The Tourism Industry: An Overview

TL;DR: In this paper, the authors introduced the concept of tourism and explained the tourists' inherent motivations to travel, and described different aspects that together make up the tourism industry, and highlighted the major points of interest in North America to clarify how diverse destinations may be appealing to different tourists.

Abstract: This chapter introduces its readers to the concept of tourism It sheds light on the rationale for tourism, as it explains the tourists’ inherent motivations to travel It also describes different aspects that together make up the tourism industry Tourists travel to destinations that are accessible to them They require accommodation if they are visiting a place for more than 24 h Leisure and business travellers may also visit attractions, and engage themselves in recreational activities Hence, the tourist destinations should have the right amenities and facilities In this light, this chapter clarifies how destinations may offer different products to satisfy a wide array of tourists Tourism products can include; urban (or city) tourism, seaside tourism, rural tourism, ecotourism, wine tourism, culinary tourism, health tourism, medical tourism, religious tourism, cultural (or heritage) tourism, sports tourism, educational tourism, business tourism (including meetings, incentives, conferences and events), among others In conclusion, this chapter lists major points of interest in North America to clarify how diverse destinations may be appealing to different tourists, for many reasons

Summary

1.1 Introduction

• This chapter describes the main sectors within the travel, tourism and hospitality industries.
• It provides a good overview of the vertical and horizontal inter-relationships between different.

1.2 Defining Tourism

• Individuals become tourists when they voluntarily leave their normal surroundings, where they reside, to visit another environment.
• These individuals will usually engage in different activities, regardless of how close or how far this environment is (Hall, 2008; Holloway & Taylor, 2006; Jafari, 2002).
• Therefore, tourists are visitors, and what they you do whilst visiting another place may be considered as tourism.
• Tourism may or may not involve overnight stay away from home”.
• The latter refers to travel within the borders of one’s home country.

1.2.1 The Nature of Tourism

• There are those who travel for reasons of business.
• There are other factors that may also affect the persons’ ability to travel.
• Tourism planners, developers and promoters need to identify why people choose to travel, when some necessity compels them to do so.
• The tourism industry’s major function is to serve travellers.
• Different means of transportation are normally used within host destinations.

1.4.1 Air Travel

• Air transportation can be separated into national (or domestic) and international flights.
• Domestic flights depart from one point to another within the same country.
• Travellers may travel through public or private companies.
• Airlines may offer scheduled, chartered, low-cost, commuter or regional services, operating to / from their country.
• Very often, they may also have smaller airlines which operate air taxi services, non-scheduled services and sight-seeing tours.

1.4.2 Water-borne Transportation

• There are many forms of water-transportation, including ocean cruises, ferries and hovercrafts, passenger cargo ships, river cruises, house boats and yacht charters.
• Recently, short-sea vessels have also achieved new levels of comfort and speed on many routes.
• Line voyage services are those offering passenger transport on a port-to-port basis, rather than as part of a cruise.
• The only dedicated transatlantic ocean liner in operation is Queen Mary 2 of the Cunard fleet.
• She also has the amenities of contemporary cruise ships and offers significant services like cruises.

1.4.4 Land Transportation

• Travel on land gives a choice of travel by rail or road, with the latter offering travel by car, coach (or bus) and campervan.
• Long distance trains normally carry sleeping or couchette cars.
• Cars are a popular means of transportation and these may be privately owned or rented.
• The flydrive packages have adapted to the needs of the motoring tourists.
• In addition, taxi services are provided in all major cities in all continents.

1.5 Accommodation

• The accommodation sector comprises different forms of hospitality facilities which can be conveniently categorised as service (where catering is included) or self-catering establishments.
• Service accommodation may consist of hotels, bed and breakfasts (B&B’s), travel inns, and the like.
• Historically, accommodation was established along major transport routes, particularly where there are cross-roads.
• Therefore, they may only consider accommodation that is affordable to them (i.e. if it is within their price range).
• The hotel amenities can also prove to be a very important criterion for tourists, particularly to the business travellers who may require certain specialised services.

1.5.1 Hotel Brands and the Corporate Chains

• With the development of mass tourism, so have the large hotel chains and corporations within the accommodation sector.
• Leading chains around the work have often diversified their brands by price and image to appeal to a wider variety of markets.
• A recent trend among hotel chains has been the development of budget-price properties.
• They may lack wardrobes or even usually charged.
• Sales are exclusively online and they may not advertise their properties.

1.5.3 The Bed and Breakfast (B & Bs)

• Tourists may want to meet and engage with the local people.
• They may enjoy an intimate relationship with the culture of the country they are visiting.
• For this reason, they may choose to seek accommodation in guesthouses or bed and breakfasts (B&Bs).
• European countries with strong agricultural traditions have catered for tourists in farmhouse accommodation for many years.
• Farmers have often turned to tourism as a means of boosting revenue, particularly during the off-peak season.

1.5.5 Camping and caravanning

• Camping is one of the most popular outdoor recreational activities for many tourists.
• In 2015, the revenue from campgrounds and parks was estimated to reach around 5.8 billion U.S. dollars.
• Recreational vehicles including caravans are also a popular and convenient way of camping.
• These vehicles provide campers with home comforts such as kitchen facilities and living areas.

1.5.6 Second Homes and Time-share Accommodation

• Second homes may be used for seasonal, recreational, or occasional use.
• Alternatively, second homes may be described as properties that are owned or rented on a long lease.
• Multiple users will usually hold rights to use the property.
• Timeshare offerings may be structured through deeded interests, right-to-use, club membership, share-based plans, et cetera.
• The students’ accommodation is usually situated near major tourist destinations, such as London, Cambridge, Oxford and Edinburgh, among other university cities.

1.5.8 The AirBnB Model of Shared Accommodation

• The Sharing economy describes economic and social activities, involving; online transactions in an open-source community.
• It usually refers to peer-to-peer sharing via an online market place.
• Airbnb allows online visitors to book accommodation for entire homes, private or shared rooms.
• Online users can filter their search results according to their affordable budgets.
• This form of “shared” accommodation is usually cheaper than hotels, particularly in urban areas.

1.6 Ancillary Services

• Most tourists on holiday will want to be amused, entertained and active during their visit.
• They will require information on their destination’s ancillary services, including activities and attractions.
• The tourists are unable to see, touch or feel the tourism product in advance.
• Today’s travel marketers can increasingly impact their consumers through ubiquitous mobile devices, including smart phones and tablets.
• They expect accuracy in listing information, and immediate responses from brands.

1.6.2 Public Service and Amenities

• A destination’s infrastructure is not usually developed with the tourist in mind, but should include facilities and services that are required by tourists.
• Infrastructural elements include; roads, electricity and water supplies, communication facilities, sewage and waste disposal, policing and security, medical services and hygiene.
• In developed countries, these facilities are provided for residents.

1.6.3 Financial Services

• Tourists require access to financial services in order to fund their travel arrangements.
• Foreign exchange is probably the most important service required; tourists may also need insurance and credit facilities.
• Travellers may need coverage for one or more of the following contingencies: cancellation or curtailment of holiday; delayed departure; baggage loss or delay; money loss and personal liability, among other products.
• These include carrying foreign cash, in the form of banknotes (yet, this may lead to loss or theft); by using travel vouchers, credit cards or debit cards.
• Travel vouchers may be used for the payment of travel services, including car hire and hotel accommodation.

1.6.4 Food and Beverage

• For many travellers, the consumption of food and drink forms an important part of the travel experience.
• It is not unusual for the tourists’ consumption patterns to change quite considerable whilst they are away from home.
• Many tourists gain great enjoyment from dining out, particularly, if they are not in the habit of doing this at home, whilst others may decide to consume convenience foods.

1.6.5 Entertainment

• This category includes facilities such as cinema or movies, night clubs, theatres, plays and shows.
• As a general rule, they are often attended for the sole purpose of filling in the night time hours rather than being part of a planned itinerary.

1.6.6 Retail Facilities

• The retail trade provides an important service to the tourist, in terms of supply.
• Tourists may need to purchase basic necessities such as toiletries, or may want to purchase souvenirs and gifts which reflect the destination they visited.
• In many countries, many professional bodies have introduced their own programmes of training and vocational education, which are often carried out through full time or part time courses at local colleges of further or higher education.
• Certificates in Travel (for travel agents) and Tour (for Tour Operators) replaced the former ABTA-approved ABTAC and ABTOC qualifications, but all too briefly (Holloway & Taylor, 2006).
• Many universities in the world are increasingly introducing undergraduate degrees in travel and tourism.

1.6.8 Tourist Guides and Courier Services

• There is no specific term which will conveniently identify those individuals whose function is to guide, inform and engage with groups of tourists.
• The retailer is the travel agent who sells the tours to the consumer.
• Therefore, the travel agents provide a location (either through brick and mortar premises, or online) where potential tourists can seek information on the tourism products; Travel advice on the various options available; A booking service to secure reservations, on the various aspects of the product, such as transport, accommodation, sight-seeing, et cetera; Support in travel formalities.
• The issuance of tickets, vouchers and itineraries for all travel arrangements.
• Moreover, some destinations may have currencies that could not be exchanged in other countries.

1.8.1 National Tourism Offices

• National governments usually establish tourist offices or tourism authorities to serve national goals in the realms of tourism planning and development.
• The tourism offices strengthen the public and private partnerships in international tourism marketing.
• Moreover, they may have an important regulatory role.
• As on the infrastructure supporting the industry.
• To assist and advise on any tourism-related issues and to undertake activities, events and projects to improve the tourism product (MTTA, 1999).

1.9 Tourist Destinations

• The authors have already seen how the four sectors of the tourism industry work, and they also looked at the tourism product.
• The authors have identified how tourism sectors rely on each other to provide those ingredients the travellers are looking for.

1.9.1 Key Elements of Tourist Destinations

• Regardless of how or why individuals travel, there are some fundamental requirements that travellers’ expect from destinations.
• If tourists are to be more than just one-day visitors, they must have somewhere to stay.
• Attractions can be natural wonders, man-made attractions, special events, cultural or historic sites, arts and crafts, sport, music or dance, Therefore, the wider the variety of a destination’s attractions would possibly appeal to a large number of tourists.
• Tourists may enjoy doing certain activities whilst at their destinations, also known as Activities.
• The destinations’ amenities include the provision of electricity and water, sanitary facilities, safe drinking water, roads, police and emergency services, postal and communication facilities, media, et cetera, also known as Amenities.

1.9.2 Different Types of Destinations

• Destinations possess tangible characteristics and consist of a number of physical attributes, including; attractions, amenities, buildings, landscapes and so on.
• Various types of restaurant fall into several industry classifications based upon menu style, preparation methods and pricing.
• Tourists travel to learn about the lifestyle of other people.
• All types of accommodation exist in many parts of the United States of America (USA) and Canada, ranging from modern deluxe hotels or resort complexes to simple boarding houses and wellequipped camping sites.

1.11 Summary

• The tourism product is composite in nature.
• It includes everything tourists purchase, see, experience and feel from the time they leave home until the time they return.
• In effect, this means that tourism products and sub-products are dependent on each other.
• The provision of one sub-product may not be worthwhile if other sub-products are unavailable (for example accommodation).
• In conclusion, destinations should consistently provide high standards in the provision of their tourist services.

Figures

Table 1.1 Travel Motivators Category Motivations

Full text

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The Tourism Industry: An Overview
By Mark Anthony Camilleri
1
, PhD (Edinburgh)
This is a pre-publication version of a chapter that was accepted by Springer Nature.
How to Cite: Camilleri, M. A. (2018). The Tourism Industry: An Overview. In Travel
Marketing, Tourism Economics and the Airline Product (Chapter 1, pp. 3-27). Cham,
Switzerland: Springer Nature.
Abstract
This chapter introduces its readers to the concept of tourism. It sheds light on the
rationale for tourism, as it explains the tourists’ inherent motivations to travel. It
also describes different aspects that together make up the tourism industry.
Tourists travel to destinations that are accessible to them. They require
accommodation if they are visiting a place for more than twenty-four hours.
Leisure and business travellers may also visit attractions and engage in
recreational activities. Hence, the tourist destinations should have the right
amenities and facilities. In this light, this chapter clarifies how destinations may
offer different products to satisfy a wide array of tourists. Tourism products can
include; urban (or city) tourism, seaside tourism, rural tourism, ecotourism, wine
tourism, culinary tourism, health tourism, medical tourism, religious tourism,
cultural (or heritage) tourism, sports tourism, educational tourism, business
tourism (including meetings, incentives, conferences and events), among others.
In conclusion, this chapter lists major points of interest in North America to
clarify how diverse destinations may be appealing to different tourists, for many
reasons.
1.1 Introduction
This chapter describes the main sectors within the travel, tourism and hospitality industries. It
provides a good overview of the vertical and horizontal inter-relationships between different
1
Department of Corporate Communication, Faculty of Media and Knowledge Sciences,
University of Malta, Malta. Email:
mark.a.camilleri@um.edu.mt

2
sectors. Firstly, this chapter describes the nature of tourism and the individuals’ inherent
motivations to travel. Secondly, it distinguishes the constituent parts that make up the tourism
product, including; accessibility, accommodation, activities, attractions and amenities. Thirdly,
it suggests that tourist destinations are increasingly attracting a wide array of travellers who
may have different needs and wants.
1.2 Defining Tourism
Individuals become tourists when they voluntarily leave their normal surroundings, where they
reside, to visit another environment. These individuals will usually engage in different
activities, regardless of how close or how far this environment (destination) is (Hall, 2008;
Holloway & Taylor, 2006; Jafari, 2002). Therefore, tourists are visitors, and what they you do
whilst visiting another place may be considered as tourism. Back in 1963, the United Nations
Conference on International Travel and Tourism agreed to use the term ‘visitors’ (other than
residents) to describe individuals visiting another country. This definition covered two classes
of visitor: Tourists were classified as temporary visitors staying at least 24 hours in a
destination. If they are travelling for recreation, health, sport, holiday, study or religious
purposes, their visit could be categorised as leisure. Alternatively, excursionists, including
cruise travellers may be considered as temporary visitors, if they stay in a destination for less
than 24 hours. However, these definitions fail to take into account the domestic tourists. In
1976, the Institute of Tourism (which later became the Tourism Society) suggested that tourism
is the temporary short-term movement of people to destinations outside the places where they
normally live and work. Therefore, tourism includes the movement of people for all purposes,
including day visits or excursions (Cooper, 2008; Holloway & Taylor, 2006).
This broader definition was slightly reformulated at the International Conference on Leisure
Recreation Tourism that was organised by the Worldwide Network of Tourism Experts
(AIEST) and the Tourism Society in Cardiff, in 1981: “Tourism may be defined in terms of
particular activities, selected by choice, and undertaken outside the home environment.
Tourism may or may not involve overnight stay away from home”. In 1991, the United Nations
World Tourism Organisation declared that “Tourism comprises the activities of persons
travelling to and staying in places outside of their usual environment for not more than one
consecutive year for leisure, business or other purposes”. At this stage, one could differentiate

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between domestic and international tourism (Yuksel, 2004). The former refers to travel that is
exclusively undertaken within the national boundaries of the traveller’s home country. The
latter refers to travel within the borders of one’s home country. Domestic travel will have an
impact on the balance of payments and will reduce the outflow of money from the tourists’
home country (Mathieson & Wall, 1982).
1.2.1 The Nature of Tourism
At this stage, it is important to realise that there are two types of travellers: There are those
who travel for reasons of business. Others may travel for personal motives, including visits to
friends and relatives (VFR travel); study; religious pilgrimages; sport; health, et cetera. For the
first group, the decision to travel, and where to go, is largely beyond their control. The business
travellers will have little discretion in the choice of their prospective destination, or on the
timing of their trip. Generally, the purpose of their trip is not to enjoy the destinations’
attractions and facilities. Business travel is usually arranged at short notice and for specific and
brief periods of time; the duration of their itinerary may often be as short as a day (Swarbrooke
& Horner, 2001). In this case, there could be a substantial journey time involved. For these
reasons, business travellers need the convenience of frequent, regular transportation facilities,
efficient, reliable services and good accommodation facilities (in terms of accommodation and
catering) of a high standard, at their destination (Jafari, 2002). Very often, business travellers
will be less concerned about the cost of travel, as their employer could be paying for their travel
arrangements (Gustafson, 2012). Higher prices will not deter them from travelling, nor will
lower prices encourage them to travel more often. Therefore, there seems to be inelastic
demand for business travel (Gillen, Morrison & Stewart, 2003; Brons, Pels, Nijkamp &
Rietveld, 2002; Arnott, De Palma & Lindsey,
1993). On the other hand, leisure travel is highly
elastic for those travellers who are price-sensitive. The lower prices for holidays to particular
destinations will usually lead to an increase in the aggregate numbers of travellers (Hall, 2008).
Frugal tourists will usually shop around for affordable holidays (Xiang, 2013). Therefore, they
may be prepared to delay their travel, or to book well in advance of their travel dates, if this
would translate to a significant reduction in their travel costs (Russo, 2002).
The growing disposable income among many populations from developed and developing
countries is having an effect of reducing price elasticity for many holiday makers, as upmarket
winter sports holidays, cruises, special interest and long-haul travel continue to attract a greater
proportion of travellers (UNWTO, 2017).

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1.2.2 The Ability to Travel
Beyond price, there are other reasons why specific tourism products (for example airline
service or certain types of holidays or resorts) are chosen, as opposed to others. The demand
for tourism is dependent on whether the potential traveller has the ability to travel (i.e. travel
facilitators) or the desire to travel (i.e. travel motivators). Leisure time and disposable income
are two of the most important travel facilitators in tourism. They are called facilitators because
they are factors that may actually facilitate or enable individuals to travel. There are other
factors that may also affect the persons’ ability to travel. Alternatively, these may limit the
ability to travel. These factors include;
• Age can affect the ability to travel either through health restrictions, or through financial
limitations;
• Stage in the family life cycle: Travellers may have the money and the time at their
disposal, but family commitment may preclude travelling;
• Political stability and peace: Although this issue may not prevent travelling; it may
limit the tourists’ choice of destinations. There may be restrictions that may be imposed
on nationals of some countries for political reasons, including; conflicts, wars or acts
of terrorism.
Different people will consider different qualities in destinations. For example, individuals may
value sporting facilities, others may prefer social life and night clubbing. Travel for leisure and
pleasure could involve a wide range of human emotions and drives that may be difficult to
explain. However, the motivations to travel relate to the individuals’ will to travel. The
motivators are the factors which could explain why people do what they do, they also seem to
justify the individuals’ behavioural intention. They are intrinsic, and could relate to the human
beings’ inner feelings, emotions and beliefs, as they arise out of need and wants. Motivators
may be conscious and subconscious and are often deeply embedded in one’s psyche. Tourism
planners, developers and promoters need to identify why people choose to travel, when some
necessity compels them to do so. What motivates them to travel to a holiday destination? It is
obvious that tourism satisfies some human needs. The question is, which ones? The travel
motivators may be divided into four categories, as featured in Table 1.1.
Undoubtedly, a large number of people wish to travel. Therefore, the tourism industry has a
vested interest in determining: What motivates individuals to travel? What motivates them to

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engage in specific tourism activities, and to choose one destination as opposed to another? The
prime motivation to engage in pleasure travel is the desire to be elsewhere, even temporarily
from the routine constraints and stresses of everyday life.
Sharpley (1994) contended that the motivation to travel may be attributed to extrinsic or
intrinsic factors. Extrinsic tourist motivation is often influenced by a need to escape from the
pressures and conditions of life in a tourist's home society. Therefore, the need for tourism
could have been developed from the individuals’ anti-thesis to work. Conversely, the
individuals’ intrinsic motivation to travel may arise from deep-rooted, psychological needs,
such as self-esteem, or a need for companionship. Sharpley (1994) held that the tourists’
motivation results from a variety of social, economic, demographic and psychological factors
that are peculiar to each individual tourist. The author went on to suggest that these factors are
not constant and may change through time.
Table 1.1 Travel Motivators
Category Motivations
Physical Refreshment of body and mind for health purposes; participation in
sports; pleasure (or fun); excitement; romance; shopping and
entertainment; among others.
Cultural Curiosity about foreign countries, people and places; interest in art,
music, folklore and architecture; interest in historic places (remains,
monuments and churches); experiencing specific events (for example
Olympic Games, et cetera); among others.
Personal Visiting friends and relatives; meeting new people and seeking
friendships; seeking new and different experiences in different
environments; escaping from one’s own permanent social
environment (desire for change); personal excitement of travelling;
visiting places and people for spiritual reasons (including
pilgrimages); among others.
Prestige and Status Pursuit of hobbies; continuation of education and learning; seeking of
business contacts and professional goals; conferences and meetings;
ego enhancement and sensual indulgence; fashion, keeping up with
others, et cetera.

Frequently asked questions

Q1. What are the contributions in "The tourism industry: an overview" ?

This chapter introduces its readers to the concept of tourism. 

Q2. What are the main requirements of a tourist?

The access to business centres, interpreters, financial services and communication facilities may also be necessary requirements in tourist destinations. 

Q3. What type of accommodation is available for self-catering?

Whereas self-catering accommodation may include; campsites, caravans and holiday rentals of villas, apartments and chalets, among others. 

Q4. What are the advantages of a low-priced hotel?

These very low-priced hotels have managed to reduce costs by developing a unitary design as they automated many of their services. 

Q5. What is the definition of sharing economy?

The sharing economy may take a variety of forms, including using information technology to provide individuals with information, that enables them to optimise resources through an effective use of excess capacity. 

Q6. What is the main reason for the expansion of hotels and motels?

This expansion has also been aided by franchising, whereby hotels and motels are increasingly being operated by individual franchisees who are paying royalties to their parent companies, for the privilege of operating under their brand name. 

Q7. What are some airlines that extend the definition of "Frills" to include?

Some airlines also extend the definition of "frills" to include standard services and conveniences; for example, a no-frills airline may charge passengers additional fees for checkin luggage, for using airport check-in desks, or for priority boarding, among other services. 

Q8. What is the definition of a temporary visitor?

excursionists, including cruise travellers may be considered as temporary visitors, if they stay in a destination for less than 24 hours.