The Travel & Tourism Competitiveness

Question: Produce a cohesive and coherent researched essay. 1. Relevant content, well-developed ideas and good organisation and structure 2. A range of sources, integrated effectively and referenced using the Harvard system 3. Accurate use and a wide range of grammar/vocabulary Answer: Introduction The Travel and Tourism industry is one of the biggest industries of the globe and it employs the maximum number of people as compared to all the other industries. Many countries are solely dependent on travel and tourism industry for their foreign exchange and this industry provides a lifeline to the economy of those countries. The global economic contribution from tourism industry (both direct and indirect) was approximately $7.6 trillion in the year 2014. The international tourist footfalls have steadily increased from 520 million in the year 2005 to 1.13 billion in the year 2014. This is forecast to increase further to 1.8 billion by the year 2030. The travel and tourism has generated 9.4% of the worlds GDP and it employs a whopping 8.6% of the total workforce around the world (Lew et al. 2008). Thus, the economic contribution of travel and tourism industry can never be overlooked in any manner. Tourism helps countries to familiarise their culture and traditions with the people co ming from different parts of the world and it also enables a nation to generate the much needed revenues which is essential for sustaining their economy. In the UK, the tourism is one of the fastest growing industries which has recovered from the aftermath of the global recession which took place in the year 2008. The travel and tourism industry in the UK has benefitted greatly from a rise in the economic confidence which was witnessed after the global recession. The government of the UK has undertaken an effective marketing strategy under their VisitBritain campaign and this has resulted in positive growth for the tourism industry (Novelli et al. 2006). Body According to (Marcussen, 2008), the ecotourism has emerged as one of the most popular and viable alternative to the traditional forms of tourism and this has also played a vital role in promoting environmental conservation among the international as well as the domestic tourists. It has enabled the countries to promote sustainable tourism which has played a vital role in reducing the harmful impacts of tourism on the environment. Previously it has been found that due to the influx of foreign tourists many places around the world have witnessed a rise in pollution levels which has posed a threat to the environment. Places that attract a lot of tourists have witnessed a phenomenal increase in logistics and transportation resulting in the influx of more people from the adjoining areas in search of livelihood (Hudson Ritchie, 2006). Inappropriate duping of plastic and other waste products have really the environment under a lot of threat. The ecotourism model has played a vital role in addressing the growing problems of pollution and it has helped in bringing down the overall pollution levels in popular tourist destinations around the world and thereby promoted a sustainable environment for the future. In the UK, Ecotourism has played a vital role in returning the popular tourists spots to their former natural state. Under the ecotourism initiative, tourism official in the UK are increasingly advising and encouraging the tourists to visit and explore the countryside and imbibe the natural scenery, heritage and cuisine which the UK has to offer to their tourists. However, ecotourism in UK is presently in its nascent stage and thus the government of the UK needs to spend more funds in order to promote ecotourism with the country in an effective manner. (Middleton et al. 2009) has mentioned that the government needs to provide added incentives such as tax breaks to those hotels establishments that promote ecotourism to their customers and are conducting their busines s in an eco-friendly manner. The Green Tourist Business Scheme has been maintaining a list of all the business establishments that have been successful in meeting high standards for water efficiency, waste management and biodiversity. The government needs to promote ecotourism activities such as horse riding, fishing, bird watching, trekking among a larger section of the UK population and this will enable them to attract more people towards ecotourism. This will help the country to attract more global as well as domestic tourists towards ecotourism (Evans et al. 2012). The UK government considers tourism to be one of their most important industries which offers huge potential for revenue generation and this is the main reason why the UK Government intends to incorporate an effective tourism strategy which will help the country to maximise the benefits from the tourism industry. The government has taken initiative to reduce the red tape associated with visa applications and airport queuing times which will enable them to attract more global tourists into the UK. (Novelli et al. 2006) has stated that the importance of Tourism in UK has often been underestimated in spite of its vast importance towards the economy of the UK. The government has undertaken one of the most ambitious market campaigns ever in order to attract visitors to the UK after 2012. The government has spend approximately 100 million (which has been co-funded by the private sector) in order to attract an additional 4 million tourists starting from the year 2012. This will help in crea ting approximately fifty thousand additional jobs in the country and create revenues to the tune of 2 billion (Blanke Chiesa, 2013). The government of the UK has effectively capitalised on the unprecedented series of events which are to take place in the year 2012 and this has enabled them to increase the proportion of the domestic tourists and match them with those who consider visiting foreign holiday destinations. This has helped them to increase the present number of domestic tourists to 29% from the present 20%.The host of events staring with the royal wedding in 2011 and the major international events such as the Queens Diamond Jubilee and the London Olympics in 2012 and the Paralympic Games has played a vital role in increasing the overall international tourist footfalls in the UK (Middleton et al. 2009). The global events (such as World Cups or Olympics) always have a positive impact on the economy of the countries that are staging them. It helps those countries to attract global tourists in huge numbers and this helps the countries to promote their cultural heritage and tradition in an effective manner. Hosting international events plays a vital role in providing the necessary international exposure to a country which could be effectively capitalised by the country to promote their tourists attracts and their cultural heritage. It also creates a lot of employment opportunities for the local population and this creates a positive impact on the economy of the country which are hosting the international events (Hudson Ritchie, 2006). The rising footfalls of international tourists which is associated with any major international event provides limitless opportunities to all the different industries in a nation such as the hotel industry, the handicrafts industry, the food industry, the aviation industry and the retail clothing and fashion industry. However, there is one major drawback of this rising footfalls from the tourists which is increased pollution which comes from the inappropriate disposal of plastic and other waste products by the tourists. This is one aspect which needs to be taken up by the government and addressed in an effective manner. Moreover, security is also a major concern when there is a lot of international tourist arrivals as all the tourists cannot be properly checked and monitored for their activities. Different tourists can come to the country with their own different intent. The recent spate of terrorism activities around the world has caused a lot of concern to the governments of the countries that are hosting the global events and the heightened checking systems at airports have caused a lot of inconvenience to the international tourists (Novelli et al. 2006). The increased levels of security measures at airports have been one of the main factors that have discouraged a lot of tourists from visiting the international tourist destinations like UK. The stringent checking measures at UK airports have caused a lot of harassment and inconvenience to the tourists who are visiting the nations and this has prevented many tourists from visiting the UK for their holiday purpose. However, this has not had any major impact on the overall tourist footfalls in the country. This enhanced level of security measures has become quite necessary in order to ensure the safety and security of the tourists as well as the general population of the UK and the tourists who are coming to visit UK are also well aware about this fact and they are not complaining. The tourists have also realised that all these checking measures are intended to ensure their own personal safety during their period of stay within the UK (Marcussen, 2008). Conclusion This assignment has discussed the different aspects which are associated with the tourism industry in the UK and how the UK government is trying their level best to promote UK as a major tourist destination of the globe. References Blanke, J., Chiesa, T. (2013, May). The travel tourism competitiveness report 2013. InThe World Economic Forum. Evans, N., Stonehouse, G., Campbell, D. (2012).Strategic management for travel and tourism. Taylor Francis. Novelli, M., Schmitz, B., Spencer, T. (2006). Networks, clusters and innovation in tourism: A UK experience.Tourism management,27(6), 1141-1152. Middleton, V. T., Fyall, A., Morgan, M., Ranchhod, A. (2009). Marketing in travel and tourism. Routledge. Hudson, S., Ritchie, J. B. (2006). Promoting destinations via film tourism: An empirical identification of supporting marketing initiatives.Journal of travel research,44(4), 387-396. Marcussen, C. H. (2008). Trends in European internet distribution-of travel and tourism services. Lew, A., Hall, C. M., Timothy, D. J. (2008).World geography of travel and tourism: a regional approach. Butterworth-Heinemann.