Tourism Journal - Winter 2012

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The Tourism Society Queens House, 55-56 Lincoln’s Inn Fields, London WC2A 3BH T 0207 269 9693 F 0207 404 2465 E journal@tourismsociety.org W www.tourismsociety.org Registered in England No. 01366846. ISSN: 02613700 Designed and produced by Script Media Group Contact Tony Barry 47 Church Street Barnsley S70 2AS T 01226 734333 E tb@whpl.net W www. whpl.net Š Copyright 2012 The Tourism Society Tourism is the journal of the Tourism Society.The views expressed in Tourism are those of individual authors and not necessarily those of the Tourism Society. Whilst unsolicited material is welcomed, neither transparencies nor unpublished articles can be returned.

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Tourism is only available to members of the Tourism Society and on subscription, it is distributed quarterly to 1800 professionals working in national and regional tourist boards, local government, travel agencies, and tour operators, visitor attractions, accommodation and catering, entertainment, information services, guiding, consultancies and education and training.

Contents

Editorial Prospects for the year ahead ...

Welcome to the latest edition of the Tourism Society Journal.The following articles have been written along the theme of ‘Prospects for the year ahead’; however, I would like to start by taking a moment to look back at this past year – and what a year it has been!

2012 was an unparalleled year for tourism in England, with events such as the Queen’s Diamond Jubilee, London Festival 2012, the Torch Relay and the London 2012 Olympic and Paralympic Games presenting us with the unique opportunity to showcase this country as never before.

We know that 2012 has made 60% of us more proud to be British and 20% more likely to take a holiday at home. It is therefore important that we work hard to capitalise on this ‘feel good factor’ and build on the success of this incredible year to grow tourism in 2013.

If we are to achieve this growth, it is vital that organisations across the tourism industry work in close partnership. Sarah Stewart highlights this in her piece on Destination Management, noting the benefits of working with the private sector.

Partnership marketing in particular will be high on the agenda for VisitEngland next year, as we work more closely with arms-length bodies such as the Arts Council, our destination partners and the private sector to maximise economies of scale and help budgets go further.

It has been without a doubt an unforgettable year, but what happens beyond 2012? Can we ever match such a year? I actually think here in England, we couldn’t be luckier!

Such is the depth of our heritage, the breadth and reach of our culture, and the calibre of our sporting traditions, that we actually have plenty of historical anniversaries, cultural happenings, and world class sporting events to keep us all extremely busy over the coming years.

Let’s use the momentum of 2012 to make 2013 an equally unforgettable year for tourism in this country.

The Government’s view: Committing to build on the success of 2012 Hugh Robertson, MP, Minister for Tourism

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Social Tourism: Holidays matter John McDonald MTS, Director, Family Holiday Association

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The European Perspective:What is ahead of us in 2013?

6 Julie Russell FTS, National Expert, European Commission, DG Enterprise and Industry International Tourism: One billion tourists : One billion opportunities Taleb Rifai, Secretary-General of the World Tourism Organisation

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“It’s beginning to look a lot like...Britain!”

Martin Evans FTS, Principal,The Tourism Business

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Accommodation: Cooperate and thrive Iain Stewart, MTS, Director, freetobook

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Case Study – India:The prospects for....Global Tourism Ken Robinson CBE FTS, Independent tourism advisor

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Market Trends: Creating your own prospects Steve Mills MTS, Director, BDRC Continental

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Skills Development in 2013: Exporting the UK model Brian Wisdom FTS, Chief Executive, People 1st

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Education: Schumpeter, Greece and Tourism Education: A Complex Relationship Dr Andreas Papatheodorou FTS, Associate Professor, University of the Aegean

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Education: An international Master’s student’s perspective Sofia Gonzalez De Aguinaga, Student, King’s College London

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Consultant Case Study:The opportunity for wine tourism Susan Parker Johnston MTS,Vinous Development

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Destination Management: Delivering a successful tourism sector through partnership Sarah Stewart MTS, Chief Executive, NewcastleGateshead Initiative

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Membership News

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James Berresford | Chief Executive,VisitEngland

From the President’s Desk A new first in British hotel keeping? A short while ago I attended with some parliamentary colleagues an “awayday” for a jolly 24 hours of team building and strategy sessions. Low cost being a priority we were booked into a fairly well known chain franchise just off the M25 north of London. Heading the dash for the bar after the last session I ordered Scotch only to discover I was in the only bar in the UK not to stock blended Scotch.They had Irish, American, Canadian and a malt from Scotland but no sign of a blend.The young lady behind the bar seemed to sense my shock, told me to wait, and bolted to Tesco to find a remedy returning fifteen minutes later with the goods. I am not sure which I found more interesting: a management that could fail to stock a UK staple, or a staff so willing to go the extra mile for a remedy. On balance good people always win the day!

So it is with Tourism ministers.The good

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ones get it and make a difference and the others just get in the way. Now DCMS is reduced to its smallest size since its creation with the smallest ministerial content ever; and there is no tourism minister. I have often argued that as a big grown up business tourism should be in BIS with all the other businesses and where its economic potential would be taken seriously.

However after nearly 17 years at one end of parliament or the other I have come to the conclusion that Governments do not get tourism – never have and never will – despite all the warm words of aspirant PMs in opposition. If the Olympic legacy for tourism is to be ignored by government then surely it is time for tourism to ignore government and take charge of its own destiny.

Like the good lady behind the bar, if management don’t get it – just solve the problem.

Lord Thurso MP FTS | President,Tourism Society

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Government View

Committing to build on the success of 2012 I was delighted to be given the tourism brief to my Ministerial portfolio last September and am determined to build on the good work achieved by my predecessor John Penrose in what is an exciting time for the sector.

It is against this backdrop of opportunity that I was a bit dismayed to hear that Lord Thurso questions his own Government’s commitment to the industry! His view couldn’t be further from the truth. My Department for Culture, Media and Sport has just overseen hosting an incredible London 2012 Games, when the country was in the international spotlight and it makes perfect sense that tourism should remain in this Department as we look to build on the success of the Games and continue to sell Britain to the world.

The Olympics helped generate record inbound tourism receipts in the month of August – up 9% compared to the same month the previous year, and we want to make sure this continues. Domestic tourism also held its own over the summer despite the poor weather, with a 3% increase in the amount spent on domestic holidays in Britain, and with more than £1bn million spent on Olympics-related day trips.Tourism contributes significantly to the economy, helps drive investment and along with the hospitality industry directly supports over 1.4 million jobs.

In Britain, the Government recognises that tourism is a cornerstone of growth.

Currently our fifth biggest industry, it could become our fastest growing sector over the next decade.The Government’s goal is to help the tourism industry achieve its ambitions and, as we did with the London 2012 Olympics, use vast numbers of other international sporting and cultural events which the UK is due to host between now and 2019 to help drive growth for the sector.

At the start of last year we launched our biggest tourism marketing campaign to date – the GREAT campaign, targeting our highest-value tourist inward investment destinations such as USA, Brazil and Japan.The campaign is innovative and inspiring, showcasing the very best of what Britain has to offer, and demonstrat-

Everyone welcome ing why our country is such a fantastic place to visit, study in and do business.

The early forecasts on the financial returns from our investment in the GREAT campaign are encouraging and analysis shows that our investment in the campaign to date is projected to help generate around a quarter of a billion pounds for the British economy over the next two years.

Already, since the end of the London 2012 Games, the Government has announced in the Autumn Statement that the GREAT campaign will receive an additional £22 million investment for 2013-2014, up from £8 million announced earlier last summer.This Government does and will continue to take the tourism industry seriously. We have also announced major reforms to the visa system to encourage more Chinese visitors.

We also want to create the right environment in which the domestic tourism sector can flourish. 56 per cent of Brits plan to take a holiday or break at home in England next year, and there is still signifi-

Hugh Robertson MP | Minister for Tourism

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cant scope for growth.

As we look back on the success of last year, we should be under no illusions though of the challenge ahead - the tourism industry is hugely competitive and we will need to compete with the emerging markets such as China, India and Brazil. But we must see these as opportunities. By 2030, China alone will have 1.4 billion middle class consumers – more than America and Western Europe combined – and we will work hard to attract more Chinese visitors to these shores. As the tourism sector expands and changes, it is essential for all those in the sector to work together to make the most of the opportunities that present themselves. At the closing ceremony of the Paralympic Games last summer Lord Coe remarked that we had stamped the words ‘Made in Britain’ on London 2012. I couldn’t have put it better myself. With tourism being a central part of our growth strategy, making a real contribution to both our national and local economies, it is important that we build on the success of an incredible 2012 in the years to come.

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Social Tourism

Holidays matter In the UK, social tourism is a term that is barely recognised and even less understood. But 2013 will see an ever increasing level of debate and discussion around the topic. We may even see moves to establish programmes with the support of local tourism organisations.

What is social tourism? It is the inclusion of people living on a low income in holiday and leisure activities. And increasing recognition is being given to its potential to help the domestic tourism economy.

Picture: Michael Powell

The charity of which I am the director, the Family Holiday Association, has long understood that a simple holiday can have a significant impact on family wellbeing. And today the charity sees its role as that of the hands on practitioner, but one that uses the credibility that that experience brings to make the message it wants to deliver all the more clear, powerful and worthy of a hearing.

And there is no doubt that we need to be heard. We know, from the Office for National Statistics, that millions of families miss out on a simple break each year and 2.5 million children live in families that cannot even afford a day at the seaside.

These are the families who, arguably, would be the very ones most likely to gain from the benefits a break can deliver.

For more detail watch this video www.bit.ly/Holidays_Matter.

While social tourism is not that well known as a term there is a good deal of activity in the UK that could be labelled as social tourism. Recent research identified almost 650 organisations involved in the provision of social tourism; most were small charities but a few were quite large, spending over £1m per annum on grants.

What if social tourism was placed on the agenda? If best practice was shared, if companies became involved and spare capacity put to use? What could it mean for British families and what could it mean for domestic tourism?

The French scheme, Cheque Vacances, helps over 7 million people and pumps €3bn into French domestic tourism each year; and the Spanish IMSERSO scheme, that last year helped 1.2m Spanish senior

citizens with a shoulder period break, actually makes a profit for the Spanish treasury. Well, 1.2 million senior citizens charging towards the coast generates a great deal of economic activity; it extends the season; lengthens contracts; creates employment.

It is this overt economic case for social tourism that I believe should make policy makers take notice. But in these straitened economic times, I do not expect George Osborn to support a grand European-type scheme.

However, the All-Party Parliamentary Group on Social Tourism, publisher last year of the ‘Giving Britain a Break’ report, believes progress can still be made.

Following a visit to Brussels for talks in the summer where he met the Flanders Tourism Minister, Paul Maynard, MP for Blackpool North and chairman of the APPG, returned home convinced that a low cost Flanders-type model could work here.

Simply by aggregating spare capacity and

offering access to it via social welfare organisations, local tourist organisations could emulate the success of Flanders and both help local tourism businesses and provide real social benefit.

In February a number of local tourist organisations have agreed to come together at the VisitEngland offices in London to discuss with their counterparts from Flanders just how the Belgian scheme works and the potential for its being copied here.

Getting to the point where such discussions can actually take place has taken a great deal of work over the past six years.The groundwork of research and intensive networking should eventually pay off. And it needs to.

Even the simplest of breaks helps build happier, stronger families; that in turn has implications for the local community and society in general.

Holidays Matter.They matter to those who need them and to those who deliver them.

John McDonald MTS | Director, Family Holiday Association

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The European Perspective

What is ahead of us in 2013?

As I write this article, the UNWTO is anticipating the arrival of the world’s one billionth tourist – somewhere in the world – on 13th December 2012.There is a strong likelihood that this will be in Europe, the world’s number one destination, receiving 51% of international tourist arrivals1 (504 million).

However, Europe's lead position should not be taken for granted. As with other industry sectors, the European tourism industry is facing increasing global competition from emerging destinations. We are also competing against them for new international tourists from the BRIC economies. UNWTO’s "Tourism Towards 2030" forecast indicates that by 2015 emerging economies will receive more international arrivals than advanced economies, surpassing one billion arrivals by 2030.

The Lisbon Treaty gives the European Union new legal competence to support, coordinate and complement actions by the Member States in the field of tourism. In line with these new powers, the Commission published the 2010 Tourism Communication (COM (2010) 3522), which provides an EU tourism policy framework and identifies 21 actions to support competitive tourism growth with a high European added value to benefit all EU countries.These activities are also aligned to the objectives of Europe 2020 by supporting smart, sustainable and inclusive tourism development.

Recognising the important role that tourism has in restoring economic growth and employment, the Commission's efforts are concentrated on EU level activities in cooperation with Member States and tourism industry stakeholders to: increase tourism demand, both within the EU and from international markets; improve the quality of tourism products, services and professional skills; diversify the tourism offer, and encourage innovation and the take up of new technologies.

The Tourism Unit has also been working with other Direction Generals to ensure that tourism and related activities are considered in the relevant Commission policy areas3.

Ongoing activities for 2013 include:

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Julie Russell FTS | National Expert, European Commission, DG Enterprise and Industry

“Destination Europe 2020”, an 18month programme of coordinated activities (from October 2012) carried out by the European Travel Commission (ETC, which represents 33 European National Tourism Organisations) with the support of the Commission in four key long-haul markets (the United States, Canada, Brazil and China).This will include a series of consultations and communications activities with the travel trade and consumers with the aim of producing a common long term strategy for the promotion of Destination Europe in major long-haul markets.

Drafting a strategy for the “Challenges and Opportunities for Maritime and Coastal Tourism in the EU” which could take the form of a Communication; this is expected to be adopted by the Commission around mid-2013.

A voluntary European Tourism Quality Label for Quality Schemes – the Commission has been working on the procedural preparations for the proposal of a legislative act in early 2012, including an open consultation and impact assessment4.The legislative proposal is expected for adoption by the Commission in early 2013.

The integration of the hospitality sector targeted section in EURES, the European Job Mobility Portal.To help match supply and demand, and facilitate the mobility of workers from the hotel and restaurant sector.

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Development of the Virtual Tourism Observatory, following feasibility study work in 2012 the first prototype is expected to be completed during the first half of 2013.

The European Charter for Sustainable and Responsible Tourism, streamlining existing initiatives into one single document setting the broad principles of sustainable and responsible tourism.

Further information about the Commission's tourism initiatives is available via the Europa website: http://ec.europa.eu/enterprise/sectors/tou rism/index_en.htm _____________ 1 UNWTO Tourism Highlights 2012 Edition (Data as collected by UNWTO June 2012) 2 For further information on the Commission’s 2010 tourism policy see: http://ec.europa.eu/enterprise/sectors/tou rism/documents/communications/commission-communication2010/index_en.htm 3 See: ‘Study on the impact of EU policies and the measures undertaken in their framework on tourism’ http://ec.europa.eu/enterprise/sectors/tou rism/index_en.htm 4 See: http://ec.europa.eu/enterprise/newsroom/cf/_getdocument.cfm?doc_id=7655

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International Tourism

One billion tourists : One billion opportunities Just over 60 years ago, in 1950, international travel was the preserve of the privileged few. Most people lived, worked and holidayed within a relatively small radius.

Of the 25 million tourists who did cross international borders, most came from, and travelled to, Europe and North America.

In 2012, just one generation later, total international tourist arrivals are expected to ring in at over one billion. Incredibly, between January and December 2012, the equivalent of one seventh of the world’s population will have crossed international borders as tourists. Four billion more will have been on trips within their own national borders.

This phenomenal growth, spurred by the rise of the middle class, increased leisure time and the technological revolution, has positioned tourism as one of the world’s great growth engines. International tourism today is a trillion dollar industry, accounting for 6% of global exports and one in every 12 jobs worldwide. In some countries, particularly small island states, international tourism can account for an astonishing 25% of national GDP. And people aren’t just travelling more, they’re travelling further. Destinations in the emerging and developing economies of Asia, Latin America, Africa and the Middle East currently receive nearly half of the world’s international tourist arrivals, many of which originate from source markets in these same regions. By 2015, these destinations will be receiving more tourists than advanced economy destinations.

At a time of great economic strain, tourism is generating income and jobs around the world and is lifting millions over the poverty line. What is more, tourism growth is not set to slow down anytime soon. At UNWTO we expect the sector to increase by 3% to 4% over the course of 2013, despite continued uncertainty in the global economy, and our long-term forecasts show that international tourists will reach 1.8 billion by 2030.

Significant challenges remain, however, for the tourism sector at one billion. While growth will surely continue over the

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coming years, millions of would-be tourists, particularly in emerging economies, continue to face unnecessary barriers to travel.

authorities, to businesses and tourists themselves, have a collective responsibility to place ethics and sustainability at the core of tourism.

These barriers include complicated and expensive visa formalities, which despite the extraordinary technological advances of the past decade too often continue to take months to process.

This is no impossible task. Imagine the jobs and prosperity that could be created in host communities if the world’s hotels sourced their food locally or tourists increasingly bought native artefacts.These actions require no major investment, nor difficult changes, but given the size and reach of the tourism sector even the smallest changes will have the greatest impacts.

There are cases of tourists travelling further to process their visa than to their final destination.Throughout 2013 and beyond, UNWTO will continue to promote a more liberalised and open tourism sector and to call on governments worldwide to devise national policies that support the development of tourism.

At the same time, the extraordinary growth of our sector comes with serious responsibilities. Unplanned and poorly managed tourism development can cause serious harm. Now more than ever, all of us involved in the sector, from public

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Tourism can be part of the solution to meeting existing challenges, namely those posed by the global economy, and should thus increasingly be prioritised by national governments. With international tourism at one billion we have one billion opportunities to grow the economy and create jobs; one billion opportunities to bring development to the world’s poor; and one billion opportunities to contribute to a greener, cleaner future.

Taleb Rifai Secretary-General of the World Tourism Organization (UNWTO)

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“It’s beginning to look a lot like...Britain!”

Attractions and Events will wave the flag for UK tourism in 2013

We go into 2013 with the TV advertising jingles ringing in our ears like Christmas Carols, and none more so than “It’s beginning to look a lot like Aldi” - an ambitious attempt by the retailer to compare its products to those of Fortnum and Mason, Harvey Nichols and Harrods.

If the Mayan Calendar is to be ignored, and the world did not end on 21st December, I’d like to name-check Aldi’s catchy and clever slogan and apply it to British tourism in 2013.

Despite the march of the Chinese, the allure of the Caribbean, the timeliness of Brazil’s push for fame and fortune, and the cohesiveness (finally) of Brand USA, it’s actually beginning to look a lot like Britain for worldwide tourism success in 2013!

The doom mongers might well say that we had it all in 2012, with the Olympics and Paralympics, the Royal Wedding and the Diamond Jubilee, and that we won’t have it all again until the Commonwealth Games, the Ryder Cup and the Grand Départ of the Tour de France hit our shores in 2014. But, for the sake of our Gross National Happiness, let alone the Tourism Balance of Payments, let’s at least understand why Britain could be best for tourism in 2013. And why UK attractions and events will be leading the way.

Come March, we’ll be firmly into English Tourism Week (16th – 24th), Scottish

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Martin Evans FTS | Principal, The Tourism Business

The view from the Shard will open in the spring Tourism Week (4th – 13th) and Wales stakes by the birth of a Royal baby in Tourism Week (Feb 25th – March 1st).

London this summer!

Organisers are hoping for the best possiThe power of screen tourism has not ble kick-off to ‘the season’ and expect to gone unnoticed in our national tourist go further than last year in bringing the boards, and, whilst not a bumper year for cause of domestic tourism and staycaBritain (New Zealand has already taken tions to the masses with these campaignthat award with ‘The Hobbit’), there are ing Weeks. nevertheless some great opportunities Of course, the staycation bandwagon for UK attractions and operators. should keep up its momentum given the Chatham Historical Dockyard and Chancellor’s drive to push up Air Berkshire’s Englefield House are expected Passenger Duty, and overseas transport to benefit from the current lavish adaptaworkers’ willingness to strike at will all tion of Dickens’ Great Expectations. And, over Europe. during the year, Beachy Head showcases in the Princess Diana movie ‘Caught in But we have high hopes for inbound Flight’, River Thames tourism will benefit tourism, too. Frustrated demand from from ‘Banking on Mr Toad’ and Stratfordtour operators worldwide for London upon-Avon will undoubtedly capitalise on and provincial honeypot destinations after Al Pacino’s King Lear appearing on the the no-go of Olympics Year should drive big screen. As will Norwich (‘Alan the markets to the UK in 2013, and the Partridge:The Movie’), Cornwall (Richard £3 billion of publicity generated for Curtis’s ‘About Time’) and Hedsor House Britain during 2011/12 must result in in Buckinghamshire (‘Quartet’). ramped-up consumer demand.

And it’s not as if we won’t have events to shout about.The Rugby World Cup in October and November will open up tourism backwaters like Rochdale, Wrexham and Workington to the world.

Really! Whilst the Champions League Final at Wembley in May, the World Rowing Cup in June and The Ashes in August will also lead the world to Britain.

And these events will hopefully be matched in the international publicity

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New attractions are also expected to contribute strongly to British tourism success in 2013.The highest profile will undoubtedly be the Queen Elizabeth Olympic Park, but the View from the Shard, the £18.5m Giant’s Causeway Visitor Centre, the new London Dungeon at County Hall, Chester Zoo’s £30m Islands Project and the Mary Rose Museum at Portsmouth will also happily play their part.

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Accommodation Marketing

Collaborating to compete online We all know that marketing accommodation is increasingly an online activity and that online marketing is an ever changing proposition. Evidence of this can be found in the way search engines have evolved into huge advertising platforms and how they continue to find new ways to monetise their online space.

In the past, small independent businesses relied to a degree on free search, but that opportunity is continually diminishing, making search engine optimisation less effective. Now larger businesses are paying huge amounts to advertise on a Pay Per Click (PPC) basis and this advertising is very effective because the search engines are significantly reducing the value of free search on a page.These large businesses are also paying to advertise under any property name, regardless of whether they work with them or not.

All this is leading to customers becoming more accustomed to using large online travel agents, rather than Google search, as their first port of call – and some believe Google's own Hotel Finder is a direct response to this change. Either way, if you are a small independent accommodation owner you are going to find it a lot harder to generate bookings from your own online presence. It is increasingly difficult to get found and ‘noticed’, with no real way of competing on Pay Per Click because the offering is limited to one product.

Small businesses have to look to collaboration and sharing to increase their visibility and boost the chances of converting online visitors to actual customers.This is nothing new, as many groups of likeminded businesses (i.e. accommodation or local tourism associations) currently engage in some form of joint digital marketing. Usually it is via websites that are rich in content but only offer a ‘brochure style’ experience for their customers, and from a customer's perspective this is inadequate.

The most successful travel websites provide information, choice and full booking functionality, enabling customers to compare and book accommodation by area.

These attributes effectively simplify and de-risk the booking experience for cus-

tomers. In the past using technology and software to offer a fuller more engaging customer experience would have been too expensive for all Accommodation Associations. However, that is changing and this presents plenty of opportunities.

The change has occurred in much the same way as most technological developments: once ground-breaking technologies are more widely adopted, they become cheaper and more accessible.

details, allowing them to set rates, manage availability, update photos etc.The site also promotes Ayrshire's attractions, including its castles, beaches, historic buildings and Burns landmarks, offering plentiful information on each one.

Small businesses that collaborate have certain inherent advantages due to their deep understanding of their customers and how their area attracts and fulfils the needs of these customers.They will also have access to a good range of accommodation, covering various local areas and appealing to different tastes.

providing a platform and focus for all future marketing efforts.

A good example is the Ayrshire Bed & Breakfast Association which launched their own new website (www.ayrshireBandB.com) earlier this year. It provides online booking and showcases all its members’ properties, with a unique profile for each one. Every property owner has control of their own

generating a measurable and trackable revenue for the membership.

It is an impressive feat for 50-odd B&Bs and – as far as I know – the only fully bookable Accommodation Association website anywhere in the world.The benefits are wide ranging:

encouraging more collaboration across other sectors within the local community. bringing the association closer together and enabling them to attract more members.

creating best practice in digital marketing within the association.

The clever bit with any collaboration is to use technology to make it easier and more successful for all involved.

Iain Stewart MTS | Director, freetobook

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Case Study: India

The Prospects for….Global Tourism Global Tourism keeps on growing, despite economic crises, revolutions, war, terrorism and health scares. It is true that tourists only visit “safe and healthy places”, but most of the world remains attractive to tourists, and tourism is an aspirational activity: when people can afford to, have the time to, and are permitted to travel, they will.

My time in tourism since the late 1960s has tracked this amazing and inexorable growth.

I love the life-enhancing opportunities that tourism brings – but now I worry about the future. It is clear that the dynamic marketing of countries, destinations and tourism businesses, and the sales activities of travel firms, to stimulate and win more tourism visits, simply cannot continue in an unco-ordinated way.

The time is coming when the operational focus must move from marketing to management to control demand, and the physical, environmental and social impacts of tourists at destinations and among host communities.

Not just the superficial ‘management in name alone’ as now by so-called Destination Management Organisations, but real comprehensive management of who visits when, where to, and doing what, where, when and how? And this cannot be achieved simply by pricing and market forces; tourism is necessary for social as well as economic reasons. Future tourism also requires a real and comprehensive commitment to sustainability, going way beyond the lip-service that is now commonplace, but inadequate.

Earlier this year, while travelling with my wife Jo on a genuine holiday (something we tourism professionals so rarely do) in Kerala, in south west India, we encountered outstandingly good examples of tourism at its best – although sadly nearby, evidence of what can so easily happen when demand is unregulated.

The examples of the very best were at the exceptional properties owned by CGH Earth Hotels.This is a local company, owned by Kerala families, whose vision has been to create atmospheric places

that are at one with their surroundings and their host communities.This came not from recently advocated standards of sustainability, or manuals, but from their intrinsic beliefs.They say: “Ever since we opened the doors of our first hotel in 1957, we’ve discovered ourselves through nature. And in our quest to create new environments where the world can discover life anew, we discovered that less is more. That luxury lies in simplicity. That reality is more enchanting than fantasy. And that the best of the world lies in the smallest, the most inconspicuous and the everyday wonders around you. This realisation manifests itself in the spaces we construct, in our cuisine, our service, our ayurvedic therapies.

Which is why, instead of just another holiday, we offer you experiences that are pure, unexpected and inspiring.”

In our experience, that’s not hype, it is true.

This was our first visit to India and we had expected to be sunburned, get bitten by mosquitos and have an unsettled

Anil overseeing the rice harvest

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Coconut Lagoon resort stomach – yet none of these things happened.

After two days in Cochin we went a few hours south and stepped aboard one of CGH Earth’s traditional kettuvalloms.

These are rice barges that have been converted for guests to cruise the backwaters between the rice paddy fields, and through the small canals that flow through natural surroundings and simple villages in this unexpected water-land.

The boats look like rustic armadillos, as all their infrastructure is made from bamboo and palm leaves, tied with coir.This was a wonderful experience, but we were soon shocked to discover further south a busy mess of hundreds of similar but much more contemporary craft, apparently unregulated, hosting lively parties of domestic tourists totally destroying the quiet harmony and ambience of the backwaters.The friendly local people living along the banks have started putting plastic sheeting up to screen them from the masses of prying eyes.This was shocking – crying out for positive management before the golden opportunities are lost.

But our lovely boat took us right to our main destination – Coconut Lagoon, in an idyllic location, further north on the bank of the massive Vembanad Lake.The kettuvallom came alongside under the palms.

We were greeted with smiles, flowers, flute music and a fresh whole coconut drink, before being shown to our lakeside villa. All of the buildings are in indigenous materials and styles, with most of the accommodation being in local 100 – 150

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year old, two storey traditional houses that have been reconstructed here.

Canals run through the site. Every vista is quite magical.

The staff are unfailingly charming and gracious.The atmosphere embraces you within minutes – and you just do not want to leave.The whole estate is 25 acres, with walks, a fish sanctuary, natural streams, and an area specially planted to attract the local butterflies.There are early morning bird watching walks with the resident naturalist, instruction in local crafts, and cultural features with music and dance every day. We had one of the particularly comfortable villas, located just to the north of the main area, at the edge of the lake. Behind the villa we had our own pool and a shaded balcony that overlooked a traditionally planted paddy field.The hospitality standards were truly world class.

Being involved in Tourism, I simply had to look behind the scenes. I met Anil Kumar the General Manger who was very happy to show me round and explain the philosophy of CGH Earth. What I saw was an integrated commitment to the place and the people. Organic farming produces fresh food for guests. Raw and uncooked waste food is fed into a bio-gas plant, mixed with cow dung from the endangered species of local cows that graze among the palms, producing methane gas.This is used in the kitchen, and powers a bulk rice cooker saving almost 3000kg of LPG each year and the slurry goes to the kitchen garden. All sewage is treated on-site, producing water which after filtering, is used on the

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gardens. Biomass digesters make good growing medium, eliminating fertilizers.

Solid waste is separated, the use of plastics is minimised but any they have is flaked for re-use, and plastic bottles have been used to build village walls. Most surprisingly, all rainwater from the buildings is piped underground to two lagoons nearby, then drawn off and put through a multi-stage filtering plant, where it emerges very much more pure than the bottled water so beloved by guests.The comprehensive and integrated sustainability of their systems and respect for their place, is exemplary. (After this, we spent two more days in CGH Earth’s nearby Marari Beach, where the same ethos is applied).

Will our most abiding memory of this wonderful place be the ambience, the warm welcome, the delicious and varied local food, the giant monitor lizard that appeared ambling across our path, the beautiful butterflies that danced in the air around us, or the sunset across the lake, viewed from our verandah?

No, it will be the sight of local people harvesting by hand the paddy field behind our villa, in the traditional way. We listened to their singing and their chatter, as they gathered the bunches of rice which would later end up being prepared in the kitchens for the staff and guests to enjoy.

And the first person to get his feet muddy, leading the locals into the paddy field, was Anil. Leading by example, in the embodiment of CGH Earth’s mission.

Everyone is committed.The world needs every tourism business to be this way.

Ken Robinson CBE FTS | Independent tourism advisor

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Market Trends

Creating your own prospects Debates on tourism market prospects inevitably leave us with a feeling somewhere between dancing in the streets and jumping from the nearest high rise, but the truth is that the majority of factors involved are largely out of our control, driven by exchange rates, economic growth, legislation and of course, the weather. It is more beneficial to recognise that in any prevailing market there are winners and losers and the winners are businesses that create their own prospects.

VisitEngland’s Tourism Business Monitor, for example, consistently reports significantly better performance among businesses which invest – in product, service or marketing.These aren’t the ones whose reaction in tough times is to batten down the hatches.

They see now as the perfect time to invest and secure their place several steps ahead when economic recovery finally materialises. Availability of finance clearly helps and RBS, hosts to VisitEngland’s recent Visitor Economy Forum, were keen to stress their enthusiasm for lending to those with sound business plans.

But investment is not all about access to finance, it’s just as much about inspiration, innovation and commitment.

That said, the most successful businesses are those which take the time to understand the market environment and conditions within which they work and plan their investments accordingly, thoroughly researching their own target markets and developing product and marketing investment plans around those segments likely to generate the greatest growth.

Others rely on broader market trends to guide them.Three such broader trends perhaps most relevant for 2013 are: 1. Day Trip Growth Unlike inbound, outbound and domestic overnight trips, growth in day trips has forged ahead.The first nine months of 2012 saw GB day visits increase by +12% on the previous year, to 1,303 million trips. As purse strings continue to tighten, we are seeing a trading down of our overnight stays to last minute day trip decisions. Good news for our local towns,

12

Steve Mills MTS | Director, BDRC Continental

visitor attractions and events and perhaps instructive as to where the focus of communications activity should lie.

2. Olympic and Jubilee Impact

abroad revealed that the only significant worsening of perceptions lay in the area of value for money.

3. Investment in People

Anecdotal evidence that these mega events were monumental successes which will deliver a positive medium term impact on tourism are backed up by research by both VisitBritain and VisitEngland.The Games were possibly the single biggest boost to the Britain brand ever overseas, whilst the events also appear to have galvanised us here – 41% of Brits claimed that the 2012 events made them want to get out and explore the UK more.

We are firmly entrenched in an experience economy where successful tourism businesses offer ‘things to do’, not just ‘things to see’. And the best experiences are brought to life by people – your staff.

Staff are continually revealed as the most influential driver of the overall visit experience.They can provide the welcome, the value of which we all came to appreciate during the Olympics.

Perhaps one fly in the ointment for the inbound market is the continued crisis within the Eurozone, whose member states account for well over half of our inbound trips. Whilst the dip in the longhaul inbound market observed in summer 2012 may well be reversed in 2013, the outlook for the EU15 feels distinctly less rosy. Our continued perception as an expensive destination may be a further barrier – VisitBritain’s review of the impact of the Games on perceptions

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They can make visitors privy to the stories and factoids that make a visit more enriching than an afternoon searching the internet. And crucially, they can help bring an experience to life.

Perhaps the most important message is that we use the insights, whether positive or negative, to stay a few steps ahead of our competition rather than as a defence of indifferent performance. In other words, beware of using these insights the way a drunk uses a lamppost – more for support than illumination.

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Skills Development in 2013

Exporting the UK model In the past year, the UK has experienced a number of large scale events that have helped bring the tourism industry into the spotlight. But with 2012 nearly over, what is next for the sector?

The success of the London 2012 Olympic and Paralympic Games, the Belfast Titanic celebrations, and the Queen’s Jubilee was in no small part due to the contribution the tourism industry made in preparing and training their people for the influx of visitors. As the industry continues through what is commonly referred to as the golden decade of sport, there are plenty of further opportunities for it to be recognised for the value it adds to the UK’s economy and reputation.

Being at the front of the visitor experience means the industry will however need to continue to build on its campaign to raise customer service standards throughout the UK. Programmes such as WorldHost have already been used to train more than a million people worldwide, including thousands of volunteers and local ambassadors at the London 2012 Olympic and Paralympic Games.

These programmes provide a consistent standard for the industry, and as the UK builds on the success of the 2012 events and tourists head to our shores to take part in further activities an ongoing commitment to customer service improvements is needed. Moreover, if we are to support and embed a customer service culture tourism businesses must continue to ensure line managers are also equipped with the skills to ensure services run smoothly.

This forms part of a wider need to increase leadership training in the industry, particularly as employers still believe that management skills are lacking.

Increased investment in management training will therefore help businesses address this shortage and at the same time improve staff retention rates.

While work still needs to be done in the UK, the tourism sector is already reaping the benefit from its increased investment in skills. Not only has the sector gained

Signing of the agreement in Panama. L-to-r: Herman Bern, president of Empresas Bern, David Fairhurst, chairman of People 1st, Jose Pablo Ramos, director of INADEH, Michael John Holloway OBE, Her Majesty’s Ambassador in Panama. programme.The Panama skills organisainternational recognition following the tion will also offer a platform for the govLondon 2012 Olympic and Paralympic ernment, businesses and industry associaGames, but this positive feedback also tions to discuss and help align the skills of extends beyond our own shores. In fact, the workforce with the needs of employPanama’s hotel and tourism industry has ers. been looking to the UK for advice and guidance on how to address its own skills The commitment to help with the estabneeds and for help to establish itself as a lishment of a skills body in Panama will world class international destination. see People 1st provide a full time staff The Central American country’s desire to work with and learn from the UK’s tourism and hotel industry has culminated in the signing of an agreement to set up a sector skills council that is based on the UK model.The new body in Panama will focus on addressing a number of requirements highlighted in the ‘Skills 2020: world class skills in Panama's hotel and tourism sector’ research report, which People 1st produced early in 2012.

This includes the need to provide suitable English language training for hospitality and tourism staff and introducing a world-class customer service training

member, based in Panama, who will oversee the project in its entirety and act as a link between the UK and Panamanian bodies.

This agreement presents a significant opportunity for both the UK and the Panamanian hotel and tourism industries.

While People 1st’s work in the UK is informing the way it will address skills shortages in Panama there is little doubt that there will be a great exchange of knowledge and learning that can be applied in the UK too to continue growing the reputation of its tourism sector in the next few years.

Brian Wisdom FTS | Chief Executive, People 1st

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13

Education

Schumpeter, Greece and Tourism Education: A Complex Relationship Schumpeter was undoubtedly one of the most prominent economists of all times.

Among others, the Austrian father of evolutionary economics highlighted the importance of creative destruction in the innovation process and the endogenous character of business cycles: a booming economy carries the seeds of its own destruction as entrepreneurs become less preoccupied about strategic issues and longer term sustainability as they lustfully enjoy short-term prosperity.

Likewise, a recessionary period sets the fundamentals of future resurgence as low opportunity costs enable radical improvements in their production process.

Tourism destination managers can draw parallels with the above mentioned dynamics in the context of the resort life cycle: popular destinations can become victims of their own success, while resorts facing a period of crisis can successfully focus on rejuvenation strategies.

Nonetheless, the Schumpeterian business cycle process is only half the truth. It is likely to hold in the longer term, but the key issue is what happens in the meantime; after all, and as argued by Keynes, “in the long run, we are all deadâ€?. In fact, self-reinforcing mechanisms are also active in the economy, as things may turn from good to better or alternatively from bad to worse‌ Since 2008, Greece has been paying the price of a previous prosperity era largely based on accumulated public debt.The country is currently experiencing its worst recession since WWII as a result of the imposition of extremely harsh austerity measures.These, in conjunction with a series of structural reforms, aim at transforming the Greek economy, putting it back into the right track of sustainable growth. Nonetheless, the short and medium run remains highly challenging.

Unemployment is around 25% and over 50% among young people; about a third of Greeks are currently below the poverty line and the society is experiencing great difficulties in absorbing further budget cuts.

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Dr Andreas Papatheodorou FTS | Associate Professor, University of the Aegean

More visitors would stimulate Tourism Not surprisingly, things are not different in the context of education. University professors have lost about 50% of their income in purchasing power terms since 2009 as a result of severe nominal wage cuts, a rise in taxation and inflation.They feel demoralised and uncertain about their future; consequently, inspiring students (which is the most important task of an educator) becomes very difficult.

After all, how can you inspire a young person who faces a 50% unemployment rate?

Solutions, of course, do exist and emigration of young Greek graduates abroad is one of them.This may prove good news for them and for developed countries in Northern Europe, America and the Gulf States, but it is definitely an unwelcome development for Greece, which currently suffers from a major human capital drain.

Having the above in mind, it seems obvious (at least to me) that unless the currently adverse climate is somehow reversed, Greece and the other countries of the Eurozone periphery (such as Spain, Portugal, Ireland, Cyprus, etc.) will not return to a growth path at least in

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employment the short term.

Greece and the other Mediterranean countries have a major comparative advantage in tourism. What matters is to convert this comparative into a competitive advantage, i.e. to use the rich asset endowment to achieve efficient asset deployment. Raising the competitiveness profile of Greece requires active investment initiatives not only in terms of physical but also in terms of human capital.

Therefore, a change of mentality is required as entrepreneurs should see education and training as an investment and not a liability.

This is a particularly challenging task for the tourism sector, where the traditional cost cutting practices have favoured the use of low-skilled, cheap labour. Such a practice, however, will only accentuate the vicious circle experienced by Greece.

Ironically perhaps, the Schumpeterian way of thinking re-emerges: the current crisis should be seen as an opportunity for the creative destruction of the pathological entrepreneurial practices of the past and not for the destruction of the potentially creative forces of the future!

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Education

An international Master’s students’ perspective London has been my new home since September 2012 when I first arrived here feeling nervous and afraid, but also with big expectations and a goal to fulfil.This great city opened its opportunities and multicultural environment to me; being here as an international student is still an everyday challenge, though. It means changes, and involves great efforts, since studying a Master’s degree in King's College London, one of the best universities in the world, demands being one of the best students in the world as well. As I am writing the last essay of the first term, I realise how quickly time has passed since my first day of lectures, and I take a break from writing it to share with you my personal experience and my future intentions.

My main reason to be doing a Master’s degree in Tourism, Environment and Development is that I am concerned about the development of Mexico and I am eager to participate in the improvement of the life quality in my country.The Master’s programme studies tourism from an integrated point of view, considering the complex relationships that exist between tourism, the environment and the development of a country and, for this reason, I am certain that this unique approach will prepare me to contribute to the growth of my state.

I am from Nayarit, a beautiful state located in western Mexico, with a significant share of coastline on the Pacific Ocean.

Its core economic growth comes mostly from tourism due to different qualities that make it a very attractive place.

Nayarit, as well as Mexico overall, has a lot to offer, such as a number of different beaches, diverse natural environments, great weather, and unique culture.These all combine to make tourism a key factor contributing towards development.

Tourism is a growing industry which generates job opportunities and training for the local people, and it has become a very important source of income for Mexico.

The tourism industry currently represents 7.8% of the GDP of the country (INEGI,Tourism Satellite Account 20062010). Moreover, ex-president Felipe

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Riviera Nayarit: Hotel Imanta Calderón promoted Mexico's participation in different activities to introduce tourism as a significant tool for development. Mexico chaired the G20 group promoting sustainable development, hosted the T20 meeting to discuss the topic “Tourism, an alternative for job creation”, and in 2011 signed the National Tourism Agreement, which seeks to rank Mexico one of the first places to visit by 2018.

With this purpose in mind, the government of Nayarit, through its current Development Plan 2011-2017, has set regional development as its main objective in order to improve the competitiveness of the state nationally and internationally, with sustainable tourism as the key driver. In was in this context that Rivera Nayarit was created – this is the most important tourism project in the state, and one of the most outstanding in Mexico, aiming to develop high quality and sustainable tourism products and services.

Rivera Nayarit, known as `Mexico’s Pacific Treasure´, comprises beaches like Nuevo

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Vallarta, Punta de Mita and San Blas among others, offering tourists a memorable experience through its beautiful landscapes, gastronomy, and a variety of activities.

It is my goal to analyse the advantages and disadvantages of tourism as a form of development – its environmental, cultural and social impacts, and its capacity to reduce poverty. My purpose after finishing my degree is to return to Mexico and work for the government or an NGO, carrying out research in order to develop a deeper understanding of tourism.

Additionally, to contribute to the development of appropriate policies and projects required to address the real needs of the poor, and establish international networks to promote them. I have no doubt that an international experience like this one in London, focused accurately on the needs of my country, will allow me to provide invaluable research and strategies that will be reflected on the improvement of the life quality of its people.

Sofia Gonzalez De Aguinaga | Student, King’s College London

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Consultant Case Study

The opportunity for wine tourism The fruits of the Diamond Jubilee and Olympics harvested (an abundant if singular crop), UK tourism might now turn to consider an evergreen with companion planting benefits – English Wine Tourism.

Not necessarily something that springs to mind.Yet vineyard numbers here have doubled since 2004 (my local supermarket stocks over 40 English wines) and with internationally coveted wine accolades atop English mantelpieces (2012 IWSC - Gold Outstanding and Gold to Bolney Wine Estate and Nyetimber respectively, to name but two) there can be no question about the quality of the product.

Building vineyards, their produce and associated opportunities into the tourism offering is in its early stages in England. By contrast, South African (SA) tourism has benefited from the wine industry to create its benchmark wine tourism valued in excess of US$590 million pa with industry attractions a major growth factor for Cape Town tourism.

Much of SA’s success can be attributed to putting the natural and cultural landscape first, something that is at the heart of the industry’s ‘Variety is in our Nature’ brand, and to its distinct scenic wine routes.The wine industry is also working in partnership with conservation bodies on the Bio-Diversity Initiative. For example, six Elim (Southern Cape) Winegrowers have created a Wetland Special Management Area to preserve endangered flora and fauna. Similar English sustainability initiatives are in their infancy.

Both countries’ wine industries boast marketing associations: Wines of South Africa (WOSA) and English Wine Producers (EWP). WOSA is well established and includes wine tourism as an integral part of a wine producing area's marketing strategy. Here, a handful of producers do already enjoy the success of wine tourism, and EWP is well aware of the benefits and is determined to develop the organic growth.There is evidence of a collective approach to wine tourism as well as an industry message – Think Drink English – and with English

Denbies Wine Estate offers B&B, weddings and tours wine events including English Wine Week, wine regions set among beautifully and food and drink related festivals condiverse areas which already attract visitinue to flourish throughout the country. tors for other reasons, marketing is beginning to take off.The recent appearance of Developing further, wine tourism is not two Hampshire vineyards on the BBC’s only the choice of wine enthusiasts. It Countryfile also helps. appeals to those who enjoy other tourism activities such as heritage, outIn addition to the obvious catering, merdoor, agriculture and the arts. Combine chandise and visitor facility attractions wine with England’s other home-grown found in tourism-oriented English vineproduce, real ale and cheese etc, and yards, SA destinations also include art galthere is a food and drink culture to cultileries, museums, cookery schools and vate, too. Integrating home-grown indusperforming arts. South Africa, with a tries into the tourism mix brings local younger winemaking heritage, is also benefits and national competitiveness ahead of England in terms of formalised against the food and drink pull of our wine tours, offering diverse experiences European neighbours. as part of a general touring itinerary, combined with other attractions, or speAlthough growing, one recognises that cific such as wine tasting on horseback! the English Wine Industry is small. In 2011 Both countries have producers that offer it had around a quarter of SA’s wineries tastings, cellar and vineyard experiences with approximately 1,210 and 100,000 plus accommodation. In SA a regulated hectares in production respectively.The tourist guiding structure accredits wine South Africa example shows what can be guiding whereas currently the UK does done when vineyards bring the public in not, nor is guiding formally regulated. to do more than simply buy their wine.

To realise the potential and promote SA regional and local tourism offices investment, sensitive support and encourorganise events, for example the agement from the UK’s tourism consultFranschhoek Festival of Bubbles where ants and experts is invaluable.

Cap Classique producers and French Champagne houses come together.

Here’s to the perennial harvest – English Similarly, EWP is developing a calendar of wine. Cheers!

Susan Parker Johnston MTS | Vinous Development

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Destination Management

Delivering a successful tourism sector through partnership Destination Marketing Organisations (DMOs) have faced numerous challenges in recent years – economic uncertainties and a shift in organisational structures, to name just two, have affected the whole tourism sector nationally.

The demise of Regional Development Agencies, which in some areas of the country – including the North East – had significant responsibility for developing the visitor economy, meant many DMOs had to scale back their activity severely, whilst others closed completely. Despite this, there are others who have not just survived but are now thriving; having identified and secured new sources of funding they continue to attract visitors yearround.

One potential new funding model under consideration nationally is Tourism Business Improvement Districts (TBIDS).

The idea is that tourism businesses contribute towards a fund that could be managed by the local DMO, to help support the on-going development of local visitor economies. We are likely to see the first TBIDs come into operation from 2014 onwards.

At NewcastleGateshead Initiative we have always invested significant time and energy in building productive partnerships with businesses locally, regionally and nationally. We are a true public-private partnership working closely with Gateshead and Newcastle City Councils and alongside 170 private-sector partners, who all help fund our activity.

We also work hard to secure commercial sponsorship and advertising revenues, and this approach has allowed us to remain strong during a period of economic uncertainty and organisational change.

The work we deliver to attract leisure visitors, conferences & events, and inward investment – alongside the delivery of our award-winning cultural programme – is critical to the ongoing success of the visitor economy in NewcastleGateshead.

As a member of the VisitEngland board, I am well placed to see the impact of any changes in the national political and economic landscape whilst also helping to

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The Sage Gateshead ensure VisitEngland is aware of and responsive to the challenges facing destinations, such as NewcastleGateshead, around the country.

Likewise the formation of the Destination Management Forum by VisitEngland brings together senior executives from leading DMOs; the forum allows DMOs to share their experiences and good practice and by signing-up to the strategic framework led by VisitEngland encourages growth of the national tourist economy.

Our relationship with the national tourism body has never been stronger. In August, we secured funding through the Regional Growth Fund via VisitEngland resulting in an additional £500,000 towards our city-break marketing campaign until 2015.

VisitEngland’s successful application to the Government’s Regional Growth Fund means the national tourism body has received £19.8 million to deliver a threeyear partner marketing project entitled ‘Growing Tourism Locally’.This project aims to stimulate the domestic visitor market to grow local economies through increased tourism activity by UK residents and enables VisitEngland to work in partnership with DMOs across the country.

The project has the potential to create the equivalent of 9,100 full time jobs

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across England and is fantastic example of how partnership working can generate positive results.

Regionally, NewcastleGateshead Initiative is part of the Northern Tourism Alliance, together with Northumberland Tourism, Visit County Durham, Hadrian’s Wall Trust and the North East Hotels Association.

We’re also part of the Northern DMOs Group and the Core Cities DMO Group.

Each of these groups meet regularly and are committed to collaborating wherever we can.

In 2013 our city-breaks marketing campaign will be delivered with some of our key partners including East Coast Trains; our award-winning cultural programme will animate the city’s streets and our Convention Bureau will attend key conference trade shows with some of our biggest venues.

Meanwhile, our newly formed inward investment department will grow partnerships in key sectors to attract companies to the region, and the visitor information team will be on the ground at conferences, the Port of Tyne and events to bring information direct to visitors.

As we face the future, it is clear that a creative and open approach to partnership is critical to the on-going economic growth of NewcastleGateshead.

Sarah Stewart MTS | Chief Executive, NewcastleGateshead Initiative

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Membership News 2012 has been the Tourism Society’s best year for recruitment of new members since at least 2005, with 262 signed up.

Considering the squeeze on people’s spending this number is extremely encouraging and shows how important the Society is. Collaboration and cooperation are words I hear more and more, and the Society provides an excellent network of tourism professionals that helps develop links across businesses and allows greater collaboration.

The Board had to look closely at finances this year and reluctantly agreed to a small increase in membership fees, starting from January1st – but it has also introduced more ways to join, such as through group memberships for businesses or block memberships for students that allow excellent value for money. Please see overleaf and contact me for full details.

Ticket prices for Society events remain unchanged and on January 15th we will be meeting in London for Prospects 2013. Speakers from TRI Hospitality

Consulting,VisitBritain, umiDigital and the European Travel Commission will consider what trends and developments we can look forward to.

This is always a busy event so make sure you reserve your place through our new website.

Gregory Yeoman MTS | Executive Director gregory@tourismsociety.org

From the Chairman’s Desk Where would you put a new runway? It’s an important issue and we’re told that if we don’t decide soon Schiphol and others will profit from our indecision.

So why take so long – remembering that once we have a location, the planning, appeals and demonstrations from ecowarriors and those protecting the Hazel Dormouse will delay the first flight until 2030, if then?

Targets have been set for an increase in the number of visitors to Britain by 2020.

Sorry, but not unreasonably the vast majority of these visitors will want to fly into London. But without extra capacity how will this happen?

Heathrow is already pushing the envelope and a planning agreement means Gatwick cannot have a second runway until after 2020.There are even alternatives to Boris Island – Kent International has a new KLM service, why not more? It can be as quick to get from Birmingham International into central London as it is from Stansted and Luton so rebrand BrumInt as London Bickenhill (which sounds okay) or London Arden Airport and it’s job done.

So why will it take Sir Howard Davies until after the 2015 election...?

David Curtis-Brignell FTS | Chairman, The Tourism Society

Events Calendar Calendar of Events 2013 January 15th Prospects for 2013 MacIntyre Hudson Offices, London 22nd Tourism Business and Career Opportunities Leeds Metropolitan University February 27th President’s Debate Central Hall Westminster, London

March 13th-14th Best of Britain and Ireland NEC Birmingham 21st Yorkshire Tourism Challenge York T.H.E Careers Day University of Surrey, Guildford April 25th Annual Dinner House of Commons Early Bird ticket prices available until Jan 31st 2013 (see over)

26th Fellows' Day July 2nd & 3rd Annual Conference Cardiff Tourism Society Wales Summer Lunch October Media Masterclass London December President’s Debate London Tourism Society Wales Christmas Lunch

Watch out for our regular e-mails giving updates about events, venues and speakers.

More information can be found on the Society’s website at www.tourismsociety.org/page/12/tourism-society-events.htm

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Booking form – Annual Dinner 2013 Thursday April 25th House of Commons, London Early Bird rates apply until the end of January 2013 Name: Please reserve: ________ tickets @ Members and guests rate ________ tickets @ Non-members rate ________ table/s of 10 @

MTS / FTS / non-member (please circle) £80ea. (£99 from Feb 1st) £99ea. (£119 from Feb 1st) £800ea. (£950 from Feb 1st) Total:

( ) I enclose a cheque (payable to The Tourism Society) for £ ( ) I would like to pay by Debit / Credit Card. Fill in the box below.

Cardholder name Billing address Billing post code Card number Start / Expiry dates *Issue number 3-digit security code Signature

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Please return with payment to: The Tourism Society, Queen’s House, 55-56 Lincoln’s Inn Fields, London, WC2A 3BH

Student Block Membership Scheme Universities today need to demonstrate good connections with industry, show employability of graduates and offer students good value for money.

With this in mind we have introduced a way for universities and colleges to offer Society memberships to their students.

The Block Membership scheme is managed centrally by the university or college, in liaison with the Tourism Society Secretariat, and each student member has their own membership account in the usual way.

The membership rate varies from £30 to £25 per student depending on the number joining.

Student Block Membership has already received a great deal of positive interest.

It helps students engage with the industry and helps establish contacts that are useful for dissertations, projects and, ultimately, jobs.

The proposed launch of the Tourism Society Student Network in 2013 will provide greater opportunities for involvement.

If you would like to go ahead with Block Membership, or would like more information, please contact Gregory Yeoman on 0207 269 9693 or gregory@tourismsociety.org.

Membership News Congratulations to Charlie Thornton, David Friesner and Robin Barker who have been upgraded to Fellow of the Tourism Society (FTS).

Annie Litmanen MTS Oman Ministry of Tourism Welcome New Students Welcome New Corporate Litmanen Consulting 0208 877 4505 Kerry Odendaal Partner annie@litmanenconsulting.co.uk www.omantourism.gov.om Bournemouth University Fusion Office Automation kerrylouise91@live.co.uk Ltd Joe Bickerton MTS Razan Darwish MTS 01206 821 360 Wrexham County Borough razan.darwish@omantourism.

Viktorija Justina Valanciute www.fusionsales.co.uk Council gov.om Bournemouth University jbickerton@btinternet.com victoria.justina@gmail.com Yasmin Brodrick MTS www.wrexham.gov.uk Asma Al-Hajry MTS 01206 821 360 asma.alhajry@omantourism.gov.

Nurymbayeva Assel yasmin@fusionsales.co.uk Mike Marsh MTS om Bournemouth University Mike Marsh Associates Ltd aselek_92@list.ry Hayley Hobbs MTS mikemarsh@btinternet.com Made 01206 821 360 0207 831 8105 Amy Louise Rogers hayley@fusionsales.co.uk Ian Ashton MTS www.made2010.com Bournemouth University World of James Herriot Ltd amy_rogers_2@hotmail.com Daniel Johnson MTS ian.ashton@hotmail.co.uk John Bridge MTS 01206 821 366 www.worldofjamesherriot.com john@made2010.com Jurgita Lionginaviaciute dj@fusionsales.co.uk Bournemouth University Lisa Davies MTS BDRC Group jurgita.lion@gmail.com Danny Faulkner MTS lisa.davies.co21@gmail.com www.bdrc-continental.com 01206 821 369 0207 400 1000 Alexandra Loveridge danny@fusionsales.co.uk Nicholas Hall MTS Bournemouth University SE1 Media Ltd Katie Vosper MTS i7950728@bournemouth.ac.ulc Graham MacKenzie MTS nick.hall@se1media.com 0207 400 0380 01206 821 369 www.se1media.com katie.vosper@bdrcJessica Mountford graham@fusionsales.co.uk continental.com Bournemouth University Romy Cwyie MTS jj-gem@hotmail.com David Wilkin MTS SE1 Media Ltd Max Clapham MTS 01206 821 361 romy.cywie@se1media.com 0207 400 0385 Rimgaile Kniukstaite david@fusionsales.co.uk www.se1media.com max.clapham@bdrcBournemouth University continental.com rimgaile3@gmail.com Welcome New Corporate Sean Young MTS Members Colliers International South African Tourism Megan Mitchell European Travel sean.young@colliers.com 0208 971 9350 Bournemouth University Commission www.colliers.com www.southafrica.net megan.800@hotmail.co.uk +32 2 548 9000 www.visiteurope.com Ray Hoerty MTS Juan Herrada MTS Grzegorz Zajaczkowski www.etc-corporate.org Manchester Tour Guides juan@southafrica.net Bournemouth University mail@manchestertourguides.com grgzajaczkowski@gmail.com Eduardo Santander MTS www.manchestertourguides.com The National Trust director@visiteurope.com 0844 800 1895 Niina Onnila Julia Feuell MTS www.nationaltrust.org.uk Bournemouth University Valeria Croce MTS New Frontiers niina.onnila@phnet.fi valeria-croce@visiteurope.com julia@newfrontiers.co.uk Sally Airey MTS www.newfrontiers.co.uk sally.airey@nationaltrust.org.uk Michael Neaves Annelies Waegeman MTS Bournemouth University annelies.waegeman@visiteurope.

Ginette Goulston-Lincoln Welcome New Group iammikeneaves@gmail.com com MTS Members World Travel & Tourism Goulston Lincoln Marketing Lewis Dixon Miguel Gallego MTS Council ginette@goulston-lincoln.com Bournemouth University miguel.gallego@visiteurope.com 0207 481 8007 lewis.dixon93@hotmail.com www.wttc.org Trevor Poole MTS Stefanie Gallob MTS Square Orange Aidan Noad stefanie.gallob@visiteurope.com Evelyne Freiermuth MTS trevor@squareorange.co.uk Bournemouth University www.square-orange.co.uk aidannoad@outlook.com Jean-Francois Serpieter MTS evelyne.freiermuth@wttc.org jf.serpieter@visiteurope.com Rochelle Turner MTS Anya Chapman MTS Rebecca Rowe-Leete rochelle.turner@wttc.org Liverpool Hope University Bournemouth University Teodora Marinska MTS anyalucychapman@googlemail. beckyrowe@hotmail.co.uk teodora@visiteurope.com Luca De Giuseppe MTS com luca.degiuseppe@wttc.org www.hope.ac.uk Emily Smith ZSL London Zoo Bournemouth University www.zsl.org Anja Echervogt MTS Edith Szivas MTS emilypink@blueyonder.co.uk anja.eckervogt@wttc.org Claire Griffin MTS eszivas@hotmail.com Laura McKendrick 0207 449 6275 Natasha Mytton-Mills MTS Bournemouth University claire.griffin@zsl.org Sophie Maulevrier MTS natasha.mytton-mills@wttc.org laura.mckendrick@tiscali.co.uk Tourism & Leisure – Europraxis Paz Salcedo Lopez MTS sophie.maulevrier@hotmail.fr Welcome New Members Amy Hannah Coles 0207 449 6208 Caron Porritt MTS Bournemouth University paz.salcedolopez@zsl.org Abiodun Seriki MTS Implement Marketing Limited Acumen Travels and Tours Limited ahc.18@hotmail.com caron@implementmarketing.co.uk absek2011@yahoo.com www.implementmarketing.co.uk

20

Issue 152 Winter 2012

journal@tourismsociety.org

Membership News Rebecca King Bournemouth University becky-king@hotmail.com

Oliver Kocan Oxford Brookes University okocan1@gmail.com

Wu Zhikai Sheffield Hallam University kaiwu7@gmail.com

Laura Moxon Sheffield Hallam University laura-moxon@hotmail.co.uk

Lauren Mack Bournemouth University laurenmack1@hotmail.com

Nicole Ross Robert Gordon University nicole_ross@hotmail.co.uk

Olivia Brown Sheffield Hallam University olivia.brown2@student.shu.ac.uk

Emma Smith Sheffield Hallam University emma.smith16@student.shu.ac.uk

Ella Williams Bournemouth University ellawilliams182@aol.com

Stephanie Plumb Robert Gordon University stephanie.plumb13@live.co.uk

Jessica Dame Sheffield Hallam University jessica.dame94@hotmail.co.uk

Sohel Argueso Sheffield Hallam University sohel-barca@hotmail.com

Miyuki Kawamoto Bournemouth University miyuki_kawamoto@hotmail.co.uk

Kamila Grabarczyk Sheffield Hallam University

Amy Woodhall Sheffield Hallam University amywoodhall@hotmail.com

Luke Tiernan Sheffield Hallam University luketiernan1@hotmail.co.uk

Jennifer Gallet Sheffield Hallam University jennifer_g234@live.com

Olivia Cousins Sheffield Hallam University olivia.megan18@hotmail.com

Adi Delaney Sheffield Hallam University abi-delaney@hotmail.co.uk

Lucy Henderson Sheffield Hallam University lucy.g.henderson@student.shu .ac.uk

Stilian Pavlov Bournemouth University stilian.pavlov@gmail.com Denitse Dimitrova Glavinova Bournemouth University dglavinova@gmail.com Ema Tsvetanova Bournemouth University i7g53114@bournemouth.ac.uk Sophie Bristow Bournemouth University sophie-bristow@hotmail.co.uk Liliya Vihar Simova Bournemouth University lilia0717@yahoo.co.uk Monique Smith Bournemouth University monique.s1@hotmail.com Vishnu Datt Bournemouth University vishnudevdatt@gmail.com Ariana Angelova Chorbadzhiyska Bournemouth University ari.angelova@gmail.com Charlotte Candy Bournemouth University charlotte_candy@hotmail.co.uk Louis Loveless Bournemouth University louis@wareham.co.uk Mark Easton Bournemouth University markeaston11@yahoo.co.uk Megan Algar Bournemouth University 17828474@bournemouth.ac.uk Koo Holder Bournemouth University koo_holder@hotmail.com Anita Rummels Cardiff Metropolitan University anitar1@live.co.uk

Emily Boxall Sheffield Hallam University milboxall@btinternet.com Eleanor Dawson Sheffield Hallam University eleanord92@hotmail.co.uk Molly Hughes Sheffield Hallam University molly.hughes@student.shu.ac.uk Robert Lupu Sheffield Hallam University lfrobert93@yahoo.co.uk Petrica Boboc Sheffield Hallam University boboc_p@yahoo.com Radu Nita Sheffield Hallam University radum93@yahoo.com Daniel Copp Sheffield Hallam University dancopp1@hotmail.co.uk Laura Anstee Sheffield Hallam University laura_anstee27@hotmail.co.uk Cao (Mary) Jun Hua Sheffield Hallam University mary_loves.x@hotmail.co.uk Lisa Douglas Sheffield Hallam University lisadouglas079@gmail.com Karys Browning Sheffield Hallam University kbrowning93@hotmail.co.uk Mengqi Tao Sheffield Hallam University shuangwaiwai@hotmail.com Lottie Caie Sheffield Hallam University lottie_caie123@hotmail.com Jing Jing Zhou Sheffield Hallam University 7652819z@99.com Ramal Naghiyeu Sheffield Hallam University ramal_n_@hotmail.com

Binod Shrestha Open University Milton Keynes shresthabinod@hotmail.co.uk

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Emma Cockerill Sheffield Hallam University emma-cockerill@hotmail.co.uk Peggy Byrne Sheffield Hallam University peggybyrne22@hotmail.com Xue Li Sheffield Hallam University 493909064@99.com Bogdana Tsankova Sheffield Hallam University bogdana.tsankova@student.shu. ac.uk Ma Jia Sheffield Hallam University jia0423@hotmail.com Harriet Johnson Sheffield Hallam University harrietjohnson93@hotmail.co.uk Kate Riley Sheffield Hallam University katelouiseriley@hotmail.co.uk Sophie Milroy Sheffield Hallam University Natalie Morris Sheffield Hallam University nataliemorris12009@hotmail. co.uk Ijaz Latif Sheffield Hallam University ijaz_ltf@hotmail.co.uk Teuta Bakolli Sheffield Hallam University tieb_13@hotmail.com

Karolina Borycka Sheffield Hallam University karolina.borycka@student.shu. ac.uk Paulina Gluszek Sheffield Hallam University pauliee@op.pl Zoe Horswill Sheffield Hallam University zoehorswill@hotmail.co.uk Keeley Fawcett Sheffield Hallam University keeleyfawcett@gmail.com Amelia Makison Sheffield Hallam University amelia.16@live.co.uk Suha Ali Sheffield Hallam University punks8tr@hotmail.co.uk Iulia-Mihaela Stafie Sheffield Hallam University iulia-gl2@yahoo.com Charlotte Wade Sheffield Hallam University char_93xx@live.co.uk Claudia Bailey Sheffield Hallam University claudia_bailey@hotmail.co.uk Christopher Freeman University College Birmingham chrisfreeman85@hotmail.co.uk Stilyana Stoyanova University of Hertfordshire stilyana@ymail.com

Maria Kostadinova Sheffield Hallam University maria.kostadinova@student.shu. ac.uk

Antonia Georgiadou University of Westminster antonina.kvgr@yahoo.co.uk

Sophie Louise Pickering Sheffield Hallam University sophiepickering94@hotmail.co.uk

Maria Francesca Aldea University of Westminster maria.aldea@my.westminster.ac.uk

Issue 152 Winter 2012

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