Regarding the tourism system

A new argument for the need of a management organization that integrates all aspects of tourist destination resides from the research of a destination as a system.

The tourism system as a whole is comprised of tourists, companies and destinations, closely interrelated with one another and each component is vital for the operation of the whole system. The supply and demand are interrelated and the nature of tourism changes over the years. The external environment (namely political, economic, social and technological factors) influence and are influenced by tourism.

The tourist destination is also a complex and complicated system of diverse interrelated components, deeply connected among themselves. It comprises a variety of organizations offering heterogeneous products and services (such as accommodation, transport, attractions, hospitality etc.).

The tourism supply is the tourism product, and is represented, in a broad sense, by the destination's features, and, in a narrow sense, by the tourism industry/services at destination. The author considers that today's and future's focus is on development and provision of experiences, services and infrastructure that exceeds customer expectations. This suppose product development, marketing, becoming a hospitable and welcoming community, and developing and sustaining the resources and capacities needed to keep the efforts going and successful. The challenge is to be completely aware of the many product options available within the destination area, or to create or co-create new products, experiences, and/or services that are meeting the consumers’ expectations. After that, this knowledge, sites, experiences, services can be organized and presented to the visitor in a way that creates value for the consumer and maximizes benefits for the destination.

The pressure of competition in a globalized world will impact all the stages in the tourism value-added chain (travel agents, travel organizers, the transport and hotel and catering industries) registering growth in size, trends towards concentration, niche strategies and strategic alliances increasingly pursued internationally through investment, mergers and joint ventures.

For example, the air transport will register a rise in the international traffic, globally operating airlines and the formation of strategic alliances; this means that transport is only possible in cooperation with strategic partners. One example of good practice regarding this aspect is Edinburgh. The city realized a strategic partnership with the low cost carriers. The city must work closely with the carriers to help them to increase the number and frequency of low cost air routes and to develop special offers that can be promoted at times of low occupancy.

By author opinion, the quality and authenticity of the destination, as well as its efficient management represent two other important aspects. Cultural heritage tourism projects can represent an interesting solution in the long term for this purpose, because they can contribute to the construction and renovation of the tangible heritage, but also to rekindle the community, and, through this, to develop the intangible heritage.

Because, based on studied trends and estimations, cultural heritage tourism will be one of the fastest growing market in the industry, the thesis present also some considerations in this regard. I support the experts' view that claim that linking tourism with heritage and culture can do more for local economies than promoting them separately. It can bring increased revenue to the heritage sites and in this way to the community and country that hosts them and it can be an engine of economic growth. Tourism can stimulate the preserving and enhancing actions of the cultural heritage, since the revenue it generates can be channeled back into initiatives to aid its long-term survival. In order to succeed tourism needs a strategy for reinventing the role of heritage so that it serves the needs of everyone, and this can be done through a community-centered approach, in order to truly engage the residents around the heritage assets that everyone shares.

The tourism demand is represented by tourists and its study for marketing purpose and product development. As presented in the thesis, the demand structure is dynamic (along with demographic, cultural, educational, and technological change and experiences travelers) and consumers are multi-optional (flexible, as they have a lot of attractive options). Because tourism consumption patterns do change, tourism demand trends reflect the increasing diversity of interests of the modern society. From the plurality of developments identified in the thesis I am presenting only the most significant for tourism professionals:

-   the “amazonification” induces the necessity to customize the offerings more and more to the needs of specific individuals, because they no longer wish to be a part of the mass market. The consumers will be more engaged, confident and vocal, and will need a greater degree of flexibility in their travel in the future.

-   customization (hedonism): the consumers should be able to put a personal stamp on the product, providing it with a uniqueness relevant only to them.

-   women represent the most important and fastest growing segment of the travel market, in terms of both leisure and business travel and are, also, travel influencers. Tourism developers have to be prepared for the female customer that is looking for a unique shopping experience, pay attention to detail, and is pleased with little attentions throughout the purchasing. Women are keen on culture and trips, and have a higher level of concern for the environment and sustainable development.

-   millenials will be of growing importance to the travel industry. They travel more often, are more comfortable mixing business with pleasure, are more interested in urban than resort destinations, look for places that are fun and entertaining, and interactive and hands-on, consider online reviews important when planning a trip and are more likely to voice their displeasure.

-   the silver tourists, which will continue to be one of the fastest growing areas of tourism, represent an untapped opportunity for marketers. To capture this segment of the market, they have to adapt and expand the delivery of services in the leisure, hospitality and tourist industries, in order to meet their specially tailored services. The silver tourists can boost the destination because they can travel throughout the year and non-seasonal tourism can increase revenues and the use of infrastructure throughout the year. It is important to say that tourism security is very important for them. For example, Hungary and Poland made a scheme to facilitate low-season transnational exchanges of seniors and families facing difficult circumstances. The same, the Romanian government has a scheme for its citizens with the same purpose.

-   the LOHAS (Lifestyle of Health and Sustainability) consumers represent a market limited now to few developed country, but I support the opinion of many experts who believe that they could be the tourism industry's new premium customers in the years to come. This type of consumers has a focus on personal development and an eco-friendly life-style (respecting the principle of green living (based on 4R’s): Rethink, Reduce, Recycle and Reuse).

-   LGBT are a dynamic and influential segment within the tourism sector and will also continue to grow. They travel more, spend more and have larger amounts of disposable income, but destinations that want to reach them have to take into account the social acceptance of homosexuality in their area, the government legislation and the effects of these on their business. For example, Vancouver has a development plan to attract this group and develop a tourism product adapted to their needs.

-   the medical wellness tourism and health-oriented holidays have an enormous potential and will gain an important part of tourism market, because it will comprise not only older people but also the younger people (by rising perceptions of time pressure and blurring distinctions between work and leisure). A destinations’ competitive advantage will come from the local assets, both natural (lakes, salinas, etc.), or produced, like culinary products, wellness or lifestyle rituals (yoga, qiqong, ayurveda, or other forms), and any other products that will address wellbeing of body and mind.

 -  more tourists will seek viewing, attending festivals powerful and transformative life-enriching travel experiences, learning-while-travelling, wildlife or other cultural events, so destinations that will engage visitors in learning experiences will have an important competitive advantage.

-   the creative tourism is also on the rise. This type of tourists is looking for creative places where their own creativity can feed and be fed by the creativity of those they visit. This means that the destination has also to be creative, to re-think its products and services and to develop connections between tourism, culture and creativity.

-   the staycations (a vacation spent in one's home country rather than abroad) is a trend, but also social phenomenon which appeared because of the economic recession in UK, and apparently will continue and even expand to other areas of the world. Many travelers attempt to maintain breaks and holidays even more frequently than in the past, as an antidote to the everyday life stresses.