types of tour operator

4.2 Explain the tactical decisions that could be taken by a specified tour operator in different situations

Note: All outcomes must be met for a pass
Merit Descriptor
Distinction Descriptor

M1: Identify and apply strategies to find appropriate solutions.

D1: Use critical reflection to evaluate own work and justify valid conclusions.

M2: Select/design and apply appropriate methods/ techniques.

D2: Take responsibility for managing and organizing activities.

M3: Present and communicate appropriate findings.

D3: Demonstrate convergent/lateral/creative thinking.

Achievement of a Pass grade

A pass grade is achieved by meeting all the requirements defined in the assessment criteria for each individual unit.

Achievement of a merit or distinction grade

All the assessment criteria and merit grade descriptors need to be completed within a unit to achieve a merit grade.

All the assessment criteria merit and distinction grade descriptors must be completed within a unit to achieve a distinction grade.

Suggested Support Materials
Books

Holloway J C – The Business of Tourism (Longman, 1999)

Bull A – The Economics of Travel and Tourism (Longman, 1998)

Laws E – Managing Packaged Tourism (International Thomson Business Press, 1997)

Middleton, Victor T C and Clarke J – Marketing in Travel and Tourism, Third edition

(Butterworth-Heinemann, 2001)

Yale P – The Business of Tour Operations (Longman, 2000)

Further reading

ABTA/AITO Code of Conduct

ABTA Handbook

ABTA Information Bureau Holiday Statistics

CAA document number 221, 384

International Passenger Survey

Package Travel Regulations

Travel Trade Gazette

Travel Weekly

Websites
Websites

www.abtanet.com Association of British Travel Agents

www.aito.co.uk Association of Independent Tour Operators

www.caa.co.uk Civil Aviation Authority

www.firstchoiceplc.co.uk First Choice Holidays

www.fto.co.uk Federation of Tour Operators

www.mytravelgroup.com My Travel Group

www.thomascook.com Thomas Cook

www.tui.com TUI

ASSESSMENT FEEDBACK SHEET
GUILDHALL COLLEGE

Programme: BTEC Higher National Diploma (HND) in Travel & Tourism Management

Unit Number and Title: Unit 15 Tour Operations Management

Unit Level: H1

Assignment Ref Number: 15.1.1 Tour Operations Management

Module Tutor: Margaret Amankwah

Email: [email protected]

Date Set: 22/March/2010

Learner Name: aˆ¦………………………………………………………………. Learner ID:………………………………………

Information/feedback on assessment and grading criteria
Assessment Criteria (Pass-P)
Achieved
Evidence
Feedback Remarks

P1Describe the tour operations sector of the travel and

tourism industry

Yes/No

P2 explain the effects of current and recent trends and

developments on the tour operations sector of the

travel and tourism industry

Yes/No

P3 Describe the stages and timescales involved in developing the holiday package

Yes/No

P4 explain the suitability of different methods of

contracting for different components of the package

holiday and different types of tour operator

Yes/No

P5 determine a selling price for a package holiday from

given information

Yes/No

P6 explain the planning decisions taken for a specified

brochure

Yes/No

P7 explain the suitability of alternatives to a traditional

brochure for different types of tour operator

Yes/No

P8 Explain the suitability of different methods of

distribution used to sell a holiday for different types

of tour operator

Yes/No

P9 Explain the strategic decisions made by different

types of tour operator

Yes/No

P10 explain the tactical decisions that could be taken by

a specified tour operator in different situations

Yes/No
Grading criteria (Merit-M; Destination-D)
Achieved
Evidence
Feedback Remarks

M1 Identify and apply strategies to find appropriate solutions.

Yes/No

M2 Select/design and apply appropriate methods /techniques.

Yes/No

M3 Present and communicate appropriate findings

Yes/No

D1 Use critical reflection to evaluate own work and justify valid conclusions.

Yes/No

D2 Take responsibility for managing and organizing activities.

Yes/No

D3 Demonstrate convergent/lateral/creative thinking.

Yes/No
Assessor’s general comments:

Assessor’s Signature aˆ¦……………………………………………………………Date aˆ¦……………………………………………….

Print Name: aˆ¦…………………………………………………………………..Resubmission Date…………………………………..

Learner’s comments:

Signature aˆ¦……………………………………………………………………… Date aˆ¦………………………………………………

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Feedback of this coursework will normally be given to students four weeks after the submission of an assignment.

Tourist Potential Of My Country India Tourism Essay

INDIA is a multi-destination country with a varity of tourist attraction and facilities, In winter tourists started trickling in India like the wintering birds .I know about a truth that few years ago in Mumbai a tourist walking cannot found a decent toilet . but tourist like to come here because India has lot of everything like history, culture, cuisine, and sight and yet runs an efficient machine that makes the tourists want to come back.that is so with most foreign destinations,except perhaps India . most countries like Switzerland and Egypt for instance are dependent on the foreign exchange.tourist bring to sustain their appreciatively give them value for money and nice experience.

In my country from the tourist point of view unless one pays through the hat for a expensive taxi and have a reliable guide. Entry tickets at places of interest are duel priced, the foreigner payed more in their countries than India.Different Indian experience-according to me, with India, it is quite a different experience so tourists n found here whatever they expect.

Forever,sunrise and yet I talk of tourism being the sunrise sector and it has being so forever without much being done which can be a paradigm shift from what is the tourists are surely keen on savouring the other India, as manifest by the more macabre tourist trips to mumbai’s Dharavi to see the poverty there but there are a lot more who would just like to savour the Indian life, however that area is totally unexplored much to the detriment of the country.If I talk about engineering site of view that there are lot of oppurnities , tourism infrastructure has no carrying capacity, be it train seats hotel rooms.

If I talk about rank that India has a very good rank for tourism point of view because when it comes to outbound tourism came here there should be a systematic segmentation with a reference to geography, since each region in India has its peculiar social, demographic and economic characteristic which in turn influence travel consumption patterns and preference.

India’s medical tourism Industry is very good. It growing by around 30% each year.according to me India’s tourism has great potential but it is being held back artificially though several policies and programmes have been famed for the development of tourism their implementation is not satisfact

Tourism is a booming sector and countries like India, which incidentally offers a wide range of tourist destinations, benefit much from it. It is also a major driver in various other sectors. The hotel industry particularly, expects a major part of their income from tourists.

At the same time, tourists usually incorporate accommodation plans to their check list before starting a tour. So, it is pretty straight forward what tourists can expect from a good hotel. For instance, aside from providing a regular accommodation, good hotels provide guided tour to the local tourist place, rental vehicles at the disposal of the tourist, and so on.

In India, many tourist destinations centre around temples and ashrams. The most sought after hotels are, therefore, those which are situated in the vicinity. Destinations such as the Jain Temples are an attraction to all devotees following Jainism religion. Many of these devotees prefer to stay for long periods. Thus, cheap hotels which provide basic accommodation and food are common in those places. As a matter of fact, pilgrimages in India are the most popular tourist places and attract a diverse crowd of tourists. Some are pure devotees, whereas others prefer to tread the surrounding places taking their time, still others follow a rather tight schedule while visiting all the famous sites. Hotels provide facilities to all those kinds of tourists.

Apart from pilgrimages, India hosts a variety of exotic locations. Hotels around these tend to be more luxurious than those near the pligrim centres. Sometimes, the hotels provide a kind of packaged tour around the place to attract tourists. This usually encompasses day trips and safaris. More lavish hotels invite tourists to sumptuous parties organised by the hotel at their premises. All the while, the tourists are familiarized with the local culture and cuisine.

Although, the heart of a city is not the domain of a tourist hotel, tourists are able to find some very good hotels here. These hotels act as a gateway for foreign tourists and therefore, these are the most luxurious hotels of all. From spas and swimming pools to expensive and showy restaurants, they provide every luxury that a hotel can offer. These hotels also does the job of recommending tourist destinations and arranging all the tickets for travel. Other times, hotels are made the hotspot for various kinds of organized events. Many of them are intended for the entertainment of tourists and provide a platform for local talents.

Internal and external sources to improvement of tourism potential of India

Economy- Tourism industry is making tremendous contribution to globle economy. This substantial growth of the tourism makes it one of the most remarkable economic and social phenomena of country.

Demand for tourism depends on the ecomomic condition of a country and now economy of India is a very strong when economy grow ,levels of disposable income will rise and relatively a large part of discretionary income will be spent on tourism.

And internal sources are that India has rich culture and heritage. India’s culture heritage and eco tourism potential are the major consumer preferences of the tourists visiting India.its diversity attract tourist both foreigners as well as its own citizens to explore scenic beauty that it has to offer the world.

There is no other country in the world which offers such wide choice of destination like India.the internal factor also that include his history tourist, adventure tourism, spiritual tourism, beach tourism. According to europe’s leading travel mazagine ” Conde Nast Traveller” India has been ninth rank in longest coastline.

Internet-There are larg e number of people who decide their travel plan by searching online .

Improvement of current situation of tourism potential of India

The current situation of tourism potential of India is heavily promoting tourism focusing primarily on its resources strengths and innovative plans by government.

It can be improve by internet because tourism can control their viewing experience within the limitations of available information.

They can view such as train timetable ,hotel and souvenir information such as maps etc.yhey can provide contact email addresses in the website to allow them to make enquiries about product and services by providing contact email.they can making online payments with credit cards.

Webpage design- visitors often find tourist websites via search engines.

Ease of use: It is an important component in website design and an effective way to attract online customers. The users in India especially south India are not so internet savvy it should be easy tonavigate and get the information they are searching for.

Technical Quality: It directly influences the performance by not only retaining the characteristics oftraditional tools but also taking full advantage of the mediums unique characteristics.

NEED INFORMATION

1 PRODUCT

2 PLACE

3 PRICE( HOTEI , PRODUCT )

4 TRANSPORT

5 GUDIES for tourist attraction.

6 benefits

Range of communication method that lsbm uses to communicate with students:
Lsbm used many of methods for communicate with students these are-

Internal method -e -mail, mails, memos, face to face,report,notice,team briefing.

External method-letters,telephone,mail,advertising,meeting,business to business,fax,websites,internet ICT(which is known as information communication technology. These are explained belowaˆ¦.

lsbm College may communicate with students via several methods, including Mail, phone, fax, or e-mail etc. It is important to inform the college whenever a change is made to the student’s contact information.An official e-mail address is issued to each student at the time. This official e-mail address takes the form of a person’s first initial and last name, followed by

Students are responsible for activating their e-mail account; this may be accomplished on the Web site at Students must check e-mail regularly in order to read important messages and notifications.Certain communications may be time-sensitive. Failure to read official communications sent to the students’ official e-mail addresses does not absolve students from knowing and complying with the content of those communications.

Suitability and effectiveness communication

If we talk or worked face to face it gave behaviour to a greater extant than via audio.these are some effective methods that is, if I spent long time on the phone may be I can’t understand location of that person or may be I made fool by other person.

There are many of suitability because if a student communicate with someone , its increase the students’s suitability for online psychotheropy. The students increased their knowledge by contact with LSBM by text,phone,e mail and instant message etc.

Students increased their communication with LSBM by following methods

Students increased their Communication with the principles and practices of small group and team communication theory and research in a variety of group settings.

Course readings, assignments, labs, and online research projects are designed to enhance your overall competency in small group and team communication. Students will also participate in a final service-learning project involving local community nonprofit organizations.

This course is designed to help students increase their small group communication effectiveness in the following areas:

Interpersonal group/team skills

Problem-solving techniques in groups and teams

Strategies for conflict management in groups and team.

Why these methods improved communication
ACTION PLAN

Because if students must have a range of skills to express themselves not only through paper and pencil but also have audio,video, animation,design software as well as a host of new environments(e mail,websites,message boards etc)if a student focus on these points I think they Learn more and more about communication.STUDENT should improve their manners, lifestyle,communcate with teacher and other many thing.

Business vocabulary

My strength is the sense of responsibility, understanding, punctuality and the ability to work under pressure to meet deadlines. I am a very trustworthy person with an ability to work as a team player or as an individual which helps me to survive under different kind of environments.

The Ability to merge into the people and be a part of them is one key trait that any successful person might have, and this ability makes me unique that people find me trustworthy as a person with who they can share their sorrows, happiness take advice. So I consider this as my biggest strength that I can merge into any group of people belonging to any race or any part of the world.

My weaknees someone disregards my sincere efforts, or accuse me of being guilty of a mistake which I never did, this does results in a mental stress which ultimately effects my performance. This is what I think is my strength and weakness.

Spoken communication

I believe that one of my personal strength in spoken communication is that I can talk to just about anyone. I enjoy talking with people.GRAMMAR My strength would be that I have the ability to WRI TE with out any grammatical mistakeas well as to listen. enjoy having conversation with people of different cultures because it gives me as chance to learn more about their lifestyle.

large group of people than I become very nervous and will some times forget what I wanted to say.2nd is when I have to speak in front of the class or in front of a very large group of people I become nervous.

Non-verbal communication

My strength for verbal communication is to be able to project my voice to audience.2nd strength is having good eye contact with all peers in the room.

My weakness is be very nervous to present in front of my peers.2nd is to take breaths in between prentation and have head and leg movements while presenting.

Prentation skills

My strength is ability to prioritize,planning skills,well organized, multitasking and assuming responsibilities and dutie.possessing the capacity to cope with failures and trying to learn from past mistakes.

My weakness is taking things to heart and getting too disappointed when things are done in the wrong way.

Listening skills

My strength is that I listen 95% of the time of the topic.i listen any topic with confidence and determination and with will power.

My weakness is that I tend to lose these skills If I am very tired.2nd is that I am a bit impatience and sensitiveness.

Grammar

My strength is my vocabulary and the sense of responsibility, punctuality and the ability to work under pressure to meet deadlines.

My weakness is my sentence structure.2nd is I have not done practice so much in grammar. I would be not correct use of English grammer and syntax.

Methods of improvement of these areas

There are so many areas to study grammar: tenses, subject-verb agreement, prepositions, etc. we need to select one or two grammatical structures to start.

Test grammar through the Oxford Grammar Test. Ask a CILL teacher for a copy of the test.to read ielts books.

Ask the CILL teacher if i cannot analyse the test by. Having identified a difficult area of grammar select one of the materials listed on the back page. Firstly, read and understand the rules for the grammatical structure. Make a brief note of the rules in my diary.

.

I can improve communication area by improve cross-cultural affective development.2nd by foreign language proficiency a threshold- level facility in the spoken and non-spoken.

Listening presentation will be improve by hyposis CD, produced by Sharon Shinwell.i can improve communication and skills as well as improve listening

Skills through improved business presentation and conversation skills.

TIME SCALE
STUDENT should give 15 to 20 mintues to improve their skill in these areas per day I think its benificial for student to learn different things.time scale is very important to improve their self.
SPECIFY
TO read books.
Listen english DVD’s
TO increase their capability towards understanding.
NAME JASWANT SINGH
CLASS ID DIB/AUO9/78

Motivations for Travel and Tourism

Tourist motivations are the factors to make people wishing to go travel. They want to have personal fulfilment (Coltman, 1989). Crompton (cited in Van Harssel, 1994) discovered that most responders also thought that travel is like a rest and relaxation from routine. However, it did not represent changing their way of lives, people just continue to do the similar things but in a distinct surroundings and physical context. He also indicated that travel can provide for self-exploration, excitement or social interaction. They are the reasons why people travel around the world. Tourists would not learn all the things by their routines or from television and books. It is better for them to get experiences by themselves, because of unedited by anyone else. Afterwards travel can make a marked difference with routines, and it will provide exciting, uncommon or strange things to tourist. Furthermore, the high-tech world increases social lives. For example, people will go to the movies, shopping malls or concerts with friends and colleagues. Different gender, age, social class, retirement, unemployment, social relationships, characters and socialization can affect the decision-making of tourism (Argyle, 1996). Wahab (1975 cited in Burns, 1999) established several travel purposes, they include business tourism, health tourism, cultural tourism, sport tourism and recreational tourism. It can be easy to understand that what people generally travel for. The major reasons of travel are freedom and entertainment which can be defined as pleasure travel (Argyle, 1996). Tourists expect and believe that going on a vacation can partly or fully different needs and wants (Mill and Morrison, 2002). Ryan (1991 cited in Burns, 1999) stated some types of motivation and they are determinants of people who go travelling. Tourist motivations include escape, relaxation, strengthening family togetherness, wish and self-fulfilment, prestige, shopping, social interaction and sexual opportunity. In addition, tourists are also motivated to travel by other factors. For instant, television can attract people to travel in new destinations and experience different cultures (Van Harssel, 1994). Tourists hope to experience various cultures and meet new people over the world because of the curiosity. It is the primary motivation of all visitors (Hudman and Hawkins, 1989). Credit cards are getting common among the world, so it is convenient for tourists to travel around without cash or just with a little cash. Basically, they tend to pay for the accommodation and recreation by credit cards. Additionally, well-educated can increase and stimulate people to go on a vacations, because education excite the curiosity of people. They hope to widen and enrich knowledge as well (Van Harssel, 1994).

The most famous theory to describe motivation is Maslow’s needs hierarchy. Maslow used hierarchy to illustrate human needs as stimulators. There are 5 level hierarchy, including self-actualization, esteem, belonging, security and physiological needs. Subsequently, he added cognitive and aesthetic needs. However, it is not very clear to show that how these two needs fit into the former hierarchy. Human will not be motivated if the lowest needs, which is physiological needs, are satisfied. Next, they will be motivated by following needs, the security needs. Different needs are satisfied such and such (Ross, 1994). However, Page, 2003 argued that Maslow hierarchy model is not faultless, because people do not satisfy their needs hierarchically. Besides, some needs probably emerge at the same time. Nevertheless, the hierarchy model really highlights individual development needs. It also describes that human exert themselves for personal growth. In order to explain the motivations further (Nickerson, 1996), many scholars have developed Maslow’s work since 1950’s. Thus, the needs of people to go travelling can be considered from push and pull factors as well (Lundberg, 1990). Epperson (1983, cited in Lundberg, 1990) indicated that push factors are much more about internal, the personal desires. They motivate people to seek and go on a vacation (Page 2003). They are intended to satisfy different psychological needs (Dann, 1977 cited in Mill and Morrison, 2002). Epperson listed six push motives, such as, escape, self-discovery, relaxation, prestige, challenge and adventure. The push factors of Mainland Chinese tourists are erudition, fame, and having good personal relationship. Therefore, they travel in Hong Kong because of friendly, modern and convenient place for shopping and vacation (Liu et al, 2008). In contrast, pull factors are external elements to the people. They act like stimulators attracting people to travel, such as, advertisement of resorts (Page 2003). It is about the advantages of the certain destinations. They are stunning views, historical places, cultural and sporting events (Liu et al, 2008). Participating or watching sports also motivated people to travel (Hudman and Hawkins, 1989). Accessibility, high-tech impression and consumption are the important pull factors of Mainland Chinese. For these reasons Hong Kong is very successful in fashion retail, so it attracts plenty of Mainland Chinese tourists (Liu et al, 2008). Finding out the importance of push and pull factors, it needs the five main market segments. They are lone tourists, families, couples, friends, and tour groups. For example, escape element is mutually related to lone tourists and couples, these tourists less prefer togetherness. By contrast, Prestige is very important for people who travelling with friends, families and tour groups (Jamrozy, 1992 cited in Mill and Morrison, 2002).

Normally, some destinations have been successful in tourism industry, because they understand the tourist motivation very well. They know how to attract tourist visiting their places (Page, 2003). Certainly, overarching tourists are in the world (Burns, 1999). Stanley Plog announced a famous model of tourist type. It is for classify people into psychographic and allocentrics by visitor characteristic. Psychometrics tourists’ travel purpose is relaxation, so they prefer to do the general activities in familiar destinations. The journey is prearranged. Besides, they do not want any foreign environment or atmosphere. On the other hand, allocentrics people are extroverted, self-confident and willing to meet new people. They are also curious about new experiences, so they generally travel in undeveloped destinations. The schedule is expected to arrange by themselves rather than travel agencies. Thus, it will be more flexible and unrestrained (Nikerson, 1996). Nevertheless, there are some people who do not desire to go travelling, because they think that it is safer or more comfortable to stay in their hometowns. However, if people like travelling, the motivations can be divided into two determinants, they are related to destination and non-related to destination. Travel for business, education, health, religion and visiting friends and relatives provide a few or no choices of going other destinations for instead (Coltman, 1989). Many tourists from Taiwan, the United States and South and Southeast Asia travel in Hong Kong for business. It can show that Hong Kong is an evident and important business hub (Kwong, 1997). People travel abroad because of religion as well, such as pilgrimages, going to historical places, religious bases or religious activities. The most important motivation of travelling among this kind of tourists is visiting the bases. For example, Jews go to Israel. Additionally, visiting historical places and attending religious musical and dramas are propagating the certain faith. These activities can make the tourists adhering to a faith (Hudman and Hawkins, 1989). One of a good example is people travelling for visiting friends and relatives. It is often more important than visiting destinations (Coltman, 1989). In addition, tourists visit their hometown is one of the big motivator (Hudman and Hawkins, 1989). Travel is related to destinations, the motives can be full of curiosity about other culture, detonations, local people and politics (Coltman, 1989). Hall and Page, 2002 stated that all tourism researchers also have a consistent question, why tourists travel. It is a very important to know because everyone also has their own reason. Most people can select regions they like to travel to. For hosts, understanding travel motivations can target potential tourists, serve them and satisfy their needs and wants (Mill and Morrison, 2002). There are various tourism demands around the world. Some countries have always been a popular travel destination, and others are still in development. Every countries and regions also have their own charisma to attract tourists to travel there (Swarbrooke & Horner, 2004). People probably have many reasons to travel in a destination, They even prefer to choose a holiday type (Burns, 1999). It is about motivation which is essential part of consumer behaviour in tourism industry, because motivation is strong related to psychological wishes and needs (Page and Connell, 2006). It is very useful to use motivations and behaviour to classify tourists (Nickerson, 1996). Tourists will choose a destination because of the friendly local people or relaxing environment. The place is always wanted to visit, or some friends suggest the place highly, or the weather is great all the time and the scenery is attractive. Other ordinary factors will be concerned before people plan to go on a trip, such as, recreation, level of interest in history and culture of the place, shopping places, beautiful landscape, hygiene of the destination, ideal weather and cost (Lundberg, 1990 and Holloway, 2002). For instance, the travel purpose of the visitors from Europe, the Middle East and Africa is recreation. The shopping facilities and special features attract them to travel in Hon g Kong (Kwong, 1997).

Actually, motivation is also about different behaviour of everyone (Argyle, 1996). The people, who like to travel around, are also divided into two categories. Some of them prefer having quite journey (Lundberg, 1990). Those people want to get away from the workplace since they always have a stressful lifestyle. They prefer to go to a new place for relaxing and forgetting all pressures (Holloway, 2002). On the contrary, others wish to seek adventure (Lundberg, 1990), but it does not mean standing same pace of workday life. This kind of tourists’ motivation can be defined as “getting away from” instead of “going towards” somebody and something. Going away everyday environment is more important than the interest of visiting new people and regions. (Krippendorf, 2002). It is also important to look at surface factors for understanding the travel reasons of tourists (Nickerson, 1996). McIntosh and Goeldner (1990, cited in Nickerson, 1996) stated that there were 4 kinds of motivators for basic travel. They included status and prestige, physical, interpersonal and cultural motivators. Firstly, status and prestige motivators are about the need for fame. Besides, people think that travel can secure admiration and recognition among their peers and friends. Secondly, physical motivators concern with health. Tourists may participate in sports event and take some recreation, and these actions are the motivators of keeping one’s health. Getting treatment, medical care and attending weight loss camp are related to remedial health motivators. Next, people want to make new friends, leave or visit friends and family, they are also defined as interpersonal motivators. Lastly, cultural motivators describe tourists have ardent curiosity and want to experience other cultures and lifestyle (Nickerson, 1996). Facilitators are also very important for tourists, such as, disposable income, low local currency rate, conveniently accessible places, friendly locals and easy entry requirement. They all can stimulate tourists to visit certain destinations (Holloway, 2002). However, some people are not able to choose their favourite travel destination due to the limited money and time (Argyle, 1996). They usually compare with different destinations which is the most reasonable price to travel. Then, they choose the most appealing places among those destinations. (Coltman, 1989). It is also important to understand the process about what tourists consume for travel experiences which is included costs of time and money (Page, 2003). Consumer behaviour is the process of the people to make decisions when facing various products. They concern about selecting, buying, using and estimating the products which can be invisible and visible (Reisinger, 2009). The main point to understand motivation is more about what products tourists buy. Customers buy the products and services which based on the capacity to satisfy their needs and wants (Page and Connell, 2006). Many authors also connect tourism with consumption together (Greenwood, 1989; Burns and Holden, 1995 and Ritzer, 1998 cited in Burns, 1999). MacCannell (1976 cited in Burns, 1999) indicated that spend not only on recreation and tangible goods, but also on the local cultures that the countries they travel to.

There are various kinds of tourists in the world. They can be categorised by demographic, social, economic, cultural, geographic, psychographic and behavioural. Every kind of tourist also has various needs, behaviour and favourites (Reisinger, 2009). It is usually defined as overnight and same day visitors, such as excursionists. Obviously, excursionists will not seek any accommodation, but they still need to use other transportation and infrastructure (Burns, 1999). Two exactly the same people cannot be found. Additionally, different expectation and viewpoints also can affect decision-making of travel destinations (Page, 2003). Mill and Morrison, 2002 indicated that if children can have opportunity in holiday decision making process, it can further the possibility of the children who are satisfied the holiday choice. Intrinsic and extrinsic motivation can figure tourist motives out (Pearce, 1993 cited in Page, 2003). Intrinsic motivation is about individual needs to encourage themselves going travel. For example, tourists travel for self-improvement or self-realization. It can make them to have happiness, fulfilment and ego-enhancement. On the other hand, extrinsic motivation is about surrounding factors which affect tourist’s attitudes, perceptions and preferences. For example, the tourism in the former Soviet Union, people sent labourers going on a vacation. Then, they would be refreshed and put in more efforts to work (Page, 2003). Erik Cohen announced a very famous tourism typology. He indicated that each kind of tourists interact with different destinations. It also can describe tourists’ behaviours and extent motivations. He separated into four types of tourists, such as, organised mass tourist, individual mass tourist, explorer and drifter. Organised and individual mass tourists keep staying in the ‘environmental bubble’, because people avoid have any unhappy affairs. Thus, they are less in touch with locals. They will arrange their trips as earlier as possible. In contrast, explorer and drifter prefer to understand deeply local culture and interact with locals. They will not remain in the ‘environmental bubble’ (Burns, 1999).

Tourism is the only way that it can let people to get away from daily routine temporarily and spend some holidays in one or more travel destinations. A journey can be changed and planned according to one’s preference (Leiper, 1990 cited in Page, 2003).

Travel for shopping

Why do people go shopping? Mowen, 1995 stated that shopping motivation is from wish, drive or urge. People will go and shop when they are in need of something. In addition, there are a lot of shopping motivations during trips, such as low currency rate and bargain prices. Tourists also buy gifts as souvenirs of travel destinations or for steadying the relationship with people (Tasci et al, 2010). However, some people like shopping because they enjoy the purchasing process, rather than the products (Vipul and Mahendra 2009). They probably just want to escape from workday and experience other cultures (Tasci et al, 2010).

Nowadays, shopping becomes an important part in the tourism industry. It is even a main part of a journey (Holloway, 2002). Shopping in Hong Kong is the main activity for tourists (Kwong, 1997). For example, tourists’ shopping spending makes a powerful impact on Hong Kong local economy. It is still the main spending among all spending categories until 2009. The total expenditure of shopping on overnight and same-day in-town visitors were HK$82.12 billion, it was around US$10.5 (Census and Statistics Department, 2010). Moreover, Mainland Chinese tourists become the highest consumers within all markets in Hong Kong. They spend a good deal of their money on shopping (Wong et al, 2002). When certain of seasons, weeks or months are bargain sales in some countries, plenty of visitors will travel to those places (Holloway, 2002). For example, the beginning of January and July usually are the bargain sales period of most shops in Japan (Japan National Tourism Organization, 2011). In addition, innovative and well-designed shopping malls and department stores are becoming an attraction of leisure activity. These comfortable environments can attract massive tourists to spend in there and enjoy the facilities by themselves (Holloway, 2002).

Travel for business

Business Tourism is about people who go travelling for their work as the main purpose. Business travel is one of a most ancient tourism types. The famous one is “silk road” which was the main connecting route of trading silk from Asia to Europe. Today, businessmen have to travel around the world frequently due to many purposes. They have to present at the meeting, conferences, training courses, exhibitions and trade shows. The trip is significant for them because it concerns about the companies whether can be able to survive in the marketplace (Swarbrooke and Horner, 2004). The motivation of the business tourism is closely related to the companies. For this reason, they usually do not care about the cost of the trip, such as, air tickets prices. They prefer the best business deal to the negligible cost. Moreover, business tourists always consider the most convenient and fastest way to arrive the destinations, so the trustworthy and frequent transportation is very important for them. It is not only flights, but also boats and trains. Then, business tourists can finish missions on time (Holloway, 2002). Page and Connell, 2006 also states that the employees will be reward for good performance if they succeed during the trip. China business travel spent USD$140.9 billion in 2010, it was increase 16.3% in comparison with 2009. According to the current development in China, the figure was just what the country expected. More and more overseas companies also want to negotiate the business with China, because Chinese market is getting a big influence in the world. Therefore, business travel is an important activity (Global Business Travel Association, 2011).

Holloway, 2002 indicated that business tourists need to plan their journeys on the weekdays, because they hope to spend much time with their families at the weekends. It is fair enough since they are always ready whenever for the trip, even at night. They probably have a trip at short notice. The time of staying at home is getting less. In addition, business tourists have to face a lot of unexpected events, such as, delayed flights or traffic jams. They may be lonely and worried. It can be quite stressful for them (Lundberg, 1990). Therefore, some businessmen like to take their partner to the journey. They can make good use of the extra time to have a short pleasure trip. In some cases assistant is needed too if the trip is included leisure time. Owing to travel frequently, some business tourists prefer particular airlines and take advantages of the frequent flyer programmes. Further, the trip cost is usually paid by the company. Thus, they do not select direct and the cheapest itinerary for making sure to be awarded as many miles as they can (Holloway, 2002).

Travel for visiting friends and relatives

Visiting friends and families also has a history. This type of tourism trend has been pandemic from sixteenth century (Girouard, 1978). There are plenty of people migrants around the world. This permanent immigration can develop a tourism trend, visiting friends and relatives. It can provide a demand of tourism in those countries (Page and Connell, 2006). It is a good example in Guangdong Province, plenty of this kind of tourists over there. According to the history, Hong Kong was once part of Guangdong district. Thus, most ancestral homes of the residents are Guangdong. Owing to this special origin, a lot of Guangdong residents mostly have relatives and friends in Hong Kong nowadays (Tsui, 2004). Besides, there were above tens of thousands Hong Kong people migrated to overseas during 1980s to 1990s. The hot countries were The United States, Canada, Australia and New Zealand. However, the relatives and friends of the migrants were still in Hong Kong. Both of them had to be separated for a long time and they would look forward to seeing each other. Therefore, friends and relatives would travel in those countries for visiting the migrants. (Buckley, 1997). In addition, nowadays people go and join the wedding party which is also defined as visiting friends and relatives, it is not just in an earlier stage. The transportations are becoming well developed, people can travel in other countries easily (Swarbrooke & Horner, 2004).

Travel for experiencing other cultures

Every country also has their own local culture. There are 12 cultural elements mainly, they are handicrafts, language, traditions, gastronomy, art and music, history, local work, architecture, religion educational system, dress and leisure activities. All of them can enable tourists to experience more about the local culture of the travel destinations (Mathieson and Wall, 1982). It is usually the main reason of a visitor travelling in a country (McKercher & duCriss, 2003). Tourists can have a good opportunity to deeply understand the local culture through the. For example, they can go to heritage attractions, try the local food and attend the local festival celebration during the journey (Swarbrooke & Horner, 2004). There is a Mid-Autumn Festival in Hong Kong annually. This festival represents togetherness and harmony of each family and people eat moon-cakes with their families together (Yip, 2008). Even though it is also a Chinese Festival, Hong Kong has new ranges and varieties of moon-cakes (Tse, 2007). On the other hand, some tourists prefer to visit in a place which has similar cultural background. Tourists can communicate with the hosts easily because the language is slightly different or no discrepancy. (Reisinger, 2009). For example, Mainland Chinese frequently go travelling in Hong Kong. The cultural distance between this kind of visitors and the hosts is little or even there is not (Law et al, 2008).

Currency rate

This is a significant part in tourism industry. It deeply concerns about the customers’ consumption. Tourists will be willing to travel in that place and they will spend more if the exchange rate is low (Tribe, 2005). People will choose foreign countries if the currency rate is optimal (Greenwood, 2007). Exchange rate is big influence to the tourism industry since the total cost of the trip. It is the main factor of tourist behaviour. Tourists will decide the travel destinations, length of stay, the amount of spending, the frequency of travel time and the travel style because of the exchange rate. For example, people will stay in hostel instead of hotel if the currency rate is high. Some tourists will even change to other travel destinations where are low currency rate (Crouch, 1994). It is a big impact of short haul tourists especially, because this kind of tourists has sudden whims to go travelling. As usual, they compare prices in host countries to their hometown (Greenwood, 2007). Moreover, tourists of group tour also will think that the cost of the trip increases when they are surcharged by the travel agency. When the currency rate is in an unfavourable situation, most tourists will also believe that all tourism products are expensive. They will keep reining on their spending (Swarbrooke & Horner, 2004). However, it is relatively weak influence on business travellers because they prefer to strike bargains rather than the cost of the travel way. For example, Even though the air ticket and hotel cost are increase, they will still continue their journeys (Crouch, 1994). Greenwood, 2007 indicated that exchange rate also affect less in long haul tourists. Normally, the tourists plan their journeys beforehand. Thus, they usually less concern the currency rate and continue to visit selected travel destinations.

Government involvement

Governments contribute greatly to the tourism industry through financial support, they will initiate a lot of new projects which are planning and helping for the tourism. They need to manage and dominate the related component parts as all cost a very large amount to develop (Holloway, 2002). They act a main role in tourism industry. They can be a big help in tourism development (Lundberg, 1990). For example, Istanbul is developed to be a main shopping destination in comparison with neighbouring countries. The biggest and oldest shopping mall in the world is also located in this city. The government will hold a forty day long shopping festival from 18th March to 26th April this year. They also bring many benefits to the visitors. Tourists can enjoy tax free shopping and get discounts on various products. Moreover, a brand new car will be awarded as the big prize everyday within the event (BI-ME staff, 2011). Promoting the tourism at overseas and home is necessary, because a good advertising of the vacation spot can attract many tourists to travel there (Holloway, 2002). For instance, the responsibility of Hong Kong Tourists Association is promoting tourism industry for booming the economy in Hong Kong. It advertises Hong Kong tourism is a fusion of the Orient and the Occident, or traditions and modernism. These themes have been mentioned in a lot of booklets and tour guides (Cheung, 1999). Choi et al, 2008 stated that Hong Kong also has other favourable conditions, such as, advantage in geography, safety, convenient to travel and live and special benefits to Mainland Chinese tourists. The countries, which target tourism revenue as their primary national income, always have tourism development scheme. It is included what new manmade attractions should be built, and attracting more tourists come and spend in the country. However, then they can hurt the industry at the same time. The national leadership can produce wide influence in tourism. They will agitate local to be discrimination or ardour in visitors (Lundberg, 1990).

According to the above literature, there are various travel motivations which have reviewed. Satisfying psychological needs is the main reason. Shopping, business travel and cultural travel are the general travel types of Mainland Chinese tourists visiting Hong Kong. However, everyone also has different behaviour and two same people do not exist. Therefore, two research questions should be included: is it only pull factors to make more and more Mainland Chinese tourists visiting Hong Kong? Secondly, what profile of Mainland Chinese tourists travelling in Hong Kong mainly?

Tourist Motivation to Travel

Tourist motivations are important factors in understanding tourist behaviour in relation to destination choice and motivation relates to the needs, goals and preference of the tourists. In many tourism motivations are recognized as starting point in order to understand tourist behaviours (Crompton, 1979). Motivations have also been seen as a tool to segment tourism market. According to Backman (1995) motivations are associated with individual basic needs for participating, for instance in activities. Today, motivation tourism is the popular topic in research. The most one popular typology of tourist motivation is Crompton’s (1979) push and pull model which emphasizes that tourist’s choice of a travel destination is influenced by two forces. Push factors that push individuals from home, and pull factors that pull individuals toward a destination. In other words, people are traveling because they are pushed by their internal motives and pulled by external forces of a travel destination (Lam and Hsu, 2006). It has been stated that most push factors derive from individual’s intangible or intrinsic desires, such as desire for escape, adventure seeking, dream fulfilment, novelty seeking, rest and relaxation, health and fitness, prestige, and socialization (Chon, 1989).

The Plearn Wan (Hua Hin) is the first Eco Vintage Village in Thailand. The Plearn Wan village has been established on about three rai site at Phetkasem Road, Hua Hin between soi Hua Hin 38 and 40 opposite Klai Kangwon Palace of King Rama VII. The Eco Vintage Village recaptures the old elegance and classic charm of the old in Hua Hin. Plearn Wan is on an open lawn area with a two-storey wooden building around the village. It reminds a live museum and the vintage settings is based on the villages of previous generations. Plearn Wan aims to be a center for people to learn and experience Hua Hin’s of the past. Plearn Wan’s village is environmentally friendly and use recycled paper wrap and containers. The most of all employees live in the adjacent community. Plear nWan provides an elevator for the elderly and a slope for people with disabilities in response to the concept of free space for everyone. At Plearn Wan village there is restaurant, coffee shop, clothes shop, candy shop and liquor shop from the past. There is plenty of opportunity to take nice photos and buy souvenirs. At weekends there is an open air cinema. On a busy weekend Plearn Wan village is visited several thousands of people. This has become one of the main Hua Hin’s attractions. The entrance to Plearn Wan village is free of charge. The most of tourists go to visit in the village because they need to think about the part when they was young.

This research focuses on the tourist motivation and activities related to the destinations in Plearn Wan in Hua Hin. Based on the reasons that why the tourists interested in Plearn Wan, Hua Hin more than that they go to aboard or shopping in the luxury department stores. Plearn Wan is a new destination attraction in Hua Hin, the tourists can enjoy on behalf of the center of happiness place where times stopped in the past. Moreover the design of village shops made from wood, that can make tourist feel in the 2499 again. Plearn Wan Village, in order to retain to the tourists motivation and developing for interesting place.

Clear title of project : Tourist Motivation and Attraction : A case study of the Plearn Wan Eco Vintage Village in Hua Hin.

Concise statement of research problem : The concept of Plearn Wan Eco Vintage Village is the old style, also the materials and equipment for the built and construction not enough because it hard to find the same things in order. Such as furniture, vase, plate, bowl, lamp and many things to decorate in the village. From this reason, Plearn Wan Eco Vintage Village has develop and create new things successively to the tourist attraction.

Project objective : The objective from this research are:

To analyze the roles of motivation in tourist’s decision making to visit Plearn Wan.
To measure the tourists that satisfy and need to revisit in Plearn Wan.
Conceptual Framework :
Tourists’ Characteristics
– Gender
– Age
– Nationality
– Occupation
Tourist Expectation
Eco Vintage Village in Thailand
Tourists’ satisfaction/dissatisfaction
Result Analysis
Strategy to Develop Tourists’ Motivation
And Further Research
The scope and definition of the study :

This research will occur in Plearn Wan Eco Vintage Village, Hua Hin. The questionnaire provided by information counter in front the village. Also the staff or student will give it to the tourists when they free. This research focused on tourist motivation in this place and satisfaction to shops inside and need to revisit in this village next times.

Tourist : a person who visit in Plearn Wan Eco Vintage Village, Hua Hin.

Assumptions : all of tourist that go to visit in Plearn Wan Village. Tourist are majority in this village. The satisfaction and need to revisit in this place again.

Limitations : time frame is one of the limitation for this research, it is a short period of time to collect data for the research. The questionnaire will translated to 2 languages, Thai and English only because it’s international language. In questions, which result to the tourist motivation include the satisfaction or disatisfaction in this place.

Background : Plearn Wan is the first Eco Vintage Village in Thailand. It has been established under the business ideology. The site about three rai located on Phetkasem road, Hua Hin, Prachuap Kiri Khun Province. Plearn Wan was actually created under the concept of live museum and perceived in visitor’s a real community or place allowing people to spend the good times together. This village designed in an open lawn area with a two storey wooden building around a green grass median and have its vintage setting and decorations closed to the villages of previous generation.

Literature review :

Tourist motivation is the major factor to success in tourism industries. “Push and pull” theory has already become the effective method to study tourist motivation (Dann ,1977). For a long time, the academic circles pay much attention to the “Push and Pull” force factors of travel destination. The tourist motivation and activities is important for destinations to understand leisure tourist destination choice (Moscardo,1996). Motivation has been referred to as psychological, biological, social needs and wants, including internal (or emotional) and external forces (Chon, 1989). The successful of destination depend on the motivation and attraction in the place. Also it can increased tourist come to travel and visit it effected to market share stronger economic (Lewis,1993).

The concept of motivation and attraction result the fact that tourists’ satisfaction at destination. Destination marketing is the possibilities of arranging more tourism activities. The regional cooperation needs to be further coordinated and more marketing efforts and investment is required. For Plearn Wan Eco Vintage Village, it would be better to emphasize the variety of village offers rather than the different style, since motives vary more between different types of village than between different regions. Tourists are persons seeking satisfying leisure experiences on trip away from home. This means a search for nuclear elements of attractions that individuals can experience in person. The tourists’ psychology reveal that they are motivated by a wide range of needs. These might included the need for rest, relaxation, novelty, education, regression, or prestige. Today, Plearn Wan Eco Vintage Village is a new beautiful place that motivate tourist visitor (Berger, Arthur, 1993).

Destination development becomes an important issue in tourism studies. Understanding tourism motivation and activities will help destinations improve their products and services. Not only enhance the quality of products, more importantly is to be aware of the exact needs of target tourists and where the main tourist markets area. The principal motivation for a business or region to serve tourist are generally economic. An individual business is interested primarily in its own revenues and costs, while a community or region in concerned with tourism’s overall contribution to the economy, as well as its social and environmental impact. A good understanding of tourism’s economic impacts is therefore important for tourism industry, government officials and community

Nowadays, in the are of motivation and attraction to destination become to many research. Only few studies concentrate on examining the motivations and profiles of health and wellbeing tourists. Some studies have focused on different sub-sectors, such as spa tourists, yoga tourists or spiritual tourists (Lehto, 2006). For Plearn Wan Eco Vintage Village focused on the old live style building that can make the tourists feel like they was young because in village decorated shop and sell the products from the past. Also tourist never see in this day before but they can find and by it to collect in this place. Moreover, tourism’s economic impacts are therefore and important consideration in state, regional and community planning and economic development. Economic impacts are also important factors in marketing and management decision. Communities therefore need to understand the relative importance of tourism to their region, including tourism’s contribution to economic activity in the area. The uncertain market for tourism in Plearn Wan Eco Vintage Village means that visitor attraction must work hard to understand what the tourists wanted and then improving and developing to the best attraction and motivated the tourist need to visit. The motivations are connected to individuals’ basic needs for participating diverse activities, developing preferences, and expecting satisfaction. The motivations of wellbeing and wellness activities, purchasing wellbeing and wellness products and services or participating in wellbeing holiday are also connected to customers’ needs and interests (Backman , 1995). Plearn Wan has been set the method to improve to be better and interesting to tourists destination choice for travel and relax on the weekend.

The quality of the environment, both natural and man-made are essential to tourism. However, tourism’s relationship with the environment is complex. It involves many activities that can have adverse environmental effects. Many of these impacts are linked with the construction of general infrastructure such as roads and airports, and of tourism facilities, including resorts, hotels, restaurants, shops, golf courses and marinas. The negative impacts of tourism development can gradually destroy the environmental resources on which it depends. On the other hand, tourism has the potential to create beneficial effects on the environment by contributing to environmental protection and conservation. It is a way to raise awareness of environmental values and it can serve as a tool to finance protection of natural areas and increase their economic importance.

Environment nearby a tourism destination interrelate with tourism action happening in the Plearn Wan Eco Vintage Village. A change in whichever environment can change the pattern of tourism. As follow :

Political : There are several concerns to consider that affecting in tourism the other state political people are making the small thing to a large extent and they are making the public in to troubles these impacts have a serious impact on the travel and tourism industry, leading to increased business failures demise of certain destinations.

Climate : is obviously important for tourism, many tourists find it to have a high change of sunny and warm weather at their holiday destination, in order to relax by swimming, sun bathing and sight seeing in foreign place. For the global tourism industry, climate change bring more risks than opportunities. There will be regional and seasonal shifts in tourist flows resulting in both winners. However, it is undoubted that the tourism will continue to be a growth sector and despite the challenge of climate change. In Plearn Wan Eco Vintage Village is friendly with environment because it building around green grass median and designed buildings by wood.

The effective manager must not only have very good knowledge of the region where they are personally based, but the should also from their own are which are linked to it insignificant itineraries. Managers become more competent, tourism boards more effective on their expenditure, marketer target and researchers deliver and insightful analysis. Further analysis is required to understand the tourism system of certain type of tourism. Also A Whole Tourism System is useful in analyzing in tourism industry to successful in each destination (Leiper, 1995).

Data required :

The data required for this research are the tourist satisfaction or dissatisfaction in the destination. This research based on the tourist motivation and attraction in the destination choice. Theory related on Push and pull factor in order and analyze the data. Plearn Wan Eco Vintage Village, Hua Hin internal data, such as background information and activities in the village, are necessary for better educating and understanding.

Data source :

The data source in this research divided by two parts, the first data is which collect from the tourist directly and the secondary collect from shop owner in Plearn Wan Eco Vintage Village, and from the literature review, such as theories, book, and journal.

Data collection technique :

Researcher will random simple the method for selecting the sample that present the population. Questionnaire will be used as instrument to collect the data from Plearn Wan Village tourists’ who

Visit in this place. Questionnaire is one of the most commonly use for data collection in research (Veal,2005). The reasons for using questionnaire are that it has less disturb to tourist or visitor than other method, as well as, it is the quickest way to collect the data with in the time limitation of this research. In this research, the questionnaire will be translated to 2 languages, Thai and English only because in this destination is new attraction in Hua Hin that is not know well in foreigner. The questionnaire will be given to tourists and visitors checking at the front of village and ask the question when they free or checking out. Moreover the use of the Internet has also become a valuable tool to collect, capture, and share information from different sources. Internet provides many capabilities, including the capability to transfer data files electronically. Large amounts of data can be transferred from one location to another in a matter of seconds. This capability can improve the timeliness of obtaining information necessary to support organizational performance measurement analyses. Many books and manuals are available that provide information on use of internet.

Data analysis :

In this research, data will be analyzed using descriptive-Inferential statistic and SPSS computer system(Statistic Package for the Social Science).

Berger, Arthur, 1993 Vietnam Tourism/Arthur Asa Berger, Retrieved from : http://www.google.com/books?hl=th&lr=&id=KETzAmFyu3gC&oi=fnd&pg=PR6&dq=whole+tourism+systems+in+vietnam&ots=tRyyqyKfUI&sig=HozafJDFUFl_BEg6UYTZHEOVc2Y#v=onepage&q=&f=false

Dann,, G. M. (1977) Anomie ego-enhancement and tourism. Annals of Tourism Research, 4 (4),

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408-424.

Crompton, J.L.1993 ” Economic impact analysis : Myths and misapplication” Trends 30 : P 9

Chon, K.S., 1989. Understanding recreational travelers’ motivation, attitudes, and

satisfaction. The Tourist Review 44 (1), 3-7.

Lehto, 2006. Yoga tourism as a niche within the wellness tourism market. Tourism Recreation Research 31 (1), 5-14.

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Leiper, N. 1995 Tourism Management Collingwood, VIC : TAFE Publications

Tourist Marketing Strategies After Disaster Tourism Essay

The tourism business around the world which is one of the most susceptible and vulnerable sectors, must always manage and survive from the global crises. In recent decades, the tourism industry in many countries all over the world has experienced major crises from natural disasters such as hurricanes, storm, and tsunami to terrorist attacks, political instability, and economic recession. Generally, disasters are large non-controllable problems that evaluate the capability of nations and communities to effectively protect the population and its ability to recover after the disasters. No tourist destination is immune to such crisis. Hence, the global tourism industry requires strategies and set of directions which help tourism businesses prepare a way to manage a crisis event from its onset and rapidly implement a recovery strategy. The purpose of this essay is to examine the post-disaster destination marketing viewpoint, its effects on the city of New Orleans, and the attempt to reposition as a premier destination for domestic and international of New Orleans after the devastating effects of Hurricane Katrina, the most destructive natural disaster in American history in August 2005. Besides, this essay will critically examine the effectiveness of recovery marketing strategies undertaken by the city’s tourism marketing organizations and the lessons learned for post disaster market repositioning are also discussed.

The first section will define the tourist destination, destination crisis, tourism disaster, and a narrative of vital tourism statistics for the city of New Orleans before the hurricane. The second section will mention the effects of the hurricane on the New Orleans tourism. Finally, the third phase will critically examine the effectiveness of recovery marketing strategies undertaken by the city’s tourism marketing organizations.

According to Beirman (2003), a destination is defined as a country, state, region, city or town which is marketed or markets itself as a place for tourist to visit. Many countries’ main income is collected from tourism activities; they have invested heavily in tourism and required a high level of economic dependence on inbound tourism. The economic disruption to the country, state or region is considered as a result in the viability of a destination and it could be a result in loss of income, unemployment and poverty. However, these implications do not determine the choice of destination in tourists and their prime concern is to travel to destinations that satisfy their own desires with minimum threats to their safety and well-being. Therefore, the marketing of destination crisis is no longer being treated as a problem of a specific destination; it is now an issue of global tourism industry and become a critical political, economic and social priority for many nations which tourism is a significant industry.

Faulkner and Russell (2000, cited in Beirman 2003) defined a disaster as ‘a tourism destination is confronted with sudden, unpredictable, catastrophic changes over which it has little control’. In order to modify the definition of Faulkner and Russell, Beirman defines a destination crisis as ‘a situation requiring radical management action in response to events beyond the internal control of the organisation, necessitating urgent adaptation of marketing and operational practices to restore the confidence of employees, associated enterprises and consumers in the viability of the destination’.

For many years, New Orleans was an ideal vacation destination and it is the world famous tourist destination due to its rich cultural heritage, copiousness of unique food and many opportunities to enjoy local art, music and festivals. Throughout the past 30 years, New Orleans focuses on its efforts to attract tourists by constantly redefine its image through all taglines such as ‘The Crescent City’, ‘The Gateway to the Mississippi Valley’, ‘America’s Most Interesting City’, ‘The City that Care Forgot’, and the ‘The Big Easy’ (Clement 2008). Moreover, it often cited as “European” charm and the unique French Quarter historic district, thus, there is a large number of tourists visit the city for many years to take part in the distinct experience that New Orleans has offered as a vacation venue. In January 2005, just seven months before Hurricane Katrina, New Orleans was ranked sixth among the top United States vacation destinations which were conducted by the University of New Orleans (UNO) Hospitality Research Centre (Chacko and Marcell 2008). Statistically, in 2004, tourism of New Orleans was one of the main economic engines of the city and the employment in hospitality and leisure accounted around 80,827 jobs generating $30 million in state income taxes. Besides, the number of visitors came to city reach to peak 10.1 million and spent $4.9 billion in 2004. Before the Hurricane Katrina occurred, the tourism industry accounted for 3.8% of Gross State Product, provided 175,000 direct jobs, and generated under 8% of total tax revenues of the states (Louisiana Research Team 2004).

New Orleans is a unique circumstance of Hurricane Katrina. Faulkner (2001) addressed the difference between the definition of crises and disaster that crisis was defined as ‘induced by the actions or inactions of the organization’ while a disaster was considered to be an ‘induced natural phenomena or external human action’. The terrorist attack September 11, 2001 in the U.S and Chernobyl nuclear accident would be classified as crises while the Turkey earthquake and the plane crash in Lockerbie were disasters. According to Faulkner’s definition, Hurricane Katrina would have been classified as a disaster with over 1,300 died; 228,000 housing units were flooded in the New Orleans metropolitan area and over 70% of 188,000 housing units were damaged by the storm and subsequent flood (Olshansky et al. 2008). However, the poorly man-made concrete levee walls which were designed by the U.S. Corps of Engineers, a federal agency aimed to protect the city breached, did the flood waters deluge 80% of the city and created a crisis of gigantic proportions. In addition, federal, state, and local government authorities lacked of capacity in preparing and re-acting in a timely manner to the city citizen’s needs. Therefore, the Hurricane Katrina can be described as an induced natural phenomenon or a disaster followed by the inactions of organizations or a crisis.

Two major organisations responsible for the overall tourism and hospitality marketing of the New Orleans are the New Orleans Metropolitan Convention and Visitors Bureau (NOMCVB) and the New Orleans Tourism Marketing Corporation (NOTMC). The primary mission of NOMCVB is bring meetings, conventions, and tour groups to the city, supply many hotels, restaurants, attractions and provide tourism goods and services for customers. This organisation uses personal selling as the primary sales strategy and solicits business from several tourism intermediaries such as meeting planners and tour operators. The second organisation’s goal is to spur the city visitation and uses two million dollar in its budget for advertising and positioning the leisure market of New Orleans. Besides, tourism marketers capitalise New Orleans’s strength as an exotic, unique, and ‘foreign’ locale (Stanonis 2006). In addition, just two months before Katrina, marketers produced a television commercial which is part of the summer campaign 2005, featuring New Orleans’s well-known and talented local musicians with titled ‘Do They Play Jazz in Heaven?’ According to Kotler et al. (2005), the appeal of the message was more emotional than rational and included the lines ‘do they play jazz in heaven, in New Orleans we know they do’ (Chacko and Marcell 2008). These messages reinforced the well-established position of the city as an exciting and popular destination with great food and music. However, the arrival of Katrina made a major shift in positioning strategy in producing hundreds of hours of negative publicity in the mass media.

Unfortunately, New Orleans’s city was truly in a state of disaster after Hurricane Katrina. The storm and flooding are not only washed away physical infrastructure of the city, but also eroded the perception of the city’s tourism destination. According to Northington (cited in Chacko and Marcell 2008), the city loss $15.3 million and this was potentially devastating to New Orleans’s tourism industry, especially the loss of economic impact from many festivals and events that it hosts. However, the biggest obstacle that New Orleans’ tourism industry has to face is the tarnished perception as a tourist destination of the city. Faulkner (2001) claimed that the power of media and tendency in lingering negative images, the destination usually takes longer to recover than the period requires services restore to normal.

The tourism industry of New Orleans has met a lot of challenges after Hurricane Katrina. Prior the disaster, the research focused on measuring the industry and profiling the visitors to New Orleans, but now the focus has sharply shifted to measuring the perceptions of visitors about New Orleans. Mayor C. Ray Nagin said in an interview with the New Orleans Times-Picayune that ‘We have an image challenge throughout the country. You ask what New Orleans is like today, and any people only have images of a city in crisis. And that’s a concern, that they don’t see the rebuilding that is going on’ (Thevenot 2005). Moreover, due to the national and international media continued to display images of a ravaged city every detail, the tourism industry was getting worse and worse. According to journalist Eric Morgan (2008), ‘because of the media, people believe we have infrastructure issues, hotels aren’t open, restaurants aren’t operational, and there are no supporting service industry workers’. In March 2006, the New Orleans Tourism Marketing Corporation conducted a perceptions study of a panel of 5,000 online travellers, 22% indicated they believed that some neighbourhoods of New Orleans still had standing flood water from Hurricane Katrina, 14% of them believed New Orleans is not a safe place to visit because of contaminated air or drinking water, and 12% indicated that the historic districts in New Orleans are still destroyed or devastated. However, the optimism seems to have increased over time with 77% of meeting planners over the three quarter between October 2005 and January 2006 indicated that they were “very optimistic” about the sufficient recovery of New Orleans in regaining its status as a major destination city. Although meeting planners fully expect city’s recovery, they believe it will be a slow process (Chacko and Marcell 2008).

In reality, New Orleans is different from the potential leisure travellers’ perception. The city’s tap water was safe to drink according to city health officials and there is no standing water on the streets. Transportation and airline are suitable to handle travellers and 80% of hotel room inventory has rebounded as pre-Katrina levels. Nevertheless, many flooded neighbourhoods’ recovery is still slow and the city is continued framing news coverage in these environments and undermining positive messages by the media. Therefore, the challenge is to find the appropriate marketing strategies to mitigate the impacts of disaster for New Orleans.

As the result of the Katrina disaster, the NOMCVB, NOTMC, and other tourism organizations have elaborated on their past branding campaigns and created new campaigns to change perceptions of potential travellers and using brand elements such as new slogans and logos to alter the images of New Orleans. The slogans and themes try to counteract negative images which were played out in the national media and reconstruct and increase brand identity of New Orleans. According to Braun-LaTour, LaTour, and Loftus (2006), ‘reminding consumers of their past connection with a brand may be a particularly effective way to repair the brand’s image after a crisis situation’. Slogans were launched through branding campaigns of organisations such as ‘fall in love with Louisiana all over again’, ‘New Orleans: Happenin’ everyday’, ‘do you know what it means to Miss New Orleans? We know you do’ and etc. to rebrand New Orleans as a multicultural destination and created a sentimental image of New Orleans, divert attention of travellers from the human suffering’s reality, physical destruction and stimulate consumer desires to travel to the city by constructing a narrative of past grandeur. According to Greenberg (2000), the urban branding campaigns function not only as ‘texts-on-cities’ but also power-laden ‘texts-as-cities’ that position of organisations and tourism professionals as important voices in the articulation of the collective identity of the city and thus ultimately the urban brand.

In January 2007, with support from Lieutenant Governor Mitch Landrieu, the NOMCVB launched ‘an aggressive, strategic, marketing, public relations and direct sales campaign designed to celebrate its authentic culture, lure domestic and international visitors back, preserve the city’s leading industry (hospitality) and overcome misperceptions about New Orleans among consumers’ (NOMCVB Press Release 2007). The ‘Forever New Orleans’ campaign is an international branding campaign which was designed to re-brand the city internationally by showcasing the confidence of hospitality industry in New Orleans and developing a deeper understanding of the city culture as unique and authentic. It uses headlines in outdoor advertisements and print campaigns such as ‘New Orleans is Open. To Just About Anything’, ‘Soul is Waterproof’, ‘Old World, New Promise’ and other phrases to celebrate a spirit of swagger, appeal the meetings industry, travel trade professionals and the traveling public. According to Morgan (2008), the largest out-of-home advertising company in the United States – CBS Outdoor donated 44 billboards worth a valued of $3 million to New Orleans. Besides, the 30 minutes television show ‘A Whole New Orleans’ attempts to attract visitors with displays of the city’s most authentic, historic destination and unique culture.

The NOMCVB and other tourism professionals try to increase the development of New Orleans’s tourism post Katrina and mention the perspective of ‘internalising the brand’ as a major ingredient in branding New Orleans as an entertainment destination (Gotham 2007). New urban rebranding campaigns are being implemented in order to present ‘authentic’ image of New Orleans as clearly demarcated, disconnected, and segregated from flooded neighbourhoods by tourism professionals. Besides, a new industry of ‘disaster tourism’, for example ‘Hurricane Katrina: America’s Worst Catastrophe!’ tour through devastated neighbourhoods of Gray Line New Orleans Bus Tours focused on ordinary places that have historical and cultural significance thereby mobilizing travellers to visit them. Moreover, in order to attract corporate brands to invest in New Orleans, political and economic elites have pushed for the development of lucrative tax subsidies and help finance the rebuilding effort. Therefore, the above points demonstrate that tourism organisations are trying to marketing the imaginary of New Orleans base on entertainment version to attract investment and rebuild the city. The branding strategy is a new method to promote urban place to align local political interests with transnational corporate entertainment to organise urban rebuilding. Rebranding New Orleans post-Katrina is not just attracting consumers and visitors to spend money in the city, but also ‘about socializing residents to view the city as a brand and imagining an urban future that conforms to a semiotic script’ (Gotham 2007).

Due to tourism professionals mention the perspective of ‘internalising the brand’ as a major ingredient in branding New Orleans as an entertainment destination, there are some conflicts intrinsic in the understanding of urban brands. Firstly, there is the lack of clear and understandable object capable of being branded. Cities and places are multifaceted and complicated systems of organization and they contain a range of different groups, diverse identities and conflicted social relations. Branding destinations is more complex and challenging than other goods and services because of the existence and interdependence of multiple stakeholders, multiple components and multiple suppliers involved in the tourism service delivery (Buhalis 2000) and especially when it involves national characteristics and loyalties and popular permission of whole population. The second is the lack of control between urban branding organisations and branding campaigns when they deal with uncertain and unstable environment of many stakeholders who have diverse interests, contending perceptions and urban visions (Park and Petrick 2005). The branding work of New Orleans’s tourism professionals are informed by market research and tourist trends, however, they do not know whether the campaigns are successful or not. Besides, the branding process is full of instability and uncertainty. Moreover, the urban branding’s unpredictability derives from gained knowledge about visitors through surveys is partial and incomplete because consumer’s desires and preferences always change. Thirdly, there is exist the risk that visitors and residents may reject the images of brand and view them as irrelevant, inauthentic or affronts to local culture. Additionally, there is the lack of consensus about the positive or negative effects of tourism in the city and a clear differentiation between residents who favour tourism and those who against it. In the construction of urban reality and produce meanings, residents are actively involved in and sometimes they are challenge the dominant imaginary of urban and brand. Due to the views of residents about New Orleans are not singular or fixed, thus, ‘internalising the brand’ is no means ensured or guaranteed. There is unclear and questionable about the partial internalisation whether it is realised as a vehicle for enhancing brand value or not when some residents may incorporate some affective links with the New Orleans brand into their lives.

In summary, hurricane Katrina has weakened the New Orleans’s tourism industry, displaced thousands of people, problematized meanings of community identity, and can cause wholesale changes to all aspects of tourism destination management. Numerous prescriptive strategies have provided examples, templates and checklists for tourism agencies to formulate marketing strategies which are the very important in the recovery process. Restoring the urban brand strategy of New Orleans is a differentiation and diversification process whereby local tourism organizations harness and construct destination images in order to control consumer impressions and understandings of a particular locale. Although urban brand has network of power operate and clear profiteering motives, it is also important to recognise branding as a contradictory process with unpredictable outcome, unforeseen consequences and facing a long road to recover destination image. However, tourism marketers of the city are using repositioning strategy or (re)brand strategy to make New Orleans regain its status as an outstanding tourism destination.

Tourist Generating Region And Tourist Destination Region Tourism Essay

There are numerous factors influencing demand from the tourist generating area. These are in terms of economic determinants, social determinants and political determinants.

“An individual may be motivated to travel, the ability to do so will depend on a

number of factors related to both the individual and the supply environment”. (R.K

Malhotra 1997)

To begin with, economic determinant includes personal income. Distribution of income and value of currency. Personal income is the availability of the finance. This is the most evident influencing tourism demand. Incomes and expenditures are closely linked and as a result of that when price increases, demand decreases and income increases, demand decreases and income increases, the price remain the same, then demand increases. Distribution of income within a tourist generating region is likely to affect tourism demand and supply. For example, twisted income distribution in India where there are relatively few wealthy and many poor households, is likely to limit the proportion of people who can afford to travel internationally. This people can be famous film stars who go on a holiday.

Furthermore, exchange rates have a far accomplishment influence on tourism demand from generating area and international tourism. It is highly vulnerable to exchange rate variations that vary the cost of a holiday significantly. “It is widely acknowledged that both domestic and international tourism make an ‘economic contribution’ to a destination, that tourism has positive and negative ‘economic impacts’ and that it brings ‘benefits and costs’ to a destination”.( Dwyer L, Forsyth P, and Dwyer ,W .2010). Economical options are often preferred while dealing with cost of travel as more money is needed at the cost of product. Before an individual decides to travel or gets a reason to travel the very first thing to be considered is the money. This will enhance the success of the journey. For example, people will want to enjoy to their optimal level, therefore will chose luxury products which comes at a higher cost. these higher costs are often conversed through competitive prices as supply is high , and sometimes exchange rates supports and as a result tourist from Australia, New Zealand, America get more on their dollar value which simply means the Fiji dollar diminishes, and they have more money to spend in Fiji if Fiji becomes their tourist destination region. Thus, it leads to a change in tourism demand and supply.

Similarly, social element also influences tourism demand. This includes demographic variable. For example, the age structure, a 60 year man would prefer a very discreet area where he can be alone by himself from all the noise and when compared to a 15 year old kid who want to enjoy his holiday with lots of fun and will want to have a blast. Thus, there is a gap which often applies on the type of travel product people chose and the behaviour and the surrounding nature of an individual have a major impact on the demand. The impact of education level can also be a determined of both employment natures and income earning potential for this type of practice. The stage in the family life cycle has a bearing on the availability of time and disposable income available for tourism. Holiday entitlements leads increase in the demand since holidays are being paid and every individual wants to relax and have some time off from their daily life. There are other factor such as home ownership, occupation, ethnic group, crisis, and threats such as terrorism , epidemic diseases and natural disasters such as the tsunami which hit japan recently and it leads t o decrease in tourism demand since people will now try to restructure their houses and use the money which has been saved for a holiday.

Additionally, political elements such as government tax policies and controls on tourist spending influence the tourism demand and supply. There are approaches taken by government to influence demand to a great extent. For example, exchange control, currency export, prohibition, taxation, visa regulations and many more. Many governments have used tourism as a source of tax revenue because when tourist comes to Fiji they are given the tourist price and not the local price and in this way certain percentage of tax being paid goes to government as tax revenue.

Subsequently, the demand at a tourist destination is influenced by economic and political factors. The dominant among these are the “price” of the tourism product and services and its quality. In today’s world every individual is going for cheaper products since the cost of living is very high. In a tourism industry the suppliers have to be very well with the of price their goods but due to price competition and oligopoly companies operating in countries it is required to stay in the price limit. According to Burkart & Medik, 1981, tourism suppliers, such as in the accommodation and transport sectors may well price their goods and services independently, but a close watch on the behaviour of their competitors is clearly necessary. Thus, when there is a lot of competition the price goes down and the customers benefit. In order to control the price of goods and services, the government intervenes in between and gives a fixed price for these companies to operate.

Equally as demand increases it influence the supply level of the tourism industry. This factor is known as the Geographic factor .These factors are mainly seasonality and attraction. Tourism demand goes up and down throughout the year.

“This temporal peaking pattern is called seasonality”. (Norbert Vanhove 2005)”.

The supply is influenced as the seasonal pattern affects the occupancy rate of accommodation. For example, during the peak season, the accommodation is almost full meaning that there is not enough to cater for that season which results in the rise of price. On the other hand, since tourism supply is perishable at off peak season business is lost. In tourism regions, seasonality leads to seasonal employment, and the correlative seasonal unemployment causes welfare problems. Attraction is also one of the key supply elements in the tourism sector.

“Without attractions there is no tourism”. (Vanhove, N)

Primary natural attractions, man-made and purpose built attractions are the elements of ‘attractions’. Good attraction makes a particular place famous which influences supply. For example, Fiji is very famous for white sandy beaches and known as a paradise and hence, a lot of tourists visit Fiji just because of these attractions. The magic of Fiji’s natural beauty is matched only by the world-famous friendliness of its people, and their diverse, captivating culture. Thus, geographic factor also influences the supply in terms of seasonal employment and other attractions.

In addition destination factors are another factor which influences the supply on tourism regions. There are many elements of the destination factors, but the main aspects of destination factors are ‘quality of the products’ and ‘technology’. The quality of the products provides the main image of a particular company. According to Peter Keller &Thomas Beiger, people who has less leisure time has more money therefore prefer expensive high-quality products and services which are to be developed personally and in a timesaving manner.

Media also plays an important part while promoting the products for particular company. For example, at the tourist generating region, rich people looks at the advertisements on the internet and prefer for the high quality expensive product but when reaches the destination region they do not find the products to their expectations. The raise in technology also plays a major part in the supply influence of the tourist regions. Its affluences job which relates to less man power, leads to savings for a particular company. For example, computer reservations systems which replaced manual bookings where by cost and time were saved. On another hand, when high technology advertisements are created in such a way and it leads maximum attraction. For example, three dimensional videos are shot for room views, beaches, corals, mountains to maximise attraction. Thus, technology and media influences the supply of the tourism industry.

To conclude, it is indeed true that where there is a demand, there is supply, and hence sometimes supply do create demand. These are always determined by some factors which influence the demand and supply of the tourism industry. Some of these factors are individual preference, economic factor and others. The supply is also determined by geographic factor, technology, and media. This is very much evident in the tourism industry. Thus, according to Oliver Goldsmith, “Life is a journey that must be traveled no matter how bad the roads and accommodations”.

(Word Limit: Approximately 1234 words)

The Tourist Gaze by John Urry | Summary and Analysis

Critically consider the argument that Urry’s concept of the ‘tourist gaze’ places too much emphasis on the visual.

Urry’s ‘tourist gaze’ remains one of the most influential concepts in tourism research. The ideas developed by Urry are still widely quoted and relevant today but a major criticism of his work is that too much emphasis is placed on the visual aspects of being a tourist rather than the whole experience. This essay will investigate this claim before concluding whether or not this is the case.

In order to do this, this essay will be broken into several parts. The first section will look at what the ‘tourist gaze’ actually is. It is important to have a definition of this term before proceeding with the rest of the assignment. The second part of this essay will draw on wider academic research to test whether or not Urry’s ideas do place too much emphasis on the visual. The final part of this essay will bring together all the arguments to form some sort of conclusion.

In order to fully understand the ‘tourist gaze’ it would be useful to have a clear understanding of what a tourist is and what tourism as an activity is. Turner et al. (2005) define a tourist as, “someone who has travelled to another place for a brief sojourn, an experience that necessarily entails a distinct period of transition and discontinuity from the everyday world” (p. 11). Urry (2002) describes the act of tourism as, “a leisure activity which presupposes its opposite, namely regulated and organised work. It is one manifestation of how work and leisure are organised as separate and regulated spheres of social practice in ‘modern’ societies” (p. 2). The environments that these tourists visit are subject to what Urry (1990) has described as the ‘tourist gaze’. Urry states that tourists are, “directed to features of the landscape that, which separate them off from everyday experience. Such aspects are viewed because they are taken to be in some sense out of the ordinary”. The tourist and the viewpoints are manipulated, “so that the gaze falls upon what the gazer expects to see” (Turner et al, 2005: 11). Most of the time this gaze is from a static location but if it is mobile then it is directed from an insulated environment such as from a train window or a sign-posted route. The tourist only sees what they are supposed to see. Urry (1990) states, “the typical tourist experience is…to see named scenes through a frame, such as the hotel window, the car windscreen or the window of the coach” (p. 100). In a sense, real life is suspended or hidden away in these places so that the tourist can gaze upon what upon they expect to see. For example, in the Lake District in England, houses can only be built to very exacting specifications with traditional methods and materials. This helps to preserve the traditional look of the area. This expectation has been built up by promotional material such as brochures and adverts on the television. Goss (1993) argues that tourism marketing provide tourists with representational images of the places they are about to visit and this helps form an imaginary construction for the tourist. Culler (1981) argues that tourists read the landscape for anything that represents these pre-established notions.

In The Tourist Gaze, Urry (1990) states that when we go away and become tourists, “we look at the environment…we gaze at what we encounter…and the gaze is socially constructed” (p. 1). Perkins and Thorns (2001) state that there is no single uniform gaze, rather it is, “varied temporally and across social groups and that the concept of the gaze encapsulates tourists’ experiences and is an interpretation of the things they seek and do when on holiday” (p. 187). Perkins and Thorns (2001) go on to argue that, “the gaze is a concept which comprises a way of looking at the world which simultaneously forms what is seen and the way of seeing” (p 187).

There have been numerous criticisms leveled at Urry’s concept of the ‘tourist gaze’. Perhaps the most common one and of most interest to this essay is that the gaze doesn’t fully capture the tourist experience. Perkins and Thorns (2001) argue that there needs to be more of a focus on the concept of the tourist performance because in places like New Zealand, tourists are more about ‘doing’ rather than simply ‘seeing’ or ‘gazing’ and, “thus about putting their bodies into tourism in a way that is not reflected in much of the analysis arising from a focus upon the tourist gaze” (p. 199). This criticism highlights an important change in the tourism industry. This is the search for authentic experiences and the search for experiences that invigorates all the senses. Thrift (1999) suggests that tourists want ‘contact’ with their surroundings. This contact goes beyond the visual realms as suggested by Urry. As Franklin and Crang (2001) point out that tourists, “are seeking to be doing something in the places they visit rather than being endlessly spectatorially passive” (p. 13). Franklin and Chang go on to suggest that tourists have become bored by the gaze.

MacCannell (1989) states that, “touristic consciousness is motivated by its desire for authentic experiences, and the tourist may believe that he is moving in this direction, but often it is very difficult to know for sure if the experience is in fact authentic. It is always possible that what is taken to be entry into a back region is really entry into a front region that has been totally set up in advance for touristic visitation” (p. 101). Urry fails to notice the distinction between authentic experiences and inauthentic ones. MacCannell (2001) believes there is a second gaze, one that is in a way suspicious of the totally visual elements of the tourist gaze. The second gaze is where the tourist is aware that, “something is being concealed from it…the second gaze knows that seeing is not believing. Some things will remain hidden from it…The second gaze turns back onto the gazing subject an ethical responsibility for the construction of its own existence” (p. 36). MacCannell (2001) finds the concept of the tourist gaze as defined by Urry too narrow a concept and argues that it is, “a blueprint for the transformation of the global system of attractions into an enormous set of mirrors to serve the narcissistic needs of dull egos” (p. 26). Nicholson-Lord (2002) is in partial agreement although he also takes issue with the concept of the second gaze as well. He argues that, “tourism is a powerful cultural solvent; it takes customs and beliefs that are locally rooted and distinctive, puts them into the global blending machine and turns them into liquefied gunk to which a mass market has been primed to respond” (p. 24).

Although MacCannell is arguing for the need for a wider experience than Urry suggests, they have both been criticized by those who suggest that they focus too exclusively on the tourist experience and the subjectivity of the tourist. Little mention is given to the subjectivity of the host. In a world where affluent tourists are able to seek out experiences and gaze upon sights in worlds that are just becoming open to them, little mention is given to how this affects the host cultures. Bianchi (2001) states that, “in a world of hyper-mobile capital, instant communications and the mass movement of peoples, international tourism encapsulates the contradictory forces at play in today’s world. These are mobility and freedom for the wealthy few, and immobility and impoverishment for the disenfranchised many” (p. 16). This imbalance is completely ignored in the work of Urry. It would be fair to argue that this is because he places too much emphasis on the visual for the tourist and not enough on looking at the wider impact of tourism on the hosts. As we move into an age of more ethically aware tourism, this becomes more of an important concept. Of course, Urry would argue that there is no single gaze and that this movement to more ethical tourism is just simply a different gaze for a different type of tourist but the fact that he ignores the impact of tourism on the host cultures is evidence that his preoccupations are elsewhere.

The tourist gaze as a concept is a helpful one when studying tourism. It helps us to understand how tourism has evolved and changed over the past few decades. It also helps us to understand how we as tourists act as players within a larger system that has been created to match our expectations of what we want to see on when we go on holiday with the supposed reality of what is actually there. It helps us to understand all the visual sign-posts that are created to help match up these two worlds, the reality and what we expect to see. However, this concept does have some limitations. Although it tries to be all encapsulating, trying to explain all our visual experiences by saying that people from different classes seek different things and gaze on different things when they go on holiday, it is still too narrow. It fails to really encapsulate the entire essence of tourism which is the experiences that you have that can’t be explained away as simply visual. This essay has touched on the notion of performance and contact. This is what tourism is all about. It is about the experiences that you have that come from the smells and sounds and the activities you partake in in the place you are visiting. Of course the sights play a huge part in this but they are not the whole experience.

Another place that Urry’s concept falls flat is his failure to look at tourism from the point of view of the host culture. In this day and age where we are becoming more ethically aware in everything that we consume, including our tourism, this is quite a big failure of the concept. It’s preoccupation on the consumers and how they are being manipulated with no mention of how these consumers impact on the cultures that they visit. Urry’s concept is still useful but it is getting less and less relevant in today’s market.

Bibliography and References

Chin, C.B.N. 2008, Cruising in the Global Economy: Profits, Pleasure and Work at Sea, London: Ashgate.

Franklin, A. and Chang, M. 2001, The trouble with tourism and travel theory?, Tourist Studies, 1(1), 5-22.

Goss, J. 1993, Placing the Market and Marketing the Place: Tourist Advertising of the Hawaiian Islands, 1972-1992, Environment and Planning D: Society and Space, 11, 663-688.

MacCannell, D. 1992, Empty Meeting Grounds: The Tourist Papers, London: Routledge.

McGuigan, J. 2004, Rethinking Cultural Policy, London: McGraw-Hill International

Perkins, H.C. and Thorns, D.C. 2001, Gazing or Performing?: Reflections on Urry’s Tourist Gaze in the Context of Contemporary Experience in the Antipodes, International Sociology, 16(2), 185-204.

Thrift, N. (1999) ‘Still Life in Present Time:The Object of Nature’, conference paper presented to Sociality/Materialism The Status of the Object in Social Science, Brunel University, UK 9–11 September 1999.

Turner et al. 2005, The Tourist Gaze: Towards Contextualised Virtual Environments, Kluwer.

Urry, J. 1990, The Tourist Gaze, London: Sage.

Urry, J. 1992, The Tourist Gaze “Revisited”, American Behavioral Scientist, 36, 172-186.