Macro Perspectives of Tourism and Hospitality

CHAPTER 8: The Future World Tourism and Hospitality Issues

1. Safety and Security in Tourism
-the first issue of universal concern is the relationship of tourism to terrorism or, in the larger context, to
safety and security.
-Safety and security, particularly from crime and terrorism, have been very important issues in the
tourism industry for many decades. At present, there is an increase of tourism that specifically targets
tourist destination. The peak of terrorism activity occurs in the early 1990’s.

2.The Impact of the World’s Economy on Tourism

-The world economy has a major impact on the future of the international travel. With a flourishing
world economy, more people will travel. If there is a greater distribution of a country’s wealth, more
people will have the financial means to travel. Related to world economy is population growth.

3. Managing sustainable tourism in a responsible manner

-The third word tourism issue is managing sustainable tourism in a responsible manner. Sustainable
tourism is of utmost importance today and in the future. Measures to educate tourism agencies, the
host communities, and traveler’s about sustainable tourism must be continued as world population
increase.

4. Tourism policy and strategic planning

-Tourism policy and strategic planning is the fourth major world tourism issue. The sustainable benefits
of tourism for local communities will continue to grow in importance. There will be greater efforts
towards partnership of the private and public sectors to alleviate poverty, develop policies to combat
the negative impacts on tourism, and support the economic, socio-cultural, and environmental
contributions of tourism to the world.

5. Using e-commerce tools in tourism

-The fifth world tourism issue is the use of e-commerce tools in tourism. More than 50% of travelers in
the U.S use the internet in planning in their travel and vacations. This occurrence is growing globally. If a
destination does not a good website, it will miss tourism traffic.

6. Tourism education and training

-The sixth major tourism issue is tourism education and training. Globalization and innovation will be the
outstanding feature of tourism education and training in the future. Several innovations are taking place
at some universities.

7. Emerging tourism markets

-The seventh major tourism issue refers to emerging tourism markets. China and India are the two
emerging tourism markets in the near future. These two countries account for about 1/3 of the world’s
population. Each country’s economy is exploding, and a greater segment of the population is anxious to
travel.

8. Quality Tourism Products and Experiences

-The eight major tourism issue is quality tourism product and experiences. Tourism demand greater
variety, flexibility, and quality in their tourism products. Quality in tourism experiences is usually high on
the tourist list.
-In the future, the number and variety of tourism products will change. Adventure travel (jungle tours,
safaris, trekking, underwater exploration) to space travel is being experienced by adventure travelers.
There will be no shortage of active travelers.

9. Partnerships and Strategic Alliances in Tourism

-The ninth major tourism issue is partnership and strategic alliances in tourism. New partnerships are
occurring such as the partnership between the UNWTO and the Meeting Industry last November 28,
2006 in which the United Nations Tourism Satellite Account started to measure the global economic
contribution of the meeting industry. Other partnerships are introducing competition, the use of
cooperation and competition in which the available opportunities are unlimited.

-A recognized form of competition is the rewarding of frequent travelers with points, which can be used
with car rental companies, hotels, airlines, and other components of the tourism industry. Hotels that
have strategic alliances with certain airlines will give the visitors points for room nights spent at the
hotel, which accumulate and are redeemable for free airline tickets or upgrades or for use in booking
future hotel rooms.Tourism partnerships are form of cooperation to facilitate competitive and the same
time mutual interests.

10. The Impacts of Health Issues on Tourism

The tenth major issue is the impacts of health issues on tourism. Most travelers avoid areas that have
high health risks. Diseases spread more rapidly due to travel particularly through international aviation.
Reports released by Harvard Researchers show that the flu virus spread more rapidly due to the
international tourism, especially air travel.
Fear of disease reduces travel demand. Other diseases that affect tourism are AIDS, SARS, and foot and
mouth disease. AIDS was originally brought to the United States and Canada by flight attendant who
contracted the disease in Africa.

11. Effects of Natural Disasters on Tourism

The eleventh major issue is the effects of natural disasters on tourism. Natural disasters have
devastating impacts on the tourism industry. People avoid travel to affected areas. Once this occurs,
there is limited opportunity to use tourism to restart the economy or to obtain new revenues to reinvest
in the tourism and hospitality industry and in the well-being of the local residents.
Airline disruptions caused by storms result in delays and cancellations in weather affected locations. In
addition, delays and grounding cause airplanes to be misallocated for the start of the next round of
flights.

12. Climate Change and Tourism

The twelfth major tourism issue is climate change and its impacts on tourism. Global warming is a
growing concern for travelers. Recently published research by the World Wildlife Fund documents the
ecological footprint of human activities around the world, many of which are embodied in international
travel and tourism. Results show that the world’s ecosystem is being degraded by human at an
unsustainable rate that irreversible damage to the planet as well as triggering population declines at
about 31%, in the land animals since 1970, fresh water creatures by 38%, and marine animals 27%.
Consumption exceeds by about 25% of the Earth’s capacity to provide resources and absorb waste.
Climate Change can cause a ripple effect in tourism. Climate change will affect which tourists visit
certain locations and at what times of the year. This shift in travel patterns and travel periods can have
an impact on travel destinations, which in turn affects the environment, which in turn changes when
visitors desire to come. Environmental impacts will emerge- from fossil fuel power and oil generation
that support various forms of transportation- from accompanying greenhouse gas production.