Patterns of travel

From a study of where people travel, eight "principles" can be developed to explain travel movements. These principles can, in turn, be used to predict likely future movements and to discover potential markets for, as yet, undiscovered tourist destinations.

Distance

Distance is a combination of the time and money it costs to travel from origin to destination. Typically, distance would be seen as a negative to travel. The farther the distance between the destination and the market, the less travel we would expect between the two. Those marketing a destination would, therefore, concentrate on segments of the market that were accessible in time and cost from the destination. Reductions in travel time and cost will tend to increase travel between two points. The introduction of the jet plane cut travel time between California and Hawaii from 12 to 5 hours. The wide-bodied plane cut the cost of travel between the United States and Europe by almost 50 per cent. In both cases a dramatic increase in travel between origin and destination resulted.

At some point, however, physical distance seems to become an attraction in itself. British tourists initially sought the sun on the French Riviera. As that became more popular (and more costly), the focus shifted to destinations farther afield in Spain and Italy. Now the "in" places are in Eastern Europe. These latter destinations were not a problem in terms of distance because of the transportation link. The fact that they are farther away seems to make them more glamorous.

International connections

Certain countries have a strong foundation of economic, historic or cultural ties. The presence of these ties strengthens the likelihood of tourist movements between the two. Obvious examples are the historic and cultural ties between the United States and Great Britain. There are also strong World War II ties between Great Britain and Holland that encourage travel.

In this regard it should be noted that, because there is a flow of tourists from country A to country B, there will not necessarily be a flow from country B to country A.

Attractiveness

The attractiveness of one destination to residents of another is based on the idea that opposites attract. People from the north are attracted to the sun; Americans are attracted to Europe because of the history and culture.

One key to finding suitable markets for a destination is to identify the features of the destinations and look for segments of the market that do not have these features.

Cost

The known or presumed cost of a visit to a particular destination will affect the likelihood of travel. Generally speaking the more expensive the trip the less will be the demand. Cost is both absolute and relative. It is absolute in that, if a vacation is priced at USD 1,000 and the traveler does not have USD 1,000, there is no way he or she can afford to go. Cost is relative in that people view the cost of something relative to the perceived value of it to them. Even if they have the USD 1,000 but do not believe that they will get USD 1,000 of value for their money, they will not travel.

In a small number of cases an inverse relationship exists between cost and demand. In these cases, the higher the cost, the higher the demand. Here, the trip has a certain snob appeal. An example might be the price of a luxury cabin on a cruise ship around the world.

Finally, there is a danger in pricing something too low. People may think that a correlation exists between price and quality. If a vacation is priced too low, in the minds of the customer that may denote low quality.

Intervening opportunities

Intervening opportunity refers to the influence of attractions and facilities between origin and destination that influence travelers to make intermediate stops and even to forego the trip to the original destination.

In the US, Florida, which offers sun, is an intervening opportunity between the market in New York and the destinations of the Bahamas, which also offer sun. Everything else being equal, people will vacation in Florida. How, then, can we explain the "attraction" of distance in a quest for the sun mentioned above? In order to induce people to travel past Florida it is necessary to sell the glamour and the different culture of the Bahamas over Florida to the New York market.

Specific events

As mentioned earlier, events like the World Cup and the Olympic Games offer destinations the opportunity of major publicity and recognition. This gives them exposure to potentially millions of people. It also means that the facilities built for the event are available for the future use of tourists. In fact, their presence may put increased pressure on the destination to market the area to fill the facilities.

National character

Certain peoples have characteristics that influence tourist demand. The British simply must have an annual holiday. They will save and sacrifice all year for their two-week holiday. They also have a natural tendency to vacation near the sea. As a people, they have a long association with the sea. Additionally, they have ready accessibility to the seaside. Swedes and Finns, on the other hand, enjoy the seclusion of the forest that surrounds their summer cottages. This Scandinavian love for nature is combined with a desire for the southern sun. Italians and others of the Latin culture seek a measure of sophistication in their pleasures. "Roughing it" is not for them.

While it is dangerous to generalize about humans, the national character of a people can suggest the types of vacations important to them.

Image

Finally, people visit destinations based on the image they have of that destination. Through such media as television programs, novels, news accounts, advertising and the comments of our friends who have been there, we develop a picture of how attractive the destination is. That picture may or may not be "the truth", but we nonetheless make our travel decision, in part, on that image.

Later chapters on marketing will address how an image can be developed and changed.

Study questions

Discussion questions