Tourism Planning, Development, and Social Considerations

Tourism Planning, Development, and Social Considerations16LEARNING OBJECTIVESIdentify the factors that determine the success of a tourism destination.Relate tourism planning to tourism policy.Discover what the goals of tourism development should be.Recognize some serious barriers to tourism development must be overcome if a desired growth is to occur.Learn the political and economic aspects of development including those related to developing countries.Appreciate the importance of architectural design and concern for heritage preservation, local handicrafts, and use of indigenous materials in creating tourist facilities.THE RITCHIE/CROUCH MODEL OFRELATING TOURISM PLANNINGTO TOURISM POLICYSIMILARITIESBoth deal with future development of a tourism destination or regionBoth emphasize strategic dimensions of managerial action – although planning must also address tactical concernsDIFFERENCESPolicy formulation is definitely “big picture” while much of planning is characterized by attention to detailRELATING TOURISM PLANNINGTO TOURISM POLICY (CONTINUED)DIFFERENCES (continued)Policy formulation is creative, intellectual process, while planning is a more constrained exercisePolicy, particularly its visioning component, has long-term strategic emphasis, while planning tends to be more restrictive in time A one-year planning cycle is not uncommon, although 3-5 year plans are possibleIn contrast, destination visions may have a 5, 10, 50, or even a 100 year time horizonRELATING TOURISM PLANNINGTO TOURISM POLICY (CONTINUED)DIFFERENCES (continued)Policy formulation must allow for unseen circumstances and technologies; planning tends to assume current conditions and technologies, with allowances for predictable or evolutionary changePolicy formulation tends to emphasize systematic determination of “WHAT” should be done in long-term tourism development; planning tends to emphasize the “HOW” for achievement of specific destination goalsProvide employment opportunitiesGenerates foreign exchangeIncreases incomesIncreases GNPDevelopment of tourism infrastructure helps stimulate local commerce and industryJustifies environmental protection and improvementIncrease governmental revenues Diversifies the economyCreates favorable worldwide image for the destinationFacilitates modernizationProvides tourist, recreational facilities for local populationProvides foreigners opportunity to be favorably impressed by little-known nation or regionsADVANTAGES OF TOURISMDISADVANTAGES OF TOURISMDevelops excess demandCreates leakages so economic benefits do not accrueDiverts funds from more promising forms of economic developmentCreates social problems from income differences, social differences, introduction of prostitution, gambling, crimeDegrades natural physical environmentDegrades cultural environmentPoses the difficulties of seasonalityIncreases vulnerability to economic and political changesAdds to inflation of land values and prices of local goods, servicesTHE PLANNING PROCESSDefine the system and formulate objectivesGather dataAnalyze and interpretCreate the preliminary planApprove the planCreate the final planImplement the planAN OVERVIEW OF THE TOURISM PLANNING PROCESSSTAGE 1DefineSystemEnsure definitions for policy formulation and destination planning are consistentSTAGE 2GatherNecessaryDataMuch data used for policy formulation may be helpful for the planning process; additional and more detailed data requiredSTAGE 3Analyze &InterpretDataUseful to relate data to specific facilities, events, activities, programs that impact factors that determine, influence destinationsuccessSTAGE 4CreatePreliminaryPlanPlan should detail nature of facilities, events, activities, programs that will deliver the unique destination experience to enhance competitiveness of destination within strategic market segmentsSTAGE 5ApprovethePlanCritical to ensure that where approval is required no relevant stakeholders are overlookedSTAGE 6CreatetheFinal PlanLevel of detail becomes increasingly rigorous and directly related to specific geography, legislation, financing, and timing of the“real world”STAGE 7ImplementthePlanAllocates responsibility for development actions to specific individuals, organizations, defines timing of actions, establishes contingencies for unexpected occurrences.Monitors, follows up, and evaluatesGOALS OF TOURISM DEVELOPMENTProvide framework for raising the living standard of people through economic benefits of tourismDevelop infrastructure and provide recreation facilities for visitors and residents alikeEnsure development within visitor center and resorts is appropriateEstablish development program consistent with cultural, social, and economic philosophy of government and people of regionOptimize visitor satisfaction