An Introduction to the Geography of Tourism

by Velvet Nelson

  Among Barbados’s many unique cultural and heritage attractions—and highly developed tourism amenities—one aspect of the destination that the Barbados Tourism Authority (BTA) emphasizes most is the island’s weather. In recognition of weather as a geographic push factor for their primary tourist market in Northern Hemisphere countries such as the United Kingdom, the United States, and Canada, the BTA has worked to ensure that these tourists are well aware that Barbados has the corresponding pull factor. Visit Barbados, the official website of the BTA, explicitly highlights the island’s “perfect weather.” On a designated page, the BTA claims, “With an average daily high temperature of 78°F/26°C, an average daily rainfall of less than ¼ inch and 3000 hours of annual sunshine, it’s hard to imagine a place that enjoys weather any more perfect than in Barbados.”1 At the time of this writing—in February with overcast skies, a chance of wintery mixed precipitation, and a current local temperature of 28°F (in Texas, no less)—the page’s “perfect weather” weather report showed sunny skies and temperatures ranging from 82°F to 84°F for the following four days.

  Discussion topic: What do you consider to be the greatest geographic push factor(s) for tourism from your home environment and why? What destination(s) do you think have the corresponding pull factor?

  Tourism on the web: Barbados Tourism Authority, “Visit Barbados,” at http://www.visitbarbados.org/

  Map 2.1. Barbados, West Indies. The majority of tourists who visit this Caribbean island destination come from the significant generating regions in Europe and North America. (Source: XNR Productions)

  Note

  1. Barbados Tourism Authority, “Perfect Weather,” accessed February 4, 2011, http://www.visitbarbados.org/perfect-weather.

  Source

  Caribbean Tourism Organization. “2009 Country Statistics and Analysis [Barbados].” Accessed February 4, 2011. http://www.onecaribbean.org/content/files/Strep1.pdf.

  Deferred demand is a type of suppressed demand that refers to those people who want to travel but have to put off their trip, not because of their own circumstances but because of some problem or barrier in the supply environment. This could be a problem—or even a perceived problem—at the desired destination. For example, after the April 2010 explosion on the Deepwater Horizon drilling rig and the subsequent oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico, there was much speculation about the number of tourists who would cancel their summer vacations to the many Gulf Coast destinations due to either actual site contamination or fear of contamination. Similarly, this could include some type of a problem in the tourism infrastructure that would prevent tourists from reaching or being able to stay at their intended destination. Also in April 2010, the eruption of Iceland’s Eyjafjallajökull volcano and subsequent ash cloud shut down airports across Europe and created a massive backlog of travelers. Many people who had plans to travel to a number of different destinations during this time were forced to cancel their trips.

  It is important to understand what factors are going to allow demand to be fulfilled as well as what factors will prevent it. If tourism stakeholders understand those factors, then they can begin to see what strategies might help people with suppressed demand get past any barriers and have the experiences they are looking for. At least theoretically, suppressed demand can be converted into effective demand if the right opportunities are presented. This might involve offering discounts to students, such as Eurail discounted Youth Passes for people ages sixteen to twenty-four. Or it might involve targeted promotional campaigns, such as the US$87 million that BP paid to the Gulf Coast states for the purpose of tourism and promotion to get the word out about destinations that were not affected by the disaster.4

  It may seem like it should be easy to assess demand because we often assume that if people are not already traveling, they probably want to. However, there is actually one additional category of demand: no demand. This refers to people who for various reasons really do not want to travel.

  Factors in Demand

  A person’s demand for tourism may be shaped by the nature of the society in which he or she lives. For example, a country’s government can help generate effective demand by creating opportunities for people to travel. Government-mandated holidays will give people more time to travel. The level of development in a society is an important factor shaping demand. Generally, higher levels of development will lay the foundation for more people to translate their desire for travel and tourism experiences into effective demand. Higher levels of economic development bring an increase in both discretionary income and leisure time. Higher levels of social development bring improvements in the health, well-being, and education of the population. These things give more people within that society greater means, interest, and opportunity to travel. The more developed countries of the world continue to account for the largest proportion of international tourists. However, some of the newly developing countries like Brazil and China have been experiencing conditions that allow more people to travel, and they are quickly becoming among the significant tourist-generating nations.

  At the same time, individual factors—such as a person’s view of the world and their childhood influences and experiences—as well as personality type play a distinct role in determining whether they have a strong desire to travel or prefer to spend their leisure time at home. Personal biases and even phobias—such as a fear of flying—will also shape an individual’s demand. More generally, however, we can consider how a person’s stage in the life cycle affects demand.

  In the youth stage (i.e., children who have not yet reached the age of legal adulthood), interest in travel and tourism experiences vary. Younger children are most likely to have a demand for experiences that are specifically promoted to this demographic, like a trip to Disneyland or Disneyworld. Beyond this, demand is shaped by the travel patterns of family and friends. If travel is a part of their family life, they will come to expect and anticipate these experiences. Likewise, hearing about their friends’ travel experiences can also stimulate demand. However, many children may have no demand for travel, not because they lack interest in other places but because they lack opportunity and therefore such experiences may not even be a part of their consciousness. Demand for travel typically increases during the teenage years with greater opportunities and a greater desire for independence. Still, decisions about whether the child’s demand is effective or potential continue to be made by parents or guardians.

  In the young adult stage (i.e., individuals who are legally of age but do not yet have the responsibilities associated with adulthood), there is typically a high demand for travel because of the pent-up desire for freedom and independence from the youth stage. These individuals may have fewer time constraints than adults with careers and families. Students, in particular, have long designated holidays between terms that provide the opportunity for travel. However, one of the greatest barriers to travel during this stage is financial; essentially, young adults may have less discretionary income available for travel. This may result in potential demand where they will travel in the future if their circumstances change, but many are nonetheless able to translate their desire into effective demand by using their limited disposable income to take short vacations and travel cheaply by using public transportation and staying in hostels.

  The married/partnered (without children) stage can be associated with a complex set of variables that contribute to both effective demand and potential demand. With two incomes and accumulated vacation time, these couples may have both the time and money to travel. However, as they develop careers and set down roots in their home environment (e.g., buy a house, acquire pets, get involved in community activities, etc.), it may become increasingly difficult to get away for extended periods of time.

  The family stage arguably has the greatest influence on whether demand is effective or potential. Couples and single parents with dependent children have increased household, childcare, educational, and other expenses and therefore less disposable
income available for travel. At the same time, the cost of a trip increases as a family must purchase more transport tickets, book a larger hotel room or suite, pay for more activities, and others. Between the parents’ work schedules and the children’s school and activity schedules, it may be difficult to find an appropriate time when everyone will be free to travel. Moreover, family trips require more coordination and preparation to ensure that all members of the family are ready to go on the trip and various contingencies are accounted for (e.g., packing drinks and snacks, entertainment, favorite toys or blankets, various first aid supplies in case of illness or accidents, etc.). Because of these constraints, families may have the desire for travel and tourism experiences but decide to put it off or revise their expectations by traveling to destinations closer to home, taking trips of a shorter duration, or undertaking travel to visit family, such as grandparents.

  Initially, effective demand increases in the empty nest stage. Once children become independent and no longer require financial support, these individuals may experience an increase in their disposable income and an increase in leisure time. This will continue to increase after they retire from their full-time jobs. As a result, empty nesters may translate their potential demand into effective demand, not only in terms of having the opportunity to travel but also to have the type of tourism experiences they desired. As this stage transitions into the elderly stage over time, effective demand decreases again. Retirees living on a fixed income may have to make choices about the experiences they can afford. Travel may become physically more difficult, and health concerns can present a distinct challenge. Some individuals may become more easily tired by journeys. This not only affects their experience of the destination but also requires a post-trip recovery period, which will affect the way they remember the trip. Others may not be physically able to undertake long journeys. For example, individuals experiencing back pain may be unable to sit in the confines of an uncomfortable seat for a lengthy period of time. The loss of one’s spouse or partner during the course of this stage has the potential to affect demand. Ultimately, suppressed demand transitions into no demand as the individual feels that the experience of tourism is no longer worth the hassles of traveling.

  While there are, of course, always exceptions to these general patterns, the life cycle variable provides some insight into why demand might be effective for some groups of people within a society and potential for others. This helps tourism stakeholders develop strategies to translate potential demand into effective demand. For example, many destinations have recognized that families are a significant potential tourist market with a demand for travel, if the right opportunities are presented. As a result, the tourism industry encourages family travel with the development of family-friendly resorts that offer activities for children and/or babysitting services to allow parents some alone time. These resorts may have specially priced family packages that allow children to stay or eat at on-site restaurants for free to make such a vacation seem more affordable—and therefore more accessible—to families.

  The Supply Side

  Tourism may also be approached from the supply side with a focus on the industry. This, too, is a fundamental component of tourism: tourism necessarily involves the provision of services and experiences. Geography has generally had more to contribute to this side of tourism because of the discipline’s focus on the places and place-based resources that play an important role in the supply of tourism. While issues of tourism resources will be the focus of the chapters in part II, the remainder of this chapter introduces some of the theories and concepts that have been put forth to help us understand tourism from the supply side.

  Tourism

  From the supply side perspective, one of the most important distinctions that we can make to help us understand many patterns in tourism is that of mass tourism and niche tourism. The concept of mass tourism is explained through Fordism, or the system of mass production and consumption, typically linked back to Henry Ford and the changes made in automobile manufacturing. Fordism refers to the manufacture of standardized goods in large volumes at a low cost. Thus, mass tourism is the production of standardized experiences made available to large numbers of tourists at a low cost.

  At mass tourism destinations, the infrastructure is well developed to handle large quantities of tourists. There are typically good transportation links that allow people to easily reach the destination, whether it is interstate highway access, a major international airport, or a cruise terminal. There may be a spatial concentration of hotels and resorts to accommodate these tourists, as well as restaurants and entertainment facilities to meet their needs. These service providers are often dominated by large multinational corporations. Whether tourists visit the Bahamas, Italy, or Thailand, they can stay at a Best Western. When they are in Orlando, Beijing, or Casablanca, they can eat at a T.G.I. Friday’s. To some extent, tourists can expect similar experiences at these places regardless of where they are actually located. Because the emphasis of mass tourism is on quantity, low-cost packages may be offered to make these destinations accessible to medium- and lower-income groups. In addition, the standardization of experiences means that destinations may be considered interchangeable. This leads to competition between destinations, which contributes to a further reduction in prices.

  The most prominent mass tourism destinations have been in warm climates and coastal areas. The idea of mass tourism is also associated with key inversions discussed above, like relaxation and partying. As a result, mass tourism is often characterized as the worst of tourism and for stereotypical tourists. Yet, mass tourism has existed since the early eras of tourism and will continue to exist because it meets certain needs. The well-developed infrastructure facilitates tourism for large numbers of people, while the competition and economies of scale allow more people to participate in tourism than would otherwise be possible. Moreover, it provides the type of experiences that many tourists continue to demand.

  Mass tourism is often contrasted with niche tourism (also sometimes called “alternative” or “special interest” tourism), which is based on the concept of post-Fordism. This concept reflects changes in the ways in which production and consumption are understood. Post-Fordism recognizes that there is not always a single mass market in which all demands may be met through mass production. As a result, there is a need for more differentiated or specialized products targeted at specific markets. Particularly as the tourism industry has developed and more people have had the opportunity to travel to different places, there has been a growing demand for new types of experiences outside of the mainstream. Niche tourism allows destinations to exploit a particular resource that they possess and create a sense of distinction so that tourists feel they must visit that destination to have that experience. It also allows tourists to choose a vacation experience that is more tailored to their specific interests rather than a one-size-fits-all package.

  Many destinations become characterized by either mass tourism or niche tourism, although a destination has the potential to tailor its offerings to meet the demands of different types of tourists. Some tourism products that will be discussed in the next chapter lend themselves more toward one type of tourism over the other, and each type will affect tourists and tourism destinations in different ways.

  Tourism Attractions

  Tourism attractions are aspects of places that are of interest to tourists and provide a pull factor for the destination. Attractions can include things to be seen, activities to be done, or experiences to be had. Some tourism attractions seem “given.” For example, the most spectacular scenes of natural beauty, impressive architectural constructions, and places where significant historic events occurred are those that are natural for people to want to experience. However, these sites are attractions because they have been given meaning. This meaning may be given by the tourists themselves and the types of things they demand, but it may also be given by the tourism industry. Each potential destination has to
find the attraction (or attractions) that makes it unique and will cause people to want to visit that place instead of another.

  There are four broad categories of tourism attractions: natural, human (not originally intended for tourism), human (intended for tourism), and special events.5 Natural attractions are obviously based on the physical geography of a place, such as the coast, mountains, forests, caves, inland water sources, flora, fauna, and so on. The first category of human attractions includes those places or characteristics of places that had some other purpose or function but have since become an attraction for tourism, such as historic structures, religious institutions, and aspects of local culture. The second category of human attractions include those places or aspects of places that were specifically designed to attract visitors, such as modern entertainment facilities like amusement parks, casinos, shopping centers, resorts, and museums. Finally, special events is a diverse category that can include religious and secular festivals, sporting events, conferences and conventions, and, in some cases, social events such as weddings and reunions.

  Almost anything can be made into a tourist attraction, including a whole array of oddities and curiosities. For example, the Blarney Stone of Blarney Castle in Ireland has become a well-known tourism attraction visited by an estimated 400,000 people annually. Legend has it that those who kiss the Blarney Stone will gain the gift of eloquence, and visitors have reportedly gone through this ritual for more than two hundred years. Early visitors were held by their ankles and lowered head first over the battlements to perform this act, but safety measures have since been put into place so that visitors only have to lean backwards while holding on to an iron railing, often with the help of a guide. The origins of the stone—and this ritual—are much debated, and some reports suggest that the Blarney Stone was, in fact, once part of the castle’s latrine system. Regardless of its origins, it has recently been called the most unhygienic tourism attraction in the world.6