If you follow this blog frequently you might know that from time to time we publish final master thesis from the students that graduated from the NHTV Master of Arts Tourism Destination Management.
This example is produced by Jesús René Cázares Juárez and has the topic of SHIFTING THE DESTINATION GOVERNANCE MODEL Case Study of Ensenada […]
The following is the executive summary of the Master in Tourism Destination Management thesis by Sarah Hussmann. The complete thesis is available for download by clicking on the image to the right.
Introduction, Problem Analysis and Key Findings
The importance of (pilgrimage) tourism for Bethlehem, whether from a religious, economic or political point of view, is […]
As part of their master in Tourism Destination Management study program, the students have written literature reviews in the domain of “International Tourism Context”. In this fifth of six literature reviews Julia Terhorst talks about discovering new forms of tourism: slow tourism.
Introduction
The slow movement is present in many parts of everyday life and one can easily get the feeling that the adjective slow is added to all phenomenon, industries and sectors. One of these sectors is the tourism sector (Fullagar, Wilson & Markwell, 2012).
The slow movement is an antidote to the increasingly faster global activities. It is for all those who want to slow down and are fed with pace, but also for those who want to explore the opportunities of being unlike and in the context of tourism, moving differently (Fullagar, & Wilson & Markwell, 2012). Slowing down while being on holiday is described by the term ‘slow travel’ or ‘slow tourism’ (Rawlinson, 2011). Research has shown that slow tourism is an emerging market segment that is forecasted to grow annually 10% in Western Europe during the next five years. Furthermore, it has been concluded as ‘a significant alternative to ‘sun and sea’ and cultural tourism’ (Lumsdon & McGrath, 2011).
Moreover, different forms of alternative tourism, as ecotourism, sustainable tourism and slow tourism have emerged that have certain characteristics in common, regarding the quality of the time spent on holiday. This gives travellers from highly developed countries the opportunity to return to forgotten places and experience those areas (Nistireanu, Dorobantu & Tuclea, 2011).
Slow travel can take place everywhere and is not time bound; it does not involve travelling long distances or at a certain speed. In fact slow travellers can start their journey when stepping out of the doorway and their destination can only be a few kilometres away. Nevertheless, it does not exclude journeys to the other end of the world (Rawlinson, 2011).
This literature review examines the new market segment of slow travellers that can be characterized by travelling shorter distances, at a greater emphasis on the travel experience by having low-carbon consumption. As everyone can engage in slow travel it is hard to draw an exact definition for this market segment (Rawlinson, 2011). Furthermore, the travel motivations of slow travellers and their destination experiences are studied.
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As part of their master in Tourism Destination Management study program, the students have written literature reviews in the domain of “International Tourism Context”. In this third of six literature reviews Veronica Wee discusses the influence of user-generated content (UGC) and the importance of a solid social media strategy.
This research covers a critical analysis of online reviews in the tourism industry; challenges faced in online review management and methods of current social media strategies implemented by Destination Management Organizations (DMO’s), airline and hotel operators.
Introduction
Growing dependence on the Internet has transformed it into the main source of information (Sparks & Browning 2010). More recently, social media networks and user-generated content (UGC) have changed the way users share their experiences (Hvass & Munar 2012). In a more general context, social networking is a combination of online communities that provides a variety of platforms (eg. Emailing, Blogging, photo tagging, videos) to facilitate consumer interconnections (Bruyn & Lilien 2008) for interaction (Click & Petit 2010).
In the tourism industry, online applications, advance social websites (TripAdvisor, Yelp, IgoUgo, etc.), and online booking websites (Expedia.com, Hotels.com, Travelocity.com, etc) provide an interactive display of experiences and commentary review of a destination, property, facilities and restaurants (Litvin & Hoffman 2012). What was recorded in traditional form is now digitalized and shared globally (Munar 2012). The phenomenon of posting videos and digitalizing experiences developed a new paradigm of information sharing (Ruzic & Biloz 2010), which is now referred to as electronic word of mouth (Sparks & Browning 2010). Social media websites allow consumers to spread their experiences (Yu 2012), and interconnectivity and density of networks facilitate positive or negative reviews to travel quickly (Bruyn & Lilien 2008).
Travellers nowadays often use the Internet for destination research prior to decision-making. Online web applications and social media websites are a critical element in the travel planning process (Ruzic & Biloz 2010). It is apparent that 63 percent of leisure tourists and 69 percent of tourists on business use the Internet prior to planning trips, hotel bookings and airline reservations (European Travel Commission, 2010). Online reviews of a destination or property not only possess the ability to attract or detract a traveller, but also develop consumer expectations (Bruyn & Lilien 2008).
As many travellers consult online reviews before firming vacation plans (Vermuelen & Seegers 2009), it is evident that a level of trust is accorded, especially in positively framed reviews about previous traveller’s experience (Sparks & Browning 2010). Travellers are more influenced by online travel reviews and guides (European Travel Commission, 2012), as they believe reviews may assist in a better purchase decision (Qiang Ye et al. 2011). In this case, what are DMO’s doing to influence a traveller’s choice? Are the necessary steps and strategies being taken to explore this growing market?
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As part of their master in Tourism Destination Management study program, the students have written literature reviews in the domain of “International Tourism Context”. In this second of six literature reviews Maria Klampfl discusses the consequences of peak oil on global tourism demand.
Introduction
Oil is a finite resource. Though, the global trends in energy supply and consumption are environmentally, economically and socially unsustainable (Matutinovic, 2011, p.1131; 1129). Experts are increasingly warning about the rising energy challenge, the Western civilization and the world as a whole will have to face within the next decade (Matutinovic, 2011, p.1131; 1129; Nell & Cooper, 2008, p.1096). The consequences of less affordable oil on society are inherently complex (Becken, 2010, p.373). In fact, the diminishing oil reserves will put a “definite constrain on economic growth, global distribution of life- styles and the level of integration of global economy” (Matutinovic, 2011, p.1131). It will, furthermore, affect tourism and the way in which it is operating today.
The demand for oil is constantly escalating and it is alarming that while in the past “new oil reserves were discovered at a greater rate than consumption”, at present it is the opposite – new oil fields are detected at a lower rate than consumption (Becken, 2008, p.696). The oil price is influenced by multiple factors. Nevertheless on a long-term perspective, oil prices are “driven by world oil demand and supply, which is ultimately limited by resources” (Becken & Lennox, 2011, p.133). Scare supply of energy is inevitably leading to dramatically increasing oil prices. This will have significant effects on the transport and airline industry and will consequential affect the whole tourism industry (Leigh, 2011, p.165; 167; 169).
Becken claimed, yet there is only little “awareness of energy security and peak production of oil” within the tourism industry (2008, p.695). Furthermore tourism research has largely left out the issue of energy consumption in relation to a long term future of tourism. Accordingly this paper aims to increase the awareness of a possible oil scarcity and investigates the potential consequences of peak oil on the future global tourism development.
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As part of their master in Tourism Destination Management study program, the students have written literature reviews in the domain of “International Tourism Context”. In this first of six literature reviews Lin Reimann discusses the influence of terrorist attacks and political instability on tourism.
Introduction
In today’s globalizing environment, terrorism has been an issue we hear […]
NHTV Master in Tourism Destination Management: Fernando Barrios-Martin, has his dissertation on tensions amongst collective social identities: the island of Lanzarote, published. In his research he makes an analysis of culture, power and identity in order to develop an understanding of the cultural complexity.
The book is available online through Morebooks.de.
Summary:
In recent decades, the importance of ‘Cultural Identities’ […]
Master in Tourism Destination Management dissertation by TDM student Philipp Wassler (December, 2010).
Lazise is a popular tourism destination situated at the shores of Lake Garda, Italy’s biggest and most popular lake.
During the past six decades Lazise has experienced a steadily growing flux of tourists from mainly Northern Europe. The main inbound market is Germany […]
Master in Tourism Destination Management dissertation by TDM student Judith Rehage (December, 2010).
Title: Towards a greater international competitiveness of cross-border destinations: Internal strategic destination management criteria for future success. A case study of the heterogeneous cross-border destination ‘Lake Constance’
As the title of this master dissertation reveals, the topic of this research is […]
As competition between destinations is increasing, differentiation becomes more important. In this dissertation Amsterdam was analyzed based on the implementation of brand personality in their city marketing.
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