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The Tourism Society
Trinity Court, 34 West Street, Sutton, Surrey SM1 1SHTT 020 8661 4636 F 020 8661 4637EE [email protected] www.tourismsociety.orgRegistered in England No. 01366846. ISSN: 02613700
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© Copyright 2010 The Tourism Society
Tourism is the journal of the Tourism Society.The views expressed inTourism are those of individual authors and not necessarily those of theTourism Society.Whilst unsolicited material is welcomed, neithertransparencies nor unpublished articles can be returned.The Tourism Society cannot be held responsible for any services offeredby advertisers in Tourism. All correspondence must be addressed to theEditor.Tourism is only available to members of the Tourism Society and onsubscription, it is distributed quarterly to 1800 professionals working innational and regional tourist boards, local government, travel agencies,and tour operators, visitor attractions, accommodation and catering,entertainment, information services, guiding, consultancies and educationand training.
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inside front cover 17/12/10 10:06 Page 1
www.tourismsociety.org 1Issue 145 Winter 2010
EditorialLook ahead to 2011...I would like to take this opportunity to thankall of our guest editors and writers this yearfor their time. It has been a turbulent year withmany changes in the political and economicalarenas dramatically affecting tourism.
Geoffrey Lipman bodes caution on anyimmediate long-term growth in global tourism
with staycations and trading down in price trends continuing to damagerevenue growth and yield as well as increasing taxation such as APD and20% VAT. However, staycations are of course good for the domesticmarket and in particular the caravanning sector. 2010 appears to haveconvinced more Brits to holiday across Britain; yet the British weather stilllooks like it will prevail this winter affecting both domestic and overseaswinter vacations.
Geoffrey recommends tactical and strategic direction for the sector topush the Travel & Tourism Industry further up the government agenda, inparticular as a major global job creator in the face of recession andunemployment. Meanwhile green growth is finally taking a firmer grip onthe industry as a whole in response to climate change.
And I wonder why the industry can only make itself heard in adverseconditions?
Suggested ways of improving competitive advantage in today’s technologyled environment looks like “mobile sites” and apps are a must for 2011.
As we go to print the government has yet to reveal its much awaitedstrategy, and aviation is playing a key Christmas Pantomime role and manywill doubtless be pleased to start a fresh new year. As we enter 2011there will be only 574 days to the Olympics, a few months before thedisbanding of the RDAs will give way to the rise of the new LEPs and thelong awaited royal wedding will be just around the corner. DMO’s willrevisit how they fund their marketing campaigns and work more closelywith the private sector to maximise on these and other opportunitieswhile consultants strive to be racehorses and the hospitality sector enjoysthe growth in the short breaks market. Read on.
Happy New Year!
Alison Cryer FTS |Chairman,Tourism Society
Contents
From the President’s DeskAs I write, with snow all around, Ihave no idea whether I will be ableto travel. Like millions I am strand-ed at work. Gatwick is shut; I amhoping to get a sleeper north buthave no idea whether or how farit will go. For two years there hasbeen major winter disruption,described by experts as a once intwenty year occurrence! The goodnews is that David Quarmby, incharge of the enquiry into thewhole mess, has just the rightpedigree. As a former VisitBritainchair he understands the econom-ic importance of keeping thecountry moving, and as the formerhead of the Strategic RailAuthority he understands trans-port issues. David will withoutdoubt get to the bottom ofNetwork Rail’s frozen points and
alleged poor maintenance. He willsurely look at airports that couldnot keep runways open and com-pare their kit with that of overseasoperators. He might even take onthe environment agency and SEPAin Scotland over the types of saltand de-icing liquids permitted. Ilook forward to a thorough reportand some robust recommenda-tions.However, there is one area hemight not think of at first butwhich I find the most infuriating.Communication. It is almost impos-sible to find out what is actuallyhappening. A trawl round the vari-ous transport operators’ websitesis an irritating experience resultingin my being none the wiser. If itwas not for my job, and if I was athome, I would certainly take the
advice of the news broadcastersand hunker down till it all blowsover. But I am expected to operateat both ends of the country and Iwould quite like to get home – asentiment shared by many I amsure.Trying to make a sensibledecision without real information isas difficult as it is frustrating. So thisis my recommendation to all oper-ators.Work out how the averageuser is thinking, what informationthey need, and how to provide it.And while you are at it don’t justdo it when it is snowing but for allthe other occasions when there isdisruption. At least you can helpwith that one major irritation. Andby the way I will never complainabout rain again!
Lord Thurso MP FTS |President,Tourism Society
Tourism and Government: Happy New Year? – and anurgent need for “Resolution” 2-3Ken Robinson CBE FTS MTMI, Chairman,Tourism Alliance
International Outlook: A unified approach willstrengthen the industry 4-5Geoffrey Lipman FTS, Director, greenearth.travel
Mobile Technology: Give your destination an edge 6Ben Tagg MTS, Managing Director, New Vision Group Ltd
Aviation: The Cinderella of the Coalition’s TransportStrategy? 7Simon Buck, Chief Executive, British Air Transport Association
The Domestic View: Another year of opportunity fortouring 8Lawrence Bate MTS, Director of Marketing,The Caravan Club
Travel & Leisure Law: What can we expect in the next 12 to 18 months? 9Matt Gatenby, Solicitor,Travlaw LLP Solicitors
Hospitality: Short breaks and a Royal boost are goodnews 10Peter Hancock FTS, Chief Executive, Pride of Britain Hotels
Consultancy:“Sunlit uplands” or Barren Wasteland? 11Tom Buncle FTS MTMI, Managing Director,Yellow Railroad
Destination Management: A time for change 12Andrew Bateman MTS MTMI,Tourism Manager, HampshireCounty Council and Vice-President of TMI
Membership News 13
New Members 14
Front cover: ©Britainonview – Eric Nathan
01 contents 17/12/10 09:46 Page 1
Tourism and Government
Issue 145 Winter 2010
Ring out the old – ring in the new! Thenew year is traditionally a time for reflec-tion on what has past – and of hope andaspirations for the future. But for many ofus in tourism, this year the traditionalgreeting ends in a question mark: ”HappyNew Year?”
As we look back on 2011 we see a yearwhen Britain’s tourism industry had notyet really felt the impact of the post-eco-nomic-crisis cutbacks. Consumer spendinggenerally held up well. UK residents holi-
dayed at home more, influenced by theexchange rate and APD increasing thecosts of holidays abroad, although theiraverage length of stay and spend wasdown. Inbound tourism was picking upslightly but still only to around the samelevel as 2000. As a result the totemicTourism Balance of Payments, that hadworsened to a £20billion deficit duringLabour’s time, “recovered” somewhat in2009/10 due to the domestic boost.For Britain’s Tourism businesses however,storm clouds have been appearing, as the
post-election CoalitionGovernment confirmedthe abolition of theRDAs that had beenpumping around £60mil-lion into tourism relatedprogrammes.They alsosaid that all DCMS spon-sored entities wouldhave to “share the painof cuts in spending”,implemented subse-quently in the OctoberCSR as VisitBritain andVisitEngland both suf-fered a 34% cut, thehighest in real terms ofall DCMS sponsoredbodies. CumulativelyVisitBritain’s funding willhave reduced by overtwo thirds since 2000 –impacting hard on thepotential to achieve thehoped-for OlympicTourism legacy.
Back in August, our spiritsrose when DavidCameron chose to makea speech on the impor-tance and potential ofTourism, stating that hewanted to reverseLabour’s failure to seethe opportunities, saying
“We’re going to be a Government thatunderstands the huge potential of ourtourism industry and that gives the indus-try the backing it needs. A successfultourism policy needs an active andengaged government.” Could this berecognition at last of what tourism candeliver?
After all, David Cameron seems like aman who means what he says. But canwe ever trust politicians to deliver whatthey promise (e.g. Clegg and TuitionFees!). However, the PM also said that hewanted Britain to have the “strongestpossible tourism strategy” – which hewould personally review and approve.Which brings me, as I write this inDecember 2010, to my opening question:“Happy New Year?”.The Strategy is dueto be issued in early January 2011.
My crystal ball leads me to expect that itwill reflect the Conservatives big idea,namely that liberating businesses andempowering the “Big Society” will providethe push, as they seek to end “BigGovernment”.Their agenda is aboutLocalism and LEPs, while “Regional” hasbecome a dirty word. In the PrimeMinister’s speech it was notable thatwhilst he expects that private sector busi-nesses would drive growth, the sole cata-lyst was to be “… a government that cre-ates the right conditions for entrepre-neurship… our tourism industry hasbeen strangled by the endless rise of redtape”.Message to Government: removing redtape and boosting localism, while cuttingadequate funding for core functions, isnot enough. I expect the new DCMSTourism Strategy will be heavy on aspira-tion and vision, but light on specific poli-cies, implementation and funding – apartfrom focussing their hopes for futuredelivery on Destination ManagementOrganisations, and the patchwork quilt ofLEPs.
Happy New Year? – And an urgent need for “Resolution”
2&3 17/12/10 09:47 Page 2
www.tourismsociety.org
Ken Robinson CBE FTS| Chairman,
Tourism Alliance 3Issue 145 Winter 2010
For many years we in the industry havefelt that Government simply hasn’t under-stood what is needed for Tourism toachieve its potential for sustainablegrowth.The pre-devolution system ofNational Tourist Boards with Regionalnon-statutory Boards in England, achieveda great deal.
The RTBs were possibly the original pub-lic-private partnerships, bringing LocalAuthorities and businesses together, withminimal central funding, delivering cohe-sion and core services. Labour’sDevolution dogma abolished England’sNational Board in order to swing thefocus to the Regions.
The RDAs killed off the Regional Boards,creating various new dependant RegionalDelivery Partners. Funding via the RDAsover the last decade has masked the fail-ure of most politicians, and especially theTreasury, to understand Tourism. DCMScould cite the RDAs as “delivering whatthey decided was needed within theirRegions”.
However, their funding was targeted tofulfil their remit for supporting small busi-
nesses, regeneration and skills – and theregional allocations were for political rea-sons, not proportionally to tourism needor opportunity. Eligible Delivery Partnerslearned how to match their applicationsto the funding criteria.The resultantinvestment in tourism was not precisely prioritised or targeted from anational viewpoint, but it has been veryvaluable.The Coalition decision that theeconomic crisis requires immediate cuts,and the resultant sudden cessation ofRDA programmes, has caused seriousproblems with organisations dependenton their grants for viability.Visit London(which, with over 50% of inboundtourism, is the engine room of inbound tourism for Britain) is in the unbelievableposition of having lost all its fundingunless Boris Johnson, who well appreci-ates the key role of tourism in the econ-omy of the Capital, can find alternativeresources.
Throughout England, many TMI membersand their organisations are in the firingline, for some redundancy and closure isimminent. For others the way forward isextremely uncertain. For many whosejobs remain, on reduced budgets – a
weak optimism for the brave new worldis the best they can muster, not an enthu-siastic sense of liberation.VisitEngland istrying to foresee and resolve so-calledtransition problems….but so far withoutfunds to ease or optimise the changes.Cohesion between tourism businesses isfragile at the best of times.
These dislocations will be hard to over-come.VisitEngland must bridge the gapbetween strategic aspirations and achiev-able action plans. Shortly after the DCMSStrategy is published,VisitEngland willcommence a consultation on a series ofaround 15 Framework Action Plans,devised with input from industry repre-sentatives.
These plans will reflect, and must fit with,the national Strategy and there is talk of“Challenge Funding” to oil the wheels,reserved within VisitEngland’s alreadyreduced budget. Building core servicesand cohesion from the bottom up onreduced resources is a tough challenge. Itis hard to see how the currently allocatedcan possibly be enough.
I believe the Government’s New YearResolution must be to live up to thePrime Minister’s promise to “understandthe huge potential of our tourism indus-try and that gives the industry the back-ing it needs”, and provide adequate fur-ther investment for the public benefit, intime to ensure they stimulate recoverythat the country so badly needs. HappyNew Year!
‘I believe the Government’s New Year Resolution must be tolive up to the Prime Minister’s promise to “understand thehuge potential of our tourism industry and that gives theindustry the backing it needs”, and provide adequate furtherinvestment for the public benefit, in time to ensure theystimulate recovery that the country so badly needs. HappyNew Year! ’
Cornwall – PM’s holiday destination of choice
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2&3 17/12/10 09:47 Page 3
International Outlook
Issue 145 Winter 2010
Despite a return to growth in 2010 thereis a solid case for caution in looking atglobal travel expectations in the comingyear.This is a time for measured analysisand tough focused response, takingadvantage of unique national sellingpoints and a limited number of interna-tional collaborative opportunities.
The global economy, which is the maindriver of travel and tourism, is shaky.Theworld is recovering from recession in anuneven way. Emerging economies, partic-ularly in Asia, are growing again at closeto double digit levels, but with new infla-tion tendencies as well as potentially dis-ruptive currency and trade pressures.Industrialised countries in North Americaand Europe, which account for more than75 % of global GDP, are expected togrow their economies at some 3%.
And here unemployment has reachedunacceptably high levels, responses tobudget austerity and country bail outs inEurope threaten dramatic disruption in
economic and particularly social stability;political gridlock in the US makes decisivenational intervention more difficult, andhence significant G20 economic adjust-ment is becoming more complex and lesscertain. In addition, geopolitical tensions inkey hotspots are volatile and natural dis-asters remain a constant uncertainty, withonly negative impact potential.
These underlying conditions will affecttravel and tourism in ways that increasethe challenges but also open new oppor-tunities. Industry prospects for 2011should be viewed in this broad context.
On the negative side of the balancesheet:It's important to put this year's growthinto a valid context of the previous steepdeclines – in fact we are now back to2008 performance levels. Moreover, thefull return of business and consumer con-fidence will be slower than expected. Inhard times companies will continue tolook to tight travel controls and with high
unemployment it's easy to rationaliseputting off a vacation, staying closer tohome or trading down in price. And rev-enue generation will be increasinglytough.
This was already the case in 2010 whereyields grew everywhere at a slower pacethan arrivals and there is no basis forexpecting change in 2011.
There are also significant cost increaseslooming on the horizon – travel taxes,which have begun to spiral in Europe, arelikely to become a bigger issue as govern-ments scramble for fast revenue to plugbudget gaps and as carbon pricingspreads. In addition there are strong pres-sures on fuel prices and security costswhich are increasingly important ele-ments for the entire travel and tourismvalue chain, not just the pivotally impor-tant transport sector.
The positive side of the balance sheet isthe changing recognition of the role of
A unified approach will strengthen the industry
4&5 17/12/10 09:48 Page 2
www.tourismsociety.org
Geoffrey Lipman FTS| Director,
greenearth.travel 5Issue 145 Winter 2010
Travel and Tourism in key strategic eco-nomic areas.
The value of investment in travel infra-structure – the modernised airports, highspeed trains and superhighways that wereat the heart of many stimulus packages –have already created new jobs in con-struction, design and engineering and willenhance the long term growth and quali-ty of our products. Similarly the intensify-ing competition to host mega-events isanother sign of the same value added, aswell as the massive global nation brandingand travel export promotion that comeswith it.
The realisation of the value in tradeterms of the booming outbound trafficflows from emerging markets in Asia,where China is on course to become thelargest domestic, inbound and outboundtravel market in the world during thenext decade, as well as the strongtourism flows from Eastern Europe andRussia.
So, too, the increased domestic andregional travel has demonstrated howour sector primes local economic devel-opment, supports small and mediumenterprises and encourages consumerconfidence, irrespective of the major longhaul traffic flows.
We have also begun to establish ourplace in the green growth agenda, by thegrowing commitment of travel andtourism companies and communities tocarbon neutral operations in line with theevolving climate and poverty reductionimperatives.
Policymakers and financiers are increas-ingly understanding that travel andtourism – including air transport – candeliver on any package of carbon meas-ures that governments are able and will-ing to implement themselves.
There are many micro ways to strength-en the Travel & Tourism balance sheet in2011 and beyond – focused marketing,creative product streams, new media andtechnology integration.
These will mostly be played out at thenational level where the fight for the newtourist flows from emerging markets willintensify, the competition to host megaevents will hot up and the focus onnational and regional promotion pro-grams will deepen. But there are twomacro areas where we need to developfast collective and coherent positions as asector.
First – tactically.We must respond to thepotential plethora of discriminatory
Travel Taxes, where the UK APD has set a dangerous precedent that was tout-ed as a fair green tax but is in fact anunfair anti trade tax on exports andimports.
We should make this a collective publicpolicy issue, establish a game plan for nondiscriminatory fair travel taxes anddemand that all monies collected by anygovernment for so called green taxes bespecifically earmarked and used for thosepurposes with full involvement of the sec-tor stakeholders.
Second – strategically.We should solidifyour recognised role as the major job cre-ation industry in the world, at a timewhen unemployment will dominatemedia headlines and political decision-making. And in the related area of incentives for green growth, climateresponse and poverty reduction weshould firmly establish our credentials asthe catalytic sector for adaptation, forsmall business support and for communi-ty development.
These are areas where Travel and Tourismequals or betters any other area of theeconomy as a change agent.
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4&5 17/12/10 09:49 Page 3
Ben Tagg MTS| Managing Director,New Vision Group Ltd
Give your destination an edge
Mobile Technology
Issue 145 Winter 2010
The mobile website is now an essentialpart of a destination’s proactive market-ing strategy. In the United Kingdom thereis very strong competition between desti-nations, many of whom are competing forthe same markets within a close geo-graphical proximity. All destinations havethe same prime directive: entice visitorsto come and enjoy the attractions, eventsand accommodation in their area, or inother words, improve the visitor econo-my.
Getting an edge over the competition iskey and the use of mobile technologyprovides access to a new young audiencesegment. Furthermore, because thedevice knows where the user is located, awell designed mobile solution will ensurehigh relevance, visibility and immediacy,placing your destination in the best posi-tion to benefit through all market condi-tions and become a more robust brandleader.
The most popular form of this technolo-gy is a bespoke mobile website thatcaters to the specific browsing needs ofSmartphone users and provides visitorswith exactly the kind of information theyneed on the move. AlthoughSmartphones can access your existingdestination website they are likely to behard to use because they were designedto work with much larger screens andbetter pointing devices, for example, aPC.Visitors on the move require fastaccess to local information (maps,addresses, directions), accommodationinformation (booking information,address, contact number) and event orattraction details (dates & times, location,contact number).
There are undeniable advantages afford-ed to a destination by a mobile site, andthese are set to become even more sub-stantial as the number of page views con-tinues to grow at an unprecedented rate.The number of iPhones in the UK is fore-cast to rise 195% from 2.17 million at theend of 2009 to 6.4 million by the end of2010, according to the latest dataannounced by mobileSQUARED.The
total number of iPhones in the marketwill top 9.4 million by the end of 2015constituting 11% of the total devices usedin the UK.
Graeme Whitehead,Tourism andMarketing Group Manager at DestinationStaffordshire, said: "The mobile site is ourvisitors' travelling companion, offeringaccess to the latest information onevents, availability and special offers, rightat the time when they need it. And byinspiring our guests to do more, seemore and enjoy more of all thatStaffordshire has to offer, we can furtherboost revenue generated by fully exploit-ing all of our opportunities."
Great mobile sites are fully integratedwith your destination’s management sys-tem, enabling you to use data already col-lected and updated to instantly populatemobile pages with rich data. Mobile-spe-cific Key Performance Indicators need tobe made available to destinations andproviders, with data broken down andpresented in a variety of ways, for use inforward planning.
Features such as prioritising links by activ-ity or popularity, also known as “deckplacement”, ensure that the most sought-after content appears first in a search. Amobile site that is quick and easy to navi-gate will quickly become your visitors’trusted information source, exposingeven more opportunities to inspire andencourage them to stay longer.
Another exciting area of opportunity lieswith the development of tourism applica-tions – otherwise known as “apps”.Theseare downloaded onto the Smartphoneand generally do not require a live con-nection to the web and are more typical-ly focussed on a very specific function orcontent type. Apps can be downloadedfor free or for a small fee, with the possi-bility of a new revenue opportunity forpopular services. In the future we envis-age a number of subscription based andtransactional apps that could have signifi-cant application for DMO’s. Currently, thefocus is more on ‘fun to use’ apps - likeCumbria Tourism’s Stone-Skimming app –that generate memorable and valuablePR and exposure.
06 17/12/10 09:50 Page 2
Aviation
www.tourismsociety.org
Simon Buck | Chief Executive,
British Air TransportAssociation 7
Following publication of the OctoberSpending Review, we witnessed a streamof spending announcements from theDepartment of Transport.These includeover £2bn on railway station upgrades,£750m on a national high speed rail net-work and commitments to 24 road andpublic transport schemes.These spendingcommitments are to be welcomed and itis noteworthy that the Government seestransport investment as a key driver ofeconomic growth, both nationally and inthe regions, despite the inevitable envi-ronmental cost in terms of land use, noiseand increased carbon emissions wherearound 90% of UK domestic transportemissions are already from road trans-port.
But what about aviation? As a sector, avia-tion plays a key economic role for ourisland trading nation, representing around1.5% of the UK economy, providing jobsfor a quarter of a million people andtransporting most of our manufacturedgoods by value to countries beyond theEU. Surely the Government is investing inthat, too? The simple answer is ‘no’.
Unlike other modes of transport whichreceive public subsidies of many billionsof pounds per year, aviation infrastructureis not funded by the Government but bythe industry itself. Perhaps more surpris-ingly, the Coalition Government has yetto develop any tangible aviation policy
and is unlikely to have one finalised withinthe next two years.
In the meantime, however, Governmentdramatically increased the tax on flyingfrom 1st November this year withincreases of up to 50%. After one of themost challenging years on record for avia-tion, with further security threats not tomention a grumbling volcano, this was akick in the undercarriage that the industrycould ill afford.
Aviation already more than pays for theenvironmental costs of the 6% of totalUK CO2 emissions it produces throughthe imposition of Air Passenger Duty(APD) and Britain now suffers from theheaviest tax on flying in the world with asmuch as £170 on a single ticket. Indeed,the Treasury now makes more moneyfrom the tax on flying than it does fromthe Bank Levy or from duties on alcoholicspirits, intending to raise over £15 billionin the next five years.
This level of taxation is especially damag-ing to regional airports where routeshave been lost over the last few years toour near continental competitors whoimpose little or no similar tax on flying.
Instead, they are actively building new
runways to accommodate new traffic andthe anticipated growth in tourism fromthe Far East.
The only significant policy announcementthe Government has made to date wasto cancel plans for the construction of anew runway at Heathrow, Britain’s princi-pal hub airport that is full to burstingpoint for much of the day. It is estimatedthat a new runway at Heathrow wouldyield around £30 billion of benefits toBritain’s depressed economy and thataround £1 billion of benefit is foregoneby every year construction of the newrunway is delayed.
Tourism is currently Britain’s third highestexport earner. But 75% of tourists visitBritain by air and in one of the mostimportant growth markets, Heathrowserves only two destinations in China compared to the six now served by Frankfurt.The Prime Ministerrightly wants to boost the number of visitors to Britain and increase the valuable earnings from tourism. But withhigh taxes on flying and limited runwaycapacity in the most visited region of the UK, the Government’s strategy seemsless than joined up and aviation remainsthe Cinderella that has yet to go to theball.
The Cinderella of the Coalition’s Transport Strategy
Issue 145 Winter 2010
‘In the meantime, however,Government dramaticallyincreased the tax on flyingfrom 1st November this yearwith increases of up to 50%.After one of the most chal-lenging years on record foraviation, with further securitythreats not to mention agrumbling volcano, this was akick in the undercarriage thatthe industry could ill afford. ’
07 17/12/10 09:50 Page 1
Lawrence Bate MTS | Director of Marketing,The Caravan Club
Another year of opportunity for touring
The Domestic View
Issue 145 Winter 2010
These are undeniably harsh economictimes, but as we look forward to 2011and beyond, the prospects for domestictourism, and the caravanning sector as anintegral part of that, continue to lookbright.
Firmly placed as the bedrock of touringcaravanning in all its forms,The CaravanClub represents the interests of one mil-lion caravanners, motor caravanners andtrailer tent owners. It operates the largestprivately-owned network of quality sitesin the UK, offering members a choice ofsome 3,000 Caravan Club-badged loca-tions, with 200 full size sites and over2,500 smaller Certificated Locations(known as CLs).
2010 was another favourable year fordomestic tourism. Research undertakenfor the English market revealed that 46%said that they expect to ‘take moredomestic holidays in future’, with 86% ofthose rating their experience of Englishholidays as ‘excellent’ or ‘very good’.Thefeedback from around the UK is also pos-itive with VisitScotland calling tourism the‘tonic for recession’, in the wake of thesuccess of its recent marketing campaign,and Wales reporting occupancy levels upon the previous year.The picture inNorthern Ireland appears to be less rosywith overall bednight volumes down.However the caravan and camping sectorthere is demonstrating its resilience withoverall demand up year-on-year.
Caravanning is the most popular ‘paid for’leisure accommodation choice, account-ing for 19% of holiday nights. Site bookingstatistics from The Caravan Club revealthat the 2009 record-breaking activitylevel was sustained for summer 2010,with growth on top of that. Bookingsremained at a healthy level throughoutthe peak season and well into theautumn and winter months, as many Clubmembers chose to tour outside the mainschool holiday periods. All this bodes wellfor 2011, as research shows that a holidayis one of the very last things to be sacri-
ficed when cuts are made in the averagehousehold budget.
According to the caravanning sectortrade body, the National Caravan Council(NCC), new touring caravan sales wereup 15% in 2010 and the second-handmarket remains buoyant.The level ofactivity on caravan sites around the UK shows that caravan and motor cara-van use and enjoyment is continuingapace.
Turning to the economic contributionmade by the sector, caravanning is a £6billion a year (largely domestic) industry,employing some 90,000 people. In total,the UK’s 1.7 million caravanners con-tribute more than £1 billion a year to thelocal economies where they choose toholiday, and through their VAT andmotoring taxes for the Exchequer.TheClub itself invests heavily in its own sitesnetwork, spending some £100 millionover the past nine years on site acquisi-tion and development in the UK, usinglocal traders and contractors whereverpossible.
A recent awareness campaign conductedby The Caravan Club successfully caughtthe attention of MPs and the media by
focusing on some key numbers – namelythe national off site spend (in local shops,pubs, restaurants, attractions etc) madeby Caravan Club members in localeconomies – to the tune of over £400million pa, and the local constituencyspend for those MPs with Club sites orCLs in their area (around half of theWestminster MPs).
MPs around the country includingSecretary of State for Culture, Olympics,Media & Sport, Jeremy Hunt, and Ministerfor Tourism and Heritage, John Penrose,requested site visits in their constituen-cies, and these resulted in further publici-ty for tourism, caravanning and The Club.The UK-wide initiative was complement-ed by a campaign in Wales where the£114 million contribution to the tourismeconomy there over the last five yearswas brought to the attention of AssemblyMembers and the media.
2011 presents even more opportunitiesfor lobbying and profile raising by thetourism industry in the devolved govern-ments as their respective members facethe national electorates in May, and TheCaravan Club stands ready to play itspart in beating the drum for this corner-stone of the economy.
Blackshaw Moor Caravan Club site, Staffordshire
08 17/12/10 09:52 Page 2
Travel and Leisure Law
www.tourismsociety.org
Matt Gatenby |Solicitor,
Travlaw LLP Solicitors9
The law relating to travel, holidays &leisure has always been a quick mover,and the last couple of years have been noexception. Predictions about any aspectof our industry are tough, never mindthose relating to law. However, crystal ballat hand and tuned-in as best it can be,here are a few things to look out for :
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It has been around 40 years since theCourt of Appeal last showed an interestin claims which involve enjoyment arisingfrom a contract.The likelihood is that itwill be a long time in doing so again, so inthe meantime Milner v Carnival Plc t/aCunard, [2010] EWCA Civ 38920/04/2010 is a case that anyone dealingwith claims from consumers against theleisure industry should know about – itconfirmed that damages for loss of enjoy-ment and distress should be modest,and other forms of damages should becalculated mathematically wherever possi-ble.
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Staying on the subject of consumer claimsagainst the industry, recommendations toboth the last and current government arelikely to be implemented, which willchange the face of personal injury claimsin particular. Expect, amongst other things,an increase in overall damages forclaimants, but also the removal of “NoWin, No Fee” arrangements, an end torecoverable After The Event insurancepolicies and potentially qualified costsshifting to offset that.
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The well-known, existing Regulations havebeen in play since 1992, but the verynature of the industry has changed sincethen.The EU recognises this, and consul-tation on a revised regulation has justclosed.With consumer protection beingone of the key considerations atEuropean level, it is entirely possible that
this is another game changer, especially assuch concepts as strict liability for acci-dents abroad have already been mooted.Early days, but watch this space.
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This was probably the most high profilecase of recent years on how holidays aresold, although there was some cross overwith the slightly less well known case ofSecret Hotels2 Ltd v Revenue & Customs[2010] UKFTT 120 (TC). In a nutshell,holiday companies must now ensure thatall documents, systems etc... must clearlyconfirm they are an agent if that is whatthey are, and crucially the practical realitymust match that as well! Either way, theclamour for a better system of protectionwill surely reach a head soon.
AA rree--vviissiittaattiioonn ooff tthhee CCoorrffuu hhoolliiddaayyrreepprreesseennttaattiivveess ccaassee
As terrible as this was it is hard to findanyone in the industry who considersthat the two Thomas Cook employeesthat went on trial in Greece could be cul-pable for the deaths of tragic Christi &Bobby Shepherd. Given the immediateappeal after the decision to exoneratethem, this case is still going on and so wewait for the Greek court to re-examinethe issues.Whatever the outcome, theway holiday companies and their suppli-ers operate will never be the same again.
TThhee OOllyymmppiiccss
The Olympics is already the talk of thetown, and there will be many opportuni-ties for the industry to really show whatit can do.With many short term agree-ments coming into existence, focus onproperly drafted contracts will be essen-tial. One of the things that most of uslove about the industry is that no day isthe same, and given the above only reallyscratches the surface – it is more thanlikely that the biggest issues are ones wedon’t even know about yet.
What can we expect in the next 12 to 18 months?
Issue 145 Winter 2010
09 17/12/10 09:54 Page 1
Peter Hancock FTS | Chief Executive,Pride of Britain Hotels
Short breaks and a Royal boost are good news
Hospitality
Issue 145 Winter 2010
Many of the negative factors that willhave an impact on trading next year arecompletely outside our control: the risein VAT to 20% which should add 2.14%to the cost of applicable goods and serv-ices; departmental budget cuts in thepublic sector; inflation exceeding theChancellor’s target; recessionary condi-tions in other countries; depressed banklending; tax increases; house price stagna-tion; floods and diseases.
I don’t underestimate the effect all ofthese may have on tourism businessesbut since we can’t change them there islittle point in analysing them too deeply.
So instead let’s think about all the driversof growth on which to build our survivalplans for 2011. I work in the luxury hotelsector running a small but perfectlyformed marketing consortium which hasseen the value of recorded bookings riseeach year whatever the conditions. UKresidents’ demand for short breaks hasbeen our saviour and shows no sign ofslowing. Short breaks have become inte-gral to the lifestyle of our regular cus-tomers, along with a second car, a dish-washer or Sky Plus.These brief stays arenot instead of a foreign holiday – theyare in addition to it, often arranged at justa couple of days’ notice.
Value for money matters greatly to theseindividuals but that doesn’t equate to the
cheapest room. Granted, the effect ofonline travel wholesalers such as last-minute.com and laterooms.com has beento intensify rate competition and cus-tomers are now able to search the bestdeals with ease. However, when a rarewindow of opportunity to spend qualitytime together allows couples to stay awayfrom home they need to be absolutelysure they’ll have a good time and thatmeans going for a trusted brand or atleast somewhere with superb ratings – atprices to match.The savvy traveller canoften obtain the best available rate bydealing directly with a hotel or group andwe’ve seen the average booking valuethis year climb well above £400.
At the other end of the spectrum the bigbrand budget hotels are coining it in.With their economies of scale and ruth-less attention to costs they offer almostunbeatable value and have the marketingmuscle to overwhelm their local competi-tion. It may not delight the struggling B&Bowner next door but it’s still hospitalityand it represents an amazing successstory.
The impending royal wedding can’t beoverlooked. It is a gift to UK tourism ofincalculable value. Overseas visitorsalready favour sites with important histor-ical connections and the wedding guaran-tees our country a massive amount of
extra exposure in foreign media.This, ontop of the success of ITV’s DowntonAbbey, could inspire millions more totravel to Britain and get a taste of thecountry house life themselves. It workednearly 30 years ago – BridesheadRevisited achieved top ratings worldwideand played a large part in encouragingentrepreneurs to acquire lovely manorhouses and turn them into outstandingluxury hotels.
Britain is particularly well placed to capi-talise on all this.The National Trust, forexample, has taken a fresh look at how itcaters to visitors and has become muchmore family-friendly, allowing greateraccess within many of the houses underits care.
Heritage is one of our trump cards and Iam pleased to see VisitBritain playing it tothe full, too.
My final reason for optimism is based onwhat I have personally witnessed withinthe hotel and catering trade. Standardsare rising.The UK has a growing share ofthe world’s Michelin stars.With otherindustries in trouble, recruiting good staff into hospitality may at last becomeeasier.We now have a government that understands business and wants us to succeed. Perhaps the good old days for UK tourism are just about tostart.
10 17/12/10 09:55 Page 2
Consultancy
www.tourismsociety.org
Tom Buncle FTS|Managing Director,
Yellow Railroad11
After western economies’ unfetteredbehaviour, payback time has come. Sowhat does this mean for tourism consult-ants?
AA MMiixxeedd BBaagg
Which sector you’re in and which coun-tries you’re targeting will determine youroutlook. If markets behave reasonablyrationally, which Keynes observed theyregularly don’t, the 2011 landscape mightlook thus:
� UK – Destinations: Consultants whoadvise destinations and publicly runattractions in the UK are likely to seefewer tenders for their services in 2011.Public sector funding is shrinking, with theabolition of RDAs in England and uncer-tainty over commitment to tourism andfunding by the new local economic part-nerships (LEPs). Scotland and Wales haveretained their economic developmentfunctions, but they are obviously facingsimilar pressures on public finances.
� UK – Commercial Products: Economiccircumstances do not initially appearfavourable, but opportunities may arise,counter-intutitively, from “fire sales” andinvestors buying businesses and hotelproperties at the bottom of the market.This may generate some scraps for hoteland business development consultants.
� Mainland Europe:This is a story of twohalves: old “western” Europe and emerg-ing new Europe. Both are struggling. Butthe difference is that the latter will remainrecipients of western economic aid (oneof the few sectors of the British budgetto be increased), and invest in tourism asa low-cost route to economic develop-ment with few barriers to entry.The mainbarrier is limited skills – an opportunityfor experienced tourism consultants.
� Long-Haul Markets: Mature tourismeconomies generally stick to their ownhome-grown experts. But developingtourism economies in Africa, Asia, theMiddle East, South Pacific and Caribbean,are more prone to trawling the globe forexpertise.The fact that most did notexpose themselves to the profligate bank-ing behaviour that brought others to their
knees, and that many are recipients ofeconomic aid which they are investing intourism development, indicates further-flung opportunities.
FFuuttuurree TTrreennddss
Like surfers scanning the horizon for thenext big wave, tourism consultants needto spot opportunities as they emerge.Some predictions:
� City regeneration has peaked.Withsuccessful developments in place, fewcities can afford to fund further develop-ment on the scale of recent years.
� Place-making, which is more focusedon lower-cost human “software” andchanging mindsets than physical regenera-tion, will grow.
� Destination branding will increasinglymorph into place branding – i.e. a holisticapproach to nation, region, and citybranding that encompasses all sectors inattracting people to live, work, study,invest in, buy from, and visit, a place.
� Tourism development projects willgenerally be smaller, because funding istighter.
� Market research and economic impactanalysis will still be needed, but less fre-quently.
� Competition amongst consultants willbecome tougher, as redundancy inspiresmore to enter the field.
� This will drive consultancy rates down.
� “Co-opetition” and consolidation willincrease, whereby competitors collabo-rate to bid for projects or merge withone another.
� There will be a growth in outsourcedimplementation, because the public agen-cies responsible for tourism will have hadto let most of their discretionary func-tions – and many of the experts in theseareas – go.
TToouurriissmm CCoonnssuullttaannttss –– DDiinnoossaauurrss oorrRRaacceehhoorrsseess??
Economic Darwinism suggests that, whilesome may become extinct, there will stillbe a demand for tourism consultants,although jobs will be scarcer and proba-bly less well-remunerated. Less work andmore competition means that consultantswill have to be prepared to bid more andwin less, travel further afield, and combinewith others to win bids. And procure-ment processes will become no lesslabyrinthine.
But the good news is that tourism isresilient and likely to bounce back soonerthan other sectors.Those who surviveshould emerge fitter, even if not moreprosperous.To misquote Keynes, the chal-lenge will be to remain solvent for longerthan the market remains irrational.
“Sunlit Uplands” or Barren Wasteland?
Issue 145 Winter 2010
11 17/12/10 09:57 Page 1
Andrew Bateman MTS MTMI | Tourism Manager, HampshireCounty Council and Vice President, TMI12 [email protected]
A time for change
Destination Management
Issue 145 Winter 2010
Liam Byrne, former Chief Secretary tothe Treasury’s note to his successor 'DearChief Secretary, I'm afraid to tell youthere's no money left', is pretty much dic-tating the agenda for destination manage-ment at the moment and for the foresee-able future. Abolition of the RDAs, a 34%cut to Visit Britain and Visit England’sbudget, and 25-30% squeeze on localauthority budgets is requiring a rapid andradical overhaul of tourism structures.
All publically funded bodies know thatthey’re going to have to play their part indebt reduction and destination managers,with their ability to drive and foster col-laboration between the private and pub-lic sector, are in a better place than manyto weather the storm. However, there willundoubtedly be job losses and anychange will need to be achieved in anincreasingly chaotic environment wherethere’s much more competition fordiminishing resources. The result will be are-building of the tourism support infra-structure from the bottom-up which willinevitably result in some DestinationManagement Organisations (DMO) thatare stronger than others, and some thatmay not be readily identifiable as mar-ketable destination brands. However, asJohn Penrose MP stated, “The landscapewill be a bit messy but tidy is only good ifyou’re an accountant or a bureaucrat.There could be gaps, DMOs groupingtogether and overlaps – this is fine if it isright for industry and business and helpsthem to do their job properly.”
The emphasis here on DMOs helpingbusiness success is important and it couldbe argued that this has not been enoughof a priority recently.There will need tobe an increased focus on delivering activi-ties that can be delivered in partnershipwith tourism businesses that want to seeresults on their bottom line. It will bemore about ‘show me the money’, not‘show me your SMART targets!’ Butwhether businesses will also accept theorganisational chaos that will undoubtedly
be with us for the next year or soremains to be seen.The real worry inplaces like London is that with 2012 only20 months away the focus will be on try-ing to get the support structures right,rather than exploiting the potential thatthe Games can deliver.
The North will see the greatest impacton its tourism infrastructure as its RDAshave been the largest investors. Marketingcampaigns for 2011 are yet to be con-firmed in many areas, meaning that muchof this season could be missed, whichcould seriously impact on the govern-ment’s target to grow domestic tourism.
The whole Local Enterprise Partnershipapplication process was a fairly unedifyingspectacle that pitted local authorities andbusiness support organisations againstone another, leading to fractured relation-ships. Core funding for LEPs failed tomaterialise, which will mean hard-pressedlocal authorities and businesses will beasked to fund them initially.The £1.4 bil-lion Regional Growth Fund may well pro-
vide opportunities for tourism relatedprojects, especially in the Midlands andNorth, but it will be a tall-order for anyprojects in the South East to qualify. So,only time will tell whether the analogy of‘a bunch of bald men fighting over acomb’ is ultimately borne out.
Whilst we await the John Penrose strate-gy with interest, we recognise that thisgovernment is keen to ensure that there’scross government support for usingtourism to grow the economy.This could,for example, provide destination man-agers with opportunities to work muchmore closely with bodies such asNational Parks and the ForestryCommission.We may find the door isopen to a much broader set of relation-ships rather than the traditional ones weare used to. And TMI has an importantrole to play here, offering destinationmanagers networking, representation, avoice, and professional developmentopportunities. All from a bottom-uprather than a top-down approach. And atlimited cost to the Treasury...
How will the landscape look in 2011?
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12 17/12/10 09:58 Page 2
www.tourismsociety.org 13Issue 145 Winter 2010
Membership News
I am delighted to say how well theintegration with TMI has gone and howmuch we are looking forward to futuredevelopments.TMI has added positivelyto the Society’s membership not just innumbers but also in the breadth ofexperience represented. I wouldencourage you to have a close look atthe CPD programme and post-gradu-ate qualifications to see how they canbenefit you and your business.I would like to thank our CorporatePartners (Stena Line, Carrier Groupand Lloyds TSB) and all our Corporate
Members for their continuing and val-ued support throughout the year.Thank you, too, to all the sponsors andparticipants that have helped make ourevents a success.2011 is set to be a busy year and wewill continue to improve the Society’sofferings to its members with develop-ments planned for our website and theopportunity to join our events onlinethrough webinars.On a sadder note, I am sorry to reportthat Harold Naylor FTS passed away inthe autumn. In 1969 Harold became
the first Chief Executive of the WalesTourist Board and significantly improvedthe status and credibility of the industrythere. He helped establish the TourismSociety in 1977 and became a foundingFellow. In July this year Harold’s contri-bution to tourism in Wales wasacknowledged by the presentation ofthe Lifetime Achievement Award ofTourism Society in Wales.
Gregory Yeoman MTS| Executive Director
2010 kicked off with the amal-gamation of the TMI andended with a debate on gov-ernment’s role in Tourism.
Due to the recession theTourism Society reducedmonthly event costs to £15per member, but still had tocancel a couple. Networkingand continued professionaldevelopment during a reces-sion is important for career
development, the promotionof products and services andkeeping in touch with the mar-ket place and our events coverall three aspects.
We are looking into webinarsto enable those further afieldto participate and with TMIhope to encourage moreregional events. If you wouldlike to get more involved inregional events or have ideas
for event topics please contactthe Secretariat. Also recom-mend membership to yourcolleagues and friends so thatthey too can benefit – if youare not yet a member, putmembership on your NewYear’s Resolution list.Wishingyou a successful 2011!
Alison Cryer FTS |Chairman,
The Tourism Society
From the Chairman’s Desk
JANUARY25th Prospects for 2011The Middle East Association,London In association withThe UNWTO
FEBRUARY5th RegenerationPlymouth University
Chairman’s LunchLondon
MARCH5th RegenerationWetland and Wildfowl Trust,Gloucester
16th and 17th Best of Britain & IrelandNEC, Birmingham
24thTourism Society AnnualDinnerHouse of Commons,LondonSponsored by Stena Line
30thT.H.E. Careers DayThe University of Surrey,Guildford
APRIL2ndRegenerationUniversity of East Anglia
MAY9thMarketing in a DownturnLondon
JULY3-5thThe Tourism Society AnnualConferenceBournemouth
The Tourism Society WalesSummer Lunch & AwardsWales
SEPTEMBERTourism & Social Media London
OCTOBERMedia Masterclass LondonIn association with TravMedia
NOVEMBER7-10th World Travel MarketExcel Centre, London
Backpacking UnpackedThe University of Surrey,Guildford
DECEMBERThe Tourism SocietyPresident’s Debate London
Chairman’s LunchLondon
Fellows’ DayLondon
The Tourism Society WalesChristmas LunchWales
Calendar of Events 2011
13 17/12/10 09:59 Page 1
14 [email protected] 145 Winter 2010
Membership NewsWelcome New Corporate MembersFreetobook0141 270 2173www.freetobook.com
Caroline Dawson [email protected]
Iain Stewart [email protected]
Craig Stewart [email protected]
Welcome New MembersDenise Williams MTSGuildford College of FHE01483 448 [email protected]
Jim Roberts MTSLocum Consulting0207 344 [email protected]
Chris Melia MTSLocum Consulting0161 831 [email protected]
Paj Valley MTSScott Wilson07917 804 [email protected]
Emma Fernandes-Lopes [email protected]
Pat Boadu-Darko MTSCapita Education Resourcing0800 316 [email protected]
Sandra Matthews-Marsh MTSVisit Kent Ltd01227 [email protected]
Dave Catling MTSJPCS Signs Ltd 01948 820 [email protected]
Nancy Kordouli MTSCorfuEscape07734 470 [email protected]
David Bishop MTS VisitBritain0207 578 [email protected]
Louisa Myers MTSVisit London0207 234 [email protected]
Sergi Jarques MTSEast of England [email protected]
Carol Farley MTSFarley [email protected]
Alice Will MTSLine Digital0131 524 [email protected]
Tolene van der Merwe MTSBoutique Travel Marketing07983 956 [email protected]
Peter Harmath MTSFaculty of Economy in Subotica+ 38 124 62 80 [email protected]
Lawrence Bate MTSThe Caravan Club01342 336 [email protected]
Antony Train MTSNeal, Gerber, Eisenberg+1 847 269 [email protected]
Carl Cater MTSAberystwyth University01970 [email protected]
Ernest William Edusei MTSAims Ltd/Nomad Africa+233 0302 501 [email protected]
Welcome New StudentsSusann KruegelKings College [email protected]
Edna A.WonameUniversity of Derby, [email protected]
Helen AdamsEdinburgh Napier [email protected]
Calvin HewittCoventry [email protected]
Violet CuffyUniversity of [email protected]
Kate EbohonUniversity of [email protected]
Sara WellsLondon Metropolitan [email protected]
Estelle RahmanGuildford [email protected]
Richard WoodUniversity of [email protected]
Sally HutchinsonUniversity of [email protected]
Claudia SultLiverpool John Moores [email protected]
Kathrin SimonLeeds Metropolitan, [email protected]
Mark HolroydLeeds Metropolitan [email protected]
Fay FallowsUniversity of [email protected]
Sayuki TanakaUniversity of [email protected]
Daniela CarlLeeds Metropolitan [email protected]
Maria ValgeUniversity of [email protected]
Caroline LittlewoodBournemouth [email protected]
Alice GlazeOxford Brookes [email protected]
Yuka TanakaBournemouth [email protected]
Jennifer LansdowneBournemouth [email protected]
Alexandra SchwartzBournemouth [email protected]
Chiara BossiHertfordshire [email protected]
Laura ExtonBirmingham [email protected]
14 17/12/10 10:00 Page 2
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