Month: June 2021

My first job in the tourism industry was as a travel agent in England way back when dinosaurs roamed the earth.  At that time everyone booked their annual vacations from printed travel brochures, or catalogs. This wasn’t something that happened just in England, but across the world. The books for next year’s vacation started arriving in the travel agency around September although they largely remained in the back storage room until just before Christmas when us junior travel clerks had to replace most of the existing stock on the shelves with the new shiny catalogs.  Of course we were tasked with getting rid of the literally hundreds of now obsolete books. These days how we did that would be an ecological disaster. We put them in the trash, burned them in fires in the back yard and found all sorts of ways to dispose of them. Recycling? We hadn’t even heard of the word.

Just before Christmas, the newspapers started running ads for the next years vacations (or Holidays as we called them) and customers began to drop in to collect their favorite destination guides. Invariably some were in short supply and we had to ration how we any we gave out always guarding the ‘Office Copy’ on pain of dismissal!

Come the day after Christmas itself (another day off for British people, called for reasons lost in time – Boxing Day) the TV was full of ads for vacations. For two months we were rushed off our feet as everyone booked their summer breaks. By the end of February it was all over and the next season winter break catalogs and brochures started to arrive.

How things have changed!  Travel agents are way different now and we have on-line agents too. Some travelers make their arrangements months in advance, especially if they have a large family or need to secure a specific hotel or activity. Many of us search the internet for ideas and  deals.  We read the review sites and are influenced by the opinions of, surprise surprise, ‘influencers’ or travel bloggers. Checking out the YouTube videos and Instagram posts to see what appeals to you is huge fun. Of course you can still go to a travel agent particularly if you have a very complex itinerary or you if you don’t have the time to research yourself.  Much of the fun is in the planning and that’s much easier and enjoyable in the days of the internet.

It’s now different from the past where your only advice came from travel guides that were out of date before they were printed.  Photos of hotels used only to be  provided by the hotels themselves but now you can see what fellow travelers have shared. It’s easy to see videos shot by other tourists, read reviews by people who’ve actually visited and even look at web cams to see what’s happening right now.

Of course, traveling is much less of a leap of faith than it was. We tend to be a more travelled society these days and the world is often less ‘different’ than it was, in that one airport is much like another and hotels can be depressingly similar to each other no matter where you are in the world.  It doesn’t have to be that way of course as with research and maybe the help of that travel agent or other expert you can find somewhere that expands your experience and provides cultural insights.

So, have you thought where your travels will take you next year? Have you started your travel planning? Don’t leave it too long. Travel broadens the mind they say and provides you with experiences and memories that last a lifetime.  The anticipation of your vacation is also a great joy, giving you opportunity to make your trip really special.  Remember the journey is as important as the destination – maybe more so.

The only thing we don’t have to worry about these days is what to do with all those out of date travel catalogues.  I don’t miss that at all!

Tourism is always changing.  Trends develop, fashions change, generations have different goals.  These all alter the way destination management organizations (a fancy name for tourist boards, visitors bureaus and similar bodies) promote their destinations.  Effectively, how they ‘sell’ their areas to potential visitors. However, things are changing there too.

Many DMOs around the world are realizing that it’s not enough to promote their area to new visitors. More than that, it’s not even appropriate to follow the same methods of working that they have for years. It seems that today’s travelers – tourists – want a genuinely authentic experience. They want to visit a place because they want to feel like a local and want to live like the locals do.

That in turn means that the locals must want to welcome visitors.  They need to be enthusiastic about where they live and be willing to share. Unfortunately, if the locals fail to see the benefits of tourism and are unable to reconcile those benefits with the potential downsides, then the concept won’t work.  All that happens is that the residents resent the tourists and become less, rather than more, welcoming.

So, we are seeing the development of ‘destination management’,  electively stewarding the area to ensure that long term residents get the benefits of their area first and as a result actively encourage others to come and visit. The aim is not only to get travelers to visit once, but return multiple times perhaps even one day moving to the area permanently.  All this adds to the local economy (good for locals), increases employment (good for locals) and keeps the destination fresh and attractive (good for everyone).

Of course this involves agreement between the local populations and the tourists that each respects the other. There needs to be understanding that both groups must share the destination and its resources. Those resources must not be exclusively for one group or the other.

One area in Micronesia had their children create a ‘contract’ for tourists where they agree to respect local customs and to, in their words, ‘leave nothing but footprints that can be washed away by the sea’.  They even stamp visitors passports with the contract and get the tourists to sign it.

Other cities around the world organize tourist style events that are only open to locals, so that the residents can have fun being tourists in their own town.

Areas with high tourism numbers are developing cellphone apps that show both visitors and locals where areas are crowded, and suggesting other attractions and routes.  That again helps everyone out.

The results are dramatic, as locals become ambassadors and evangelists for their home town, actively encouraging guests to visit. Tourists begin to feel that they are part of the local community and not just temporary visitors, resented by those that live there.

The process to achieve this involves the DMOs first talking to their local population. They find out what the locals like about their home, and what they would encourage visiting friends and family to experience. The tourist industry then engages with the residents to let them share the tourists experience by offering ‘local’s rates’ and special events for residents. The management and stewarding process then works to reduce overcrowding, and spreading the visitor peaks across the year if possible.  This may involve finding new markets or developing different activities. For examples some tourist boards have worked with adventure tour companies to create mountain biking operations or ATV trails.  SCUBA divers have been encouraged to visit artificial reefs, and farmers have set up farm stay vacations.

All this is working both across the country and worldwide. It’s a case of trying to think differently and working to make the tourist destination attractive to those that live there as well as those who visit. 

It’s a different process to simple promotion and marketing. It involves the whole industry, (accommodation providers, attractions, tour operators, restaurants etc.) working with the residents to create a genuinely great place to live and visit – for everyone.

It is said that travel broadens the mind. Why is that? Traveling shows you parts of the world that are different from your own and allows you to mix with people who have different cultures, ideas and ways of life. Meeting and living with those folks allows you to appreciate their views, food and experiences. That’s got to be good for everyone surely?

Back when traveling wasn’t as easy as it now is, you would be very likely to come into contact with many ‘locals’ and in doing so you shared a common journey. Hopefully the traveler learned quickly to understand and respect other cultures and the ways of doing things.  When the tourist failed to be respectful and tolerant problems tended to appear!

Recently we hear a great deal about over-tourism. This is when the number of visitors exceeded the ability of a destination to handle the vast numbers of arrivals. The locals start to be overwhelmed by not only the numbers of tourists but by those visitors failing to be sensitive to the daily life of the place with which they are suddenly presented.

Much of this is appears to be caused by the ways we ‘arrive’ as tourists in a new destination. I remember being in Central Australia at the huge monolithic rock called Uluru.  Uluru by the way, is a sacred site to the Pitantjatjara Anangu, the Aboriginal people of that part of Australia, who have been residents for millions of years. Europeans only arrived in the area in early 1800’s and promptly renamed Uluru as Ayers Rock after a politician of the time. Failing to recognize the area as sacred, it became a tourist destination.  I was there to photograph ‘The Rock’ as it often appears to change color as the sun sets – it is quite magnificent.  I set up my cameras on tripods in the scrubland (known as The Bush) some distance from the sandstone monolith in almost total seclusion with just the other 10 members of our party, and waited for the sun to set.  Suddenly and apparently out of nowhere (bearing in mind this is in the center of Australia, pretty much a thousand miles from anywhere!) came literally dozens of tourists buses each disgorging about 40 or 50 people.  As the sun began to set and the Rock changed color the silence of the Outback was filled with the clicking of camera shutters and “oohs”, “Ahs” and chattering of the tourists.  As the sun finally went down, I turned and as quickly as they arrived, the tours buses disappeared into the night leaving the bush, and our small party in silence.

Much the same thing is currently happening in places like Venice where enormous cruise liners pull into the lagoon and unload up to 5000 tourists each. The effect is catastrophic for the Renaissance City.  Regrettably a significant number of the visitors appear to treat the City as some sort of theme park. Having disembarked from their floating home from home, they almost consider the residents as actors much like the ‘cast members’ as they are called, at DisneyWorld. In Rome, tourists have been seen paddling in the Trevi Fountain, much to consternation of the Romans. Machu Pichu has resorted to limiting the number of visitors in fear that World Heritage site will be destroyed by sheer numbers of travelers. 

Regrettably some tourists seem unable to moderate their own cultural values and nuances and impose them on the place they are visiting.  I’m sure many of us have seen this type of behavior.  The western tourists who wears inappropriate clothing when visiting another countries sacred site or temple. Unthinking visitors who trample on rare plants or who feed wild animals that the locals certainly wouldn’t encourage.  We’ve been in churches and other religious places where the peace and solemnity has been disturbed by unthinking visitors talking loudly or taking photos.  

No one set of tourists or travelers is worse than any other and the problem has been present for generations, it’s just that the cruise liner, Jumbo Jet and tour bus has made it easier for large numbers of people to arrive in a destination bringing with them their own culture and ways of behavior. Their sudden arrival makes assimilation and consideration of the local culture very difficult. Unless one is made aware of what the locals deem acceptable behavior, you as a tourist can unknowingly offend.

Travel does indeed broaden the mind.  The mind however needs to be open to learning. The visitor must be conscious that they are indeed only visiting. The tourists are guests and must understand, tolerate and absorb local culture.  Locals should be willing to be welcoming, and attempt to gently educate their visitors.  Only then can the collective minds be broadened and benefits of tourism can be shared.

July, and we’re in the middle of the peak summer tourist season here on the Northern Gulf Coast. If you live here, you’ll recognize the signs of the busy season – the difficulties of getting along the roads (think of Highway 98 anywhere along the coast), trying to find a table at your favorite restaurant or in many cases, just going to the store! But remember, this is what our economy relies on.  Not only does it keep thousands of us in employment, but pays huge amounts of sales tax (which keeps tax for the locals low) and through Tourist Development Tax (Bed Tax) funds our own tourist promotion, beach safety and tourism infrastructure. That latter tax ensures that locals don’t pay to keep the tourism economy going.

Despite the economic benefits of the summer peak, we have to admit that it does disrupt our ‘normal’ life. But looking at statistics for the year so far it appears that there are developments that show our tourism is heading in the right direction.

Our Convention and Visitor’s Bureaus along the coast have been working to ease the peaks in our tourism year by persuading visitors that spring, fall and winter are actually better times to come to the area.  It’s working.  We are receiving more travelers outside the peak summer months.  Not to the extent that we will be over-run all year, but by spreading the visitation we actually make more jobs year-round rather than seasonal. We also don’t need to build more condos home or roads, as we already have the infrastructure to cope with the summer (well, pretty much) so it can certainly handle an increase outside of the summer.

The CVBs, hotels, property management and restaurants are also reporting that visitor numbers for the summer so far are slightly down on previous years. Some of this can be attributed to last year’s visit of Hurricane Michael but some decrease can also be a result of the change in marketing.  The good news is that these fewer tourists are apparently spending more money. The accommodation folks are keeping their average daily rates higher and not discounting – that’s good for everyone.  Restaurants are also claiming that visitors are spending more.

There’s another reason for this variation in tourist numbers. Those known as Millennials (those born between 1981 and 1996) are now traveling with their families. In fact they are the largest single group of visitors we have. It appears that they would rather have two vacations of  4 days each, than the previous generation’s single vacation of 7 days. Obviously that’s an increase of one day overall, but also means that they are likely to have a shorter summer break but an additional trip outside of the peak season. Again, good news for year round jobs and a more balanced economy.

Of course national holidays like Independence Day, Memorial Day and Labor Day are still going to be peak times and we can expect full occupancy in the hotels and vacation rentals, crowded roads and full restaurants. It’s all part of the summer for those of us on the Northern Gulf Coast, and long may it continue.

Next time you’re frustrated by the holiday traffic remember what a friend of mine said. Faced with a gridlocked Highway 98 he just pointed out that every tourist car was ‘a credit card on wheels’.  Great news for us locals.J

Most months the Let’s Talk Tourism column here in Conexión looks at what’s happening in the tourism world, the latest trends or what brings people to our area on the Gulf Coast.  This month, I wanted to concentrate on what we locals are aiming to do for our vacations.

This came about because we’ve had a change to our vacation plans. We have three dogs (Smooth Collies). Roxy, a young nearly two year old girl, Jack a stately 7 year old boy, and an amazing 13 year old Grand Dame, Lola.  Lola is old for a Collie and although amazing fit for her age, isn’t able to travel and we don’t like the idea of leaving her with friends for too long.  As a result, we’ve been doing local traveling or as they’ve become know, Staycations.

There are many reasons why people decide to vacation near home. Sometimes, like us, it’s because we need to be available where we live. Family finances can also limit expenditures on long trips, so avoiding some of the costs of major excursions can help.  Indeed it could be that you want a break from airports, struggles through security or extended road trips. Whatever the reasons, Staycations can be amazing providing you follow a few rules.

First and foremost, this is a vacation, so treat it like one!  That means no scheduling home tasks or ticking things off the ‘Honey Do’ list. Tell friends and family that you’re away on vacation because you (probably!) don’t want them dropping round and holding you up. You’re away on vacation after all.

You need a plan and an itinerary, so treat your own area like a tourist. Do your research. Call your local Convention and Visitor’s Bureau and see what they suggest. Don’t tell them you’re a local (more on that later) and you’ll be surprised at things they come up with.  I’ll bet there are exciting activities and adventures you didn’t know about.  You’ll also be amazed at how many free or very inexpensive experiences there are around.

Now, there are times when you do want to tell folks you’re a local.  A huge number of restaurants, activities and experiences offer discounts for locals. Just being a Florida resident can score you substantial reductions in many places.

You may find that can stretch to being away from home for one or two nights, so don’t discount some of the Bed & Breakfast establishments in nearby towns and cities.  A short drive can put you in a totally new environment, seeing things you didn’t know about. There may even be experiences, museums, or activities you always promised to do, but never got around to.  Now’s the time!

Just recently, we visited the Wakulla State Park near Tallahassee. It was only a couple of hours drive away and the sights and sounds we experienced were amazing.  Wild alligators, Manatees, incredible bird life and all virtually on our doorstep. You can also stay in the Lodge at Wakulla, and if you’re open to a night away from home it’s well worth it.

We also took a trip to Pensacola – literally an hour away from home – and stayed at a Bed & Breakfast (a beautiful building with comfortable rooms, superb breakfasts and wonderful hospitality).  We visited some restaurants that were new to us, and worth a revisit in the future.  Oh, and we went to an antique car show. The show was free and great fun.

Traveling the world is fun and travel, as the saying goes, broadens the mind. Never forget that you can have fun being a tourist at home and get to see ourselves as others do!

Where do you stay when you go on vacation? What sort of accommodation experience are you looking for? Once the choices were fairly simple, this hotel or another hotel, but these days there are wide variety of options that depend on your expectations and needs.

Here on the Northern Gulf Coast much of the accommodation is directed towards leisure travelers – people taking vacations. Unlike other parts of the country Vacation Rentals have been available for a long time here so are engrained in our expectations.  The vacation rental business really consists of privately owned properties that are managed, marketed and reserved through property management companies.  The actual rental units can range from single roomed condos through to luxurious, large beach homes.  Similarly, the property managers can be small companies looking after five or ten individual properties up to large corporations that have inventories of thousands of units. The property managers usually look after all aspects of marketing, sales, maintenance and housekeeping. The important thing to remember is that the actual accommodation is privately owned, but the vacation rental companies bring an element of uniformity to the whole process. This probably includes some security to the whole process of booking and staying on your vacation. As a customer it’s only really necessary to decide on the property manager you trust and then the location.

More recently, organizations like VRBO (Vacation Rental By Owner), HomeAway and AirBnB have become more involved.  These companies usually don’t handle housekeeping or maintenance. They are essentially just listing and booking agents. The actual property is the responsibility of the owners themselves.  This can be a good or bad thing, as owners can be wonderful hosts or sometimes not so much.  AirBnB started as a booking service for owners who had a spare room they wanted rent out for some of the time. The hosts invariably were still staying in their property.  The company has now expanded and offer ‘conventional’ vacation rentals, although it’s important to realize that the quality of the property and its maintenance, housekeeping etc., is purely in the hands of the owner.  It pays to do your own investigations.

What about hotels? Again, traditionally here on the Gulf Coast your choice was between small motels and conventional chain hotels. Even that has changed.  You can still find the small, family run motels but they are getting increasingly rare as tourists demand more facilities and features. Newer hotels close to the beach are more like resorts with pools, restaurants and all the activities a family could want on vacation, without the need to leave the property.  Your choice is based on the hotel brand you prefer.

Those hotels that are not totally dependent on the tourist dollar often offer an almost hybrid option that combines the facilities of a hotel with benefits of a condo.  They include kitchens and living space and are available for extended stays.  Look for Extended Stay Suites. The weekly, (and longer) rates are usually attractive but don’t expect daily housekeeping. They may clean your room weekly.  This is a concept that has been used in the non-vacation  accommodation section sector for many years where business travelers who needed to stay for longer than one or two nights, found it more comfortable and cost effective to have their own ‘apartment’ rather than just an hotel room.  The extended stay suite is a good alternative if you have a family and intend to either cook for yourself or eat out. It’s like a condo but subtly different.

Then of course, there are the boutique hotels, often at the higher end of the cost scale, but offering an experience in itself with eclectic furnishing and personalized service. Look too at some of the ‘adult only’ spas and resorts, again usually high-end price wise, but catering to a particular vacationer.

Naturally there are other options like true Bed and Breakfast establishments, usually owner un and managed offering a very personal service. Those of you with Recreational Vehicles will know all about the RV Resorts that allow you to bring your own home on wheels and hook up to the resorts facilities.

All the above are now available here on the Gulf Coast. They’re all different and appeal to varying traveler needs and choices.  Just make sure you’re booking the right accommodation for your and be certain that you’ll be happy with what is being offered. Like all vacation choices it pays to do your research thoroughly.

I’m writing this sitting in an airport waiting for a flight.  It’s a good place to think about traveling and what motivates us where to travel and how to travel.

Back in The Good Old Days I suppose most people read through guide books and spoke to travel agents.  There were also the catalogs and brochures printed by airlines, railroads, hotels and tour operators. Invariably we poured of these, sometimes for months or even years before making our decisions and reservations.

Of course, in most cases, we were getting old information. The travel and guide books had be researched and written years before. Things didn’t change much in those days, or at least they didn’t change very fast, so if a travel writer visited a destination one year, wrote about it the next and then published it, chances are the place was much the same. These days changes happen at an incredible speed and what was fact yesterday is probably no longer the same. Look at the effect that over-tourism has had on many destinations.  In a matter of a year some destinations have either closed areas to the public or imposed admission charges. Where would a five year old travel guide help you now?

The other effect that all those brochures and catalogs had was that we believed what they said. Hotels and resorts were writing about their own properties. Airlines and railroads were telling us how good their services were, and we accepted all their claims.

The internet changed all that of course. The ability to create and publish websites almost instantly gave those promoting travel and tourism a rapid path to influencing our purchases. Similarly, the ‘always on and up to date’ news feeds have given us information that is current and relevant to our traveling decisions. We are much better informed these days.

We’ve also become much more aware of what we are being told.  Perhaps we’re even cynical and don’t trust what the owners of the resorts, hotels, destinations, airlines and other transportation providers are telling us. We’ve been taught to trust peer reviews.  Whenever you buy something online, I’ll bet you check the reviews and see what other customers think.

The same applies to travel and tourism. We automatically check out hotels, restaurants and destinations on sites like TripAdvisor, Google and Yelp. I write reviews myself and I’m sure you do too.

We should however be aware that some of the reviews are not all they make out to be. It’s not unknown for some reviewers to post critical or untrue reviews just to try and get a deal out of the supplier. Some of the review sites have also moved into selling the products they are reviewing. It could be suggested that they may manipulate some of the reviews to make more money!  Surely not, you say, but it has be been known.

I’m sure that you are able to ‘read between the lines’ of reviews and work out what is accurate and what isn’t.  It’s all part of buyer awareness.

A bit of advice though from an industry insider.  When you’re looking at the websites for accommodation providers or booking services for tours – indeed even destinations – see if they publish independant reviews on what they are selling.  An increasing number are doing this, and it makes a difference.  It makes them more credible and a better place to spend your money.

Well, the flight is being called, so I’d better close and get on the plane.  The airline says their service is really good and promise I’ll enjoy the flight. What do you think?