Author: LILY

Hartlepool Council take on the role of helping and supporting tourists. One way they do this is by having a readily available Tourist Information Centre. Visitors can use the Tourist Information Centre to get help with accommodation or any other concerns they may have. If they need any advice or questions answering then the local Council’s centre makes sure they are answered. It is located in the Art Gallery. By providing the centre, the Council has succeeded in supporting tourists and it ensures that visitors will contribute to the economy because they have been guided in the direction of the best services. (This is Hartlepool, no date). 

(This is Hartlepool, no date). 

Following on from the role of supporting tourists, Hartlepool’s local Council have a tourism homepage on their council site. This page summarises that Hartlepool has a lot of things to do, attractions to visit, places to eat, places to stay etc. They provide a direct link to the explore Hartlepool page where visitors can gather further information. The Council’s Economic Growth Team work closely with the tourism stakeholders to help develop tourism by providing them with advice and support. (Hartlepool Borough Council, no date). 

(Hartlepool Borough Council, no date). 

The ‘Explore Hartlepool’ provides visitors with further information on topics such as:

• Dates for upcoming events.
• The location for the places to eat and stay.
• The locations of the best attractions.

(Explore Hartlepool, no date).

 

(Explore Hartlepool, no date).

Another role of the local Council is to invest money into the regeneration of Hartlepool so that the Town becomes more visually attractive to tourists. They anticipate that this regeneration will be ‘game changing’ Just this year, Hartlepool Borough Council announced their £20 million investment programme. (Hartlepool Mail, 2024). 

The Council believe that this multi million pound investment will make a positive difference. They state that this programme will bring together residents, the community and business representatives. By doing this, Hartlepool will have a more positive image/stigma and should hopefully then bring more people into the Town, who will then contribute to Hartlepool’s economy. (Hartlepool Mail, 2024). 

References 

Explore Hartlepool (no date). Explore Hartlepool. Available at: https://www.explorehartlepool.com/ (Accessed 7 December 2024). 

Hartlepool Borough Council (no date). Find out what you can explore and visit in Hartlepool. Available at: https://www.hartlepool.gov.uk/info/20011/sport_leisure_and_culture/1000/welcome_to_the_tourism_homepage (Accessed 30 November 2024). 

Hartlepool Mail (2024). £20 million regeneration programme secured for Hartlepool. Available at: https://www.hartlepoolmail.co.uk/news/people/ps20m-regeneration-programme-secured-for-hartlepool-4847535 (Accessed 30 November 2024). 

This is Hartlepool (no date). Hartlepool Tourist Information Centre. Available at: https://www.thisishartlepool.co.uk/visit/touristinfo.asp (Accessed 30 November 2024). 

M&D Travel are based in the North East of England (Stockton-on-Tees). The organisation offers bookings for coach trips and excursions packages. They can put together packages based on customers preferences and what they have planned/would like to do. This can include transport, accommodation, shows, concerts, excursions, etc. (M&D Travel, no date).

There are a few reasons why it may be better to book a package rather than booking elements of holidays independently/separately. They are quick and simple to book making it less stressful. Customers do not have to use their own time piecing together all the elements, it is already done for them. This reduces the stress for customers, especially those travelling as a family, piecing together their own components can be stressful and time consuming. Another strength is that domestic packages often work out cheaper than arranging your own transport, accommodation, excursions etc. Packages have all this included for a reduced price because holiday companies usually offer group discount. Another strength is that packages usually come legally protected and secure. Package organisations enforce high standards to ensure the best experience. (Start Travel Insurance, 2023). In particular, M&D Travel have many regulations in place, one being that their drivers must be DBS checked. (M&D Travel, no date).

However, booking packages can have some negative implications, which can suggest it is better to book holidays independently.  With a package holiday, there is little flexibility in desired travel dates. When booking independently, customers have the freedom to travel at a date of their choice that is better suited to them. Package holidays could potentially have inflated prices because of certain elements as part of the package. This can potentially be negative because customers may not be interested in those particular component’s. In this case, booking independently would be more convenient and better for the customer because everything they book will be everything they require as part of their trip.  (Travel Republic, 2023). 

References 

M&D Travel (no date). M&D Travel LTD/ Travel Operators in Stockton-on-Tees. Available at: https://www.mdtravelcoachhire.co.uk (Accessed 24 November 2024). 

Start Travel Insurance (2023). 7 reasons why package holidays are a great idea. Available at: https://www.starttravel.co.uk/news/7-Reason-Why-Holidays-Are-a-Great-Idea (Accessed 24 November 2024). 

Travel Republic (2023). Are package holidays cheaper than booking flights and hotels separately? Available at: https://www.travelrepublic.co.uk/blog/are-package-holidays-cheaper (Accessed on 24 November 2024). 

The chain of distribution is the group of businesses/organisations that will either transport, store or provide products/services to tourism customers/consumers. There are 4 elements to the chain of distribution which are; principles, wholesalers, retailers and consumers. The principles are accommodation providers, attractions and transport. The wholesalers are the tour operators which sell to either mass or specialist consumers. The retailers are the likes of the travel agents, such as Hays Travel, which can operate online, in the high street or through call centres. The consumers can either be for business purposes, leisure purposes, to visit friends/relatives or for other reasons. However, not all the stages are necessary, it is simply a guide rather than being compulsory for businesses/organisations to follow. Each business/organisation is different and they don’t always follow all the steps within the chain of distribution. (Tourism Teacher, 2023). 

For example, one of the steps not always needed would be the retailers and wholesalers. This is because it is now possible to book online and book all elements separately. Using online bookings rather than what wholesalers and retailers can have to offer has many advantages. One would be that customers can make comparisons by searching for the same product/service and selecting the cheapest and most convenient option for them, in comparison to a travel agent who would only have 1 offer at 1 price. More advantages include better personalisations, 24/7, the ability to book whenever (not following the opening times of travel agents), customers can add special offers and discount codes, it is easy to make cancellations and confirmations get sent straight to customers emails. Booking online involves a lot of personal responsibility, however it grants customers with much more flexibility. (Family Travel Genie, 2024)

References:

Family Travel Genie (2024). Is booking a holiday online cheaper than using a travel agent? Available at: https://familytravelgenie.com/is-booking-a-holiday-online-cheaper-than-using-a-travel-agent/ (Accessed 8 November 2024). 

Tourism Teacher (2023). The chain of distribution. Available at: https://tourismteacher.com/the-chain-of-distribution/ (Accessed 8 November 2024). 

Domestic tourism is travelling within the same country for either leisure, business or medical purposes. It usually involves using transport. An example would be an American family travelling from one State to another to visit Disneyland. (LittleHotlier, 2024). Inbound tourism is when tourism comes into the country. On an annual basis, inbound tourism to the UK is worth £127 billion. In 2019, in the UK, there was a total of  £28.45 billion spent by inbound tourists. £24.78 billion of this was in England. (Visit Britain, no date, b). Domestic tourism is worth 77% of tourism in the UK. The remaining 23% is made up by inbound tourism. (Visit Britain, no date, b). From 2017 to 2019, the top 5 UK holiday destinations were London, Scarborough, Manchester, York and Blackpool. (Visit Britain, no date, a). In 2022, the most popular destinations (in order) for inbound tourists were London, Edinburgh, Manchester, Birmingham and Liverpool. (Visit Britain, no date, c). According to Statista, in 2019, City holidays were the most popular, followed by beach holidays being the second most popular. City holidays were worth 46% of tourism and beach holidays were worth 41% of tourism.  (Statista, no date). In the UK, in 2022, there was a significant difference in the amount of inbound tourists to domestic tourists. In terms of domestic tourism, the number of overnight visits made were 126 million which resulted in a total of 383 million nights. If we compare this to inbound tourism, we can see that the figures are much lower. There were 31.2 million visits made to the UK from overseas visitors. Although this is much lower than the number of domestic tourists, it is still an increase in the number of inbound tourists from 2020 and 2021. The number of nights that inbound tourists spent in the UK in 2022 was around 263 million, which is roughly 120 million lower than domestic tourists. The statistics for inbound tourists’ reasons for visiting in 2022 were as follows; 39% of people visited for a holiday, 38% came to visit friends or relatives, 16% visited for business reasons and 7% of inbound tourists visited for other reasons. (UK Parliament, 2023). 

References

LittleHotlier (2024). Domestic Travel: how to target domestic tourism. Available at: https://www.littlehotelier.com/blog/running-your-property/domestic-travel/ (Accessed 12 December 2024). 

Statista (no date). Preferred types of holiday in the UK in 2022 – Statista. Available at: https://www.statista.com/statistics/480258/types-of-holidays-taken-in-the-uk/ (Accessed 12 December 2024). 

UK Parliament (2023). House of Commons library. Available at: https://researchbriefings.files.parliament.uk/documents/SN06022/SN06022.pdf (Accessed 20 October 2024). 

Visit Britain (no date, a). England domestic overnight trips and day visits: subnational data. Available at: https://www.visitbritain.org/research-insights/england-domestic-overnight-trips-and-day-visits-subnational-data#:~:text=The%20top%20five%20most%20visited,%2C%20Manchester%2C%20Blackpool%20and%20York. (Accessed 12 December 2024). 

Visit Britain (no date, b). Inbound Tourism: The what, why & how. Available at: https://www.visitbritain.org/sites/ind/files/2023-06/chapter_3_-_inbound_tourism_-_the_what_why_how_-_2nd_edition_-_pdf_accessible_compressed.pdf (Accessed 12 December 2024). 

Visit Britain (no date, c). Inbound visits and spends: trends by UK town. Available at: https://www.visitbritain.org/research-insights/inbound-visits-and-spend-trends-uk-town (Accessed 12 December 2024). 

According to Butler’s life cycle, a destination moves through stages; exploration, involvement, development, consolidation, stagnation, after this does not always come decline, it can either be rejuvenation, decline or stability. (McKercher and Prideaux, 2024, p. 114)

During the exploration stage there is little infrastructure because tourists are visiting independently to explore nature and culture. Tourism at this stage is small scale. (McKercher and Prideaux, 2024, p. 115)

During the involvement stage, tourism becomes a more common thing because visitor numbers are making a small increase. This happens at a manageable growth rate. (McKercher and Prideaux, 2024, p. 115)

During the development stage, tourism appears on a large scale. The destination develops to become more known as a tourist destination. Natural attractions are replaced by built attractions and there becomes more outside than inside development. (McKercher and Prideaux, 2024, p. 115)

During the consolidation stage, tourist numbers increase, but growth rate slows. Tourism dominates the economy. (McKercher and Prideaux, 2024, p. 115)

During stagnation, tourism exceeds capacity as it reaches its peak number of arrivals. This results in locals being pushed out by tourism and the destination relies on repeat visitors to support the economy. (McKercher and Prideaux, 2024, p. 116)

After these stages have occurred, decline is not always inevitable. One of three things can occur. A destination could decline, meaning it loses visitors, however it could also reach stability (a stable/manageable number of tourists) or reach rejuvenation, where the destination reinvents itself.   (McKercher and Prideaux, 2024, p. 116)

(ResearchGate, no date).

An example of a destination that has rejuvenated after threats of decline is Blackpool. The government invested £300 million into the regeneration of Blackpool. This regeneration project was announced by Michael Gove to boost tourism by delivering extra leisure facilities, which then created more jobs. During the time of announcement, the estimated number of jobs created would be over 1,000 and the estimated number of extra tourist visits was over 600,000 each year. Michael Gove stated that Blackpool needed a reinvestment to bring its energy back to life, the town has been overlooked and undervalues for several years. This is a perfect example showing decline is not always inevitable. (Gov, 2022). 

(Gov, 2022). 

References 

Gov (2022). Levelling up investment unlocks £300 million Blackpool regeneration. Available at: https://www.gov.uk/government/news/levelling-up-investment-unlocks-300-million-blackpool-regeneration (Accessed: 20 October 2024). 

Iliev, D. (2019) Evolution and changes of tourism in Macedonia in the post-socialist period (1991-2018). Journal of Geography, Politics and Society, 9(3), pp. 23-32.

McKercher, B. and Prideaux, B. (2024) Understanding Tourism Concepts and Theories. 2nd edn. Oxford: Wolvercote. 

Tourism being the largest industry in the world makes it very difficult to define, there is no overall universal agreement as to what the definition should be. The word tourism is a single word to describe the overall collection of a number of other subcategories which come together from world wide direct and indirect activities. Subcategories include the following:

• Staying in a hotel (direct activity).
• Ordering a meal (direct activity).
• Visiting a tourist attraction (direct activity). 
• Taking transport (indirect activity).

(Tourism Teacher, 2023). 

The combination of direct and indirect subcategories/activities is what then results in the definition becoming hard to reach. There are also different types of tourism, so how can we give tourism a definition when people who travel are undergoing a specific type of tourism, and not just tourism as a whole? Types of tourism include:

• Mass tourism.
• Niche tourism. 
• Special interest tourism. 
• Domestic tourism. 
• Inbound tourism. 
• Outbound tourism.
• International tourism.

(Tourism Teacher, 2023). 

Despite the subcategories and types of tourism having their own individual and unique definitions, they have some similarities. They all revolve around visitors meaning they contribute to the economy. Without visitors, there would be no economic contributions from these subcategories. (Tourism Teacher, 2023). 

Whilst tourism is complex and has no definition, there is a wide definition used by the World Trade Organisation. They explain that “to qualify as a tourist one must travel and remain in a place outside of their usual residential environment for more than one consecutive year for leisure, business or other purposes”. (Tourism Teacher, 2023).

Matheison and Wall, 1982, disagree and claim there is no time frame. They believe that just temporarily being at a destination is considered tourism. (Tourism Teacher, 2023). 

The Cambridge Dictionary has quite a simple definition. They state that tourism must involve transport, entertainment and a place to stay as part of an individuals ‘holiday’. (Tourism Teacher, 2023).

Overall, due to there being a number of subcategories and different professional definitions, we simply cannot define tourism in one way.

References

Tourism Teacher (2023). What is tourism? A definition of tourism. Available at: https://tourismteacher.com/definition-of-tourism/ (Accessed 30 November 2024).