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TOURISM AS BUSINESSTOPICS What is tourism? Tourism is the temporary short-term movement of people to destinations outside the places where they normally live and work, and their activities during the stay at these destinations. Tourism is the business of providing and arranging holidays and services for people who are visiting a place.
The travel and tourism industry consists of six sectors. They are: 1) tourist attractions; 2) transport; 3) accommodation and catering; 4) tour operators; 5) retail (travel agents and online); 6) public sector tourism.
Tourist attractions are places that tourists want to visit. Transport means ways of traveling between different places, such as trains and airplanes. Accommodation and catering sector includes places to stay, such as hotels, and the food and services that are provided there. Tour operators are people or companies that organize and assemble the different parts of a holiday or tour. Travel agents are people or companies that sell the holiday or tour to the customer. Public sector tourism includes government organizations that promote and develop tourism. Tourism is one of the biggest businesses in the world. There are nearly 800 million international tourist arrivals every year. It employs, directly or indirectly, one in fifteen of all workers worldwide, from A to Z, from airport cleaners to zookeepers, and includes bar staff, flight attendants, tour guides, and resort reps. It is a huge part of the economy of many countries – in countries such as the Bahamas over 60 % of the economy is based on tourism.
Tourism is a fast-growing business. When Thomas Cook organized his first excursion from Leicester to Loughborough in 1841, he probably didn’t know what he was starting. Key developments in the last 150 years or so have led to the rise of mass tourism. There have been technological developments in transport, in particular the appearance of air travel and charter flights. There have been changes in working practices, with workers getting paid holiday time and working shorter and more flexible hours.
In recent years we have seen the growth of the internet and globalization, making the world seem a smaller but very fascinating place. The tourism industry grows faster and faster each year. In 1950, there were 25 million international tourist arrivals. In 2004, the figure was 760 million, and by 2020 it is predicted to be 1.6 billion.
But what are the challenges today? The tourism industry is affected by many different things: international events, economic change, changes in fashion. New concerns and worries appear every year, for example as people become more worried about security and international terrorism, or as the value of their currency changes. But new destinations and new sources of tourists also seem to emerge every year.
Tourism survives. It is a powerful and sometimes dangerous force in the modern world. Tourism creates many good jobs and careers, but it also produces many poor and badly paid jobs. Tourism can help to protect environments and animal life, but it can also damage them. Tourism can save cultures and the local way of life, but it can also destroy them. Tourism can change countries – and people – for the better, but it can also change them for the worse. REASONS FOR TRAVEL
I. People travel for many different reasons. In the tourism industry we divide the reasons for travel into three main categories: leisure tourism, business tourism, and visiting friends and relatives (VFR).
Leisure tourism can mean anything from excursions, day trips, and weekend breaks to package holidays, pleasure cruises, and longer independent trips such as hill walking or treks in the mountains. It also includes cultural trips (for example, to music festivals), educational trips (for example, study tours), and religious trips (for example, pilgrims on a walking tour to a holy place).
Business tourism includes any travel away from one’s main place of residence, for such events as meetings, conferences, and trade fairs. It also includes special trips when workers are given a reward or a ‘thank you’ for good work (this is known as an incentive tour).
Travel in order to visit friends or family relatives is also regarded as part of the tourism industry. This could be for a special family party, such as a wedding or a regular trip made every year.
II. When we look at the movement of tourists there are three types of tourism: domestic, inbound, and outbound. Domestic tourism involves people who take holidays in their own country. Inbound tourism means people entering the country from abroad to take holidays. Outbound tourism involves residents of one country traveling to another country.
The things that attract travelers to a particular country are the following: climate and natural features; built attractions; accommodation; events; food drink and entertainment. The top ten tourist destinations of the world are France, the USA, Spain, Italy, China, the UK, Mexico, Russia, Canada, and Germany. The biggest tourist spenders are the USA, Germany, the UK, Japan, Spain, and France.
The world is a book, and those who do not travel, read only a page. (St. Augustine). A man travels the world over in search of what he needs, and returns home to find it. (Moore).
DESTINATIONS Tourist destination is a place or area to which tourists travel. It may be a resort, but it also may be a city.
The Balearic Islands – Mallorca, Menorca, Ibitsa, Fotmentera.
Floating between Spain and the North African coast, the Balearic Islands offer the perfect location for a fantastic holiday. There are four main islands for you to choose from, each with their own special atmosphere.
The gorgeous climate boasts 300 days a year of guaranteed sunshine, making the islands the ideal setting for a beach holiday. The long hot summer stretches from may to October, with temperatures around +27 C – just right for relaxing and getting a tan.
The islands offer a number of attractions for tourists. Sun-seekers will love the fabulous beaches. Fun-seekers will enjoy the exciting nightlife – the clubs of Ibitsa provide plenty of entertainment for young people. But there’s more to these islands than sun and fun. You can also enjoy wonderful architecture (the Gothic cathedral at Palma is well worth visiting), hilltop villages, olive groves, and hidden beaches. You can take a relaxing fishing or sailing trip, or go to one of the many festivals. If you go in June, don’t miss the spectacular Fiesta of San Juan at Ciutadella on Menorca.
Whatever you want from a holiday, the Balearics will help you find it. Date: 2015-12-24; view: 3236
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