Teoría - Unidad 3 – El futuro del turismo

Lesson 1
In this lesson we are going to learn vocabulary and structures to refer to the future of
tourism.

Tomorrow’s tourism
The gradual re-thinking of our habitual travel addiction has been accelerated by the
effects of the pandemic. What will happen next is still up for debate as we try to
understand how consumer behavior and ever-shifting regulations will shape the future of
this activity. But there’s already evidence to suggest that the future will be much brighter.
(Adapted from https://www.euruni.edu/blog/tourism-2020-travel-trends-covid-19/)

Activity 1. Read the article below about Future Travel Predictions and discuss the
answers to the questions.
(Adapted from https://www.tourism-review.com/future-travel-experiences-in-2040-news11313)

By 2040, international travel will be faster, easier and more sustainable than ever
before. In addition, the trips will be a much richer experience. The number of air
travelers will double by this time, our faces will be on our passports and boarding
passes thanks to facing recognition systems, and virtual travel reports, hotel
rooms, and museums will be commonplace, according to Ray Hammond, a famous
futurologist.

He identifies some of the key trends that will significantly change international travel:

Virtual and augmented reality (VR & AR)

Virtual Reality appeals to different senses and enables holiday

planners to "enter" the hotel room from the comfort of their own sofa,
visit street festivals, explore museums and see restaurants from the
inside. Travel brands will be able to create more immersive digital
experiences with friends and families.

Fast check-ins thanks to new technologies

Facial recognition systems are already being tested at some airports.

In 20 years' time, these computer systems will be so advanced that
they are going to allow fast and smooth check-ins.

Software-supported hotels

Although some luxury hotels will not miss the opportunity to greet their guests
personally, many business and budget hotels will make use of automated
check-ins. Some of the hotels will also probably have autonomous baggage
carts that will take the luggage to the room.

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Significantly faster trains

International train future travel will be better and smoother in many parts
of the world. Computer networks and the "Internet of Things" (IoT) will
coordinate national and international rail networks, allowing trains to
travel at shorter intervals. Trains will also achieve higher speeds on most
networks.

Sustainable cruises

Cruise ships will be much more environmentally friendly than today's

ocean liners. The destinations of the cruises will be even more varied.

Space as a normal holiday destination

In 2040, the world will no longer be able to offer some travelers

exciting destinations. There will definitely be regular travel traffic to
and from the moon.

1. Do you agree with these predictions?

2. According to the predictions, does tourism have a future? Why / why not?
3. Why has the pandemic accelerated some of these changes?
4. In your opinion, which of these changes will be more important?

Activity 2. In groups, discuss likely future developments in world tourism and write
short answers to these questions.

1. In two years' time, will traditional destinations today continue to be popular?

2. What kinds of holiday will tourists be looking for?

3. What strategies will destinations and means of transport need to design to promote tourism?

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Grammar Reference: how to express predictions

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The Internet of Things, or IoT for short, has the potential to fundamentally change how
many tourism companies operate, improve their revenue management, and enhance the
customer experience.

Activity 3. First, let’s try to identify what the IoT actually is. Watch the video and
decide if the sentences below are true or false.

Click here to watch the video.

1. Objects will understand our needs and satisfy them.

2. The IoT already exists but very few objects are part of it.
3. Unfortunately, the IoT won’t allow us to save money.

Activity 4. Group work. Read the article, and use the questions below to discuss the main
ideas
.
1. How does the IoT contribute to personalizing the services offered by the tourism industry?

2. In your opinion, in which of the sectors mentioned in the article may the IoT be more

useful? Why?

3. How can the IoT improve customers’ experience?

4. Which are some of the benefits the IoT may provide in marketing?

5. Can you mention other benefits of IoT in tourism?

(Taken and adapted from https://www.revfine.com/internet-of-things-travel-industry/)

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While many industries can benefit from IoT technology, the travel and tourism sector
is particularly well-placed to reap the rewards, because the Internet of Things can
enable further automation, more personalisation, and a greater customer experience.
It can also streamline day-to-day tasks that go into running a hotel or travel company.

The use of smart devices can help to optimise the physical state of a hotel and its
rooms, and can reduce energy costs. On planes, sensors could even be used to alert
staff when someone’s anxiety levels elevate above a certain level. Meanwhile, the IoT
can provide tourists with greater control and access to information via their phone.

5 IoT Examples Within the Travel Industry

1. Personalization

One approach to providing more personalization is to offer additional control to

travelers using their mobile devices. For example, some museums allow
customers to book a timeslot in advance to avoid long lines and improve their
experience. Visitors can also reserve a guide and pay the entrance fee using an
app or website to save time and enjoy a smooth trip.
Another IoT application in tourism is collecting and storing customer data that
allows companies to generate tailored offers based on users’ search and purchase
history. Customers can receive personalized offers for vacation spots, travel
destinations, airlines, cruise ships and more.

2. Improved customer experience

The world of traveling is extremely competitive and requires hotels, cruise ships,
airlines, etc. to constantly improve and innovate to stay afloat. Travel and IoT
provide options to make the experience more enjoyable and leave a good
impression on the customer. As a result, everybody wins as the customer can get
a better impression, and companies collect user data that helps them improve
their services. A prominent example is making an IoT app that allows guests to
check in, download an electronic key card, and order various hotel services. The
next time the guest stays at this hotel, the app can offer discounts on the services
that the customer might use again or any other related suggestions.

3. Launch data-driven marketing campaigns based on real data

The ability to collect and analyze large amounts of data allows companies to
generate targeted marketing strategies that prove to be highly effective. For
example, airlines can offer location-based advertisements that are more likely to
be successful and move the customer down the sales funnel. The same goes for
hotels, museums, trains, buses, etc. as businesses can change the current offers
based on the customer’s location.

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Data-driven marketing also includes catering to the customer’s unique needs, such
as special aids for kids with autism or people with impaired vision. Inclusivity has
been an emerging trend in the last years, and people with disabilities appreciate
the additional care that some companies offer. Capturing customer data can help
you anticipate customer needs and offer the relevant services.

4. Smart Energy Saving

While the IoT can enable personalisation, it can also offer businesses financial
benefits through automated or smart energy saving. In a hotel, for instance,
internet-enabled devices and sensors can allow for the room temperature to be
adjusted continually, meaning heating is only used when it is really needed.

Lesson 2
In this lesson we are going to learn about the impacts of tourism.

Impacts of tourism
Tourism can bring many economic and social benefits, particularly in rural areas and
developing countries, but mass tourism is also associated with negative effects. Tourism
can only be sustainable if it is carefully managed so that potential negative effects on the
host community and the environment are not permitted to outweigh the financial benefits.

(Retrieved from http://traveltips.usatoday.com/positive-negative-effects-tourism-63336.html, July 2017)

Activity 1. Imagine you are preparing a presentation about the positive and negative
impacts of tourism for secondary school students. Watch 2030: The Disturbing Truth of
Tourism's Future and complete the sentences with relevant ideas from the video that you
may include in your presentation.

Click here to watch the video.

1. The world population …………………………………………………………………………

2. The cities ………………………………………………………………………………………

3. The consumption of food, water and energy ………………………………………………

4. Transportation will have problems ………………………………………………………

5. Overpopulation and poor environmental resource management may lead to ………...

6. A significant increase in mass tourism …………………………………………………….

7. Frequent extreme weather events …………………………………………………………

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Activity 2. Now imagine you have to explain some of the problems of overtourism to
this group of secondary school students, so you are planning to use some of the
information in the article below for your presentation. Read the article and complete
the notes below to summarize the main ideas (remember to paraphrase!!)

The Price Of Popularity: The Impact Of Overtourism On

Destinations
Taken and adapted from https://givinggetaway.com/the-impact-of-overtourism-on-destinations/

The impact of overtourism has become a

hot topic in recent years, as more and more
destinations around the world struggle to
manage the influx of tourists..

With the rise of cheap transportation and

global connectivity, it’s no wonder that
some places have become increasingly
popular – but this newfound stardom comes
with a cost. Overtourism is an issue that has become more and more common in
recent years, resulting from the surge of travelers to certain destinations. It occurs
when a destination receives significantly more visitors than its infrastructure can
handle, leading to overcrowding, environmental degradation, and a decrease in the
quality of life for locals.

The causes of overtourism vary depending on the destination; however, some

common causes include cheap travel options such as budget airlines and online
booking sites, increased international connectivity through social media platforms like
Instagram or Facebook, and growth in the tourism industry overall. These factors have
contributed to an increase in visitor numbers at many destinations worldwide, which
can lead to overbooking consequences such as overcrowded attractions or high
accommodation prices.

As destinations try to balance the economic benefits of tourism with the need to
preserve their cultural heritage, finding sustainable solutions becomes crucial.

Overtourism can have both positive and negative impacts on destinations. While it can
stimulate economic growth, job creation, and cultural exchange, it can also lead to
environmental degradation, overcrowding, cultural erosion, economic inequality, and
a strain on resources. It is important for destinations to manage tourism growth
sustainably, ensuring that the negative impacts are minimized while the positive
impacts are maximized.

This can be achieved through careful planning, stakeholder involvement, and the
implementation of sustainable tourism practices. By doing so, destinations can
continue to benefit from the positive impacts of tourism while preserving their natural
and cultural heritage for future generations to enjoy.

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1. A destination may be affected by overtourism when ……………………………………

2. Some of the causes of overtourism……………………………………………………...

3. ……………………………………………. are some positive impacts of overtourism.

4. An effort should be made to ……………………………………………………………

Now discuss in groups: impacts of overtourism in general, strategies to minimize

them, problems of overtourism in your country

More on Positive and Negative Effects of Tourism

(taken from http://traveltips.usatoday.com/positive-negative-effects-tourism-63336.html, retrieved July 2017)

Activity 3. Read about the impacts of tourism and decide if the statements
below are true or false and correct the false ones.

Economic Effects -- Positive

Tourism creates jobs, both through direct
employment within the tourism industry
and indirectly in sectors such as retail
and transportation. When these people
spend their wages on goods and
services, it leads to what is known as the
"multiplier effect," creating more jobs.
The tourism industry also provides
opportunities for small-scale business
enterprises, which is especially important
in rural communities, and generates
extra tax revenues, such as airport and
hotel taxes, which can be used for
schools, housing and hospitals.

Economic Effects -- Negative

Successful tourism relies on establishing
a basic infrastructure, such as roads,
visitor centers and hotels. The cost of this
usually falls on the government, so it has
to come out of tax revenues. Jobs created
by tourism are often seasonal and poorly
paid, yet tourism can push up local
property prices and the cost of goods and
services. Money generated by tourism does not always benefit the local community, as some
of it leaks out to huge international companies, such as hotel chains. Destinations dependent

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on tourism can be adversely affected by events such as terrorism, natural disasters and
economic recession.

Social Effects -- Positive

The improvements to infrastructure and new leisure amenities that result from tourism also
benefit the local community. Tourism encourages the preservation of traditional customs,
handicrafts and festivals that might otherwise have been allowed to wane, and it creates civic
pride. Interchanges between hosts and guests create a better cultural understanding and can
also help raise global awareness of issues such as poverty and human rights abuses.

Social Effects -- Negative

Visitor behavior can have a detrimental effect on the quality of life of the host community.
For example, crowding and congestion, drugs and alcohol problems, prostitution and
increased crime levels can occur. Tourism can even infringe on human rights, with locals
being displaced from their land to make way for new hotels or barred from beaches.
Interaction with tourists can also lead to an erosion of traditional cultures and values.

Environmental Effects -- Positive

Tourism -- particularly nature and ecotourism -- helps promote conservation of wildlife and
natural resources such as rain forests, as these are now regarded as tourism assets. It also
helps generate funding for maintaining animal preserves and marine parks through entrance
charges and guide fees. By creating alternative sources of employment, tourism reduces
problems such as over-fishing and deforestation in developing nations.

Environmental Effects -- Negative

Tourism poses a threat to a region's natural and
cultural resources, such as water supply, beaches,
coral reefs and heritage sites, through overuse. It also
causes increased pollution through traffic emissions,
littering, increased sewage production and noise.

1. All income generated by the multiplier effect

stays in the community.
2. Tourism generates jobs that in some cases are
badly paid.
3. The customs of a community can never be
negatively affected by tourism.
4. Some forms of tourism promote
environmental conservation.

Group work. Imagine that you work in a local tourism office in Argentina. Choose a
particular location and make a list of 5 impacts. Also, write some guidelines for tourists
to limit the negative effects of tourism in that area.

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Lesson 3
In this lesson we are going to learn about the marketing process in travel and tourism
and the concept of branding.

Marketing and promotion

(Taken and adapted from English for Careers, Tourism 1, OUP)

Activity 1. For those operating in the tourism industry, the various different tourism
marketing strategies that are deployed can go a long way towards determining long-term
business success. The purpose behind tourism marketing is to promote the business, make
it stand out from rivals, attract customers, and generate brand awareness. So, let’s learn
a bit more about the marketing process by reading the article below and answering the
questions.

The marketing process in travel and tourism

Every day of our lives we can see examples of travel and tourism marketing around us -
adverts on TV, adverts in newspapers and magazines, brochures in travel agencies, internet
pages, posters in stations, etc. This is because all tourism businesses need to market their
products if they hope to be successful. But marketing is not just advertising; it is about
researching and identifying the needs of a specific group of customers, and then creating a
product that satisfies them.

Activity 1. Answer these questions

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1. Are the following statements on marketing true or false?

a. Marketing is the same as advertising.

b. Marketing means knowing what your customers want.
c. Marketing is what you do before the product is sold.
d. Marketing is done by both public and private organizations.

2. Which stage are these marketing activities part of?

a. develop
b. monitor
c. research

3. Which stage of marketing ...

a. is the most expensive?

b. needs more creativity?

Promotion in tourism
Activity 2. Listen to an expert talking about promotion and complete the diagram
below.

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Activity 4. Promotional techniques. The effective use of promotional techniques is

essential if you want your company to survive in a highly competitive market.

Read the list of promotional techniques. What promotional techniques would you use for
different tourist products? And for people of different ages? Which ones are most
effective in your opinion? Would you add any other technique to the list?

Branding

As a future professional in the field of tourism you need to understand certain

concepts which play an important role at the global and local level. One of these
concepts is branding.

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Activity 5: Let’s see what a Nation Brand is and what branding consists of. Read
this text and get ready to discuss the questions below in groups.

What is Nation Branding?

In a globalized world, countries compete in similar ways as companies. Countries are
therefore adopting the same marketing and communication methods to promote
themselves - a phenomenon known as Nation Branding. While initially nation brands
mainly served to highlight a country as travel destination, today they also play a pivotal
role in attracting foreign investment and promoting products and services. Through
branding, governments aim to improve their country's standing, as the image and
reputation of a nation can dramatically influence its success in attracting tourism
receipts and investment capital, in exports, in attracting a talented and creative
workforce, and in its cultural and political influence in the world.

The term Nation Branding refers to the image and reputation of a state. It is the
condensed expression of the peak performances of a nation. For nation branding, a
state uses its positive preconceptions to position itself credibly and with
differentiation. For example, a nation brand like Brazil has enjoyment of life and
improvisational talent right in its DNA. Images of Brazilian Carnival confirm that
image every year. Germany, on the other hand, stands for efficiency and reliability.

As with any brand, notoriety increases as a function of both the

intensity and duration of its use. Continuity and consistency are
therefore important elements. However, countries are tempted to
change their visual identity frequently, for example, when a new
government comes into power. Ideally, countries stick to a
branding concept as long as possible, as the legal strength of a
trademark also increases over time. Making considerable changes
to a nation brand is known as “rebranding”. Alternatively, when
the existing concept is still adequate but needs to be adapted for wider use (for example
from tourism to other economic activities), countries can apply the concept of an
“umbrella brand”, making a logo adaptable to a specific need. In this way Colombia
has developed a series of derivatives from its main nation brand, by consequently
repeating the CO COLOMBIA part and using identically shaped logos that mimic the
graphic build-up.

Every year, the GfK compiles the Anholt-GfK Nation Brands Index (NBISM). It
measures how 50 countries are perceived worldwide. The index illustrates not only a
nation's current image, but also the direction in which it is developing. The index is
calculated from six factors: Exports, Governance, Culture, People, Tourism, and
Immigration/Investment. In 2017, German took first place.

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1. What is nation branding and what are its goals?

2. How important is it for the tourism activity of a country to have a nation brand?

3. A nation brand is shaped by various factors. Which are those factors?

4. What characteristics should a nation brand have in order to be effective?

5. Once a nation brand is chosen, is it possible to change it? Is it a good idea?

Activity 6. Nation brands are often composed around certain elements. Which
of these elements have been used to create these Nation Brands?

• the colours of the flag • a message inviting tourists

• some element of the geography • iconic elements

Activity 7. Watch this video about Branding Portugal and use the phrases in the box
to complete the list of the elements represented in the logo of the nation brand of this
country.

The sun The two arms The red and green

The history The Atlantic Ocean

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1…………………………. of the country

2…………………………. of the national flag

3…………………………. as part of Portugal’s geography

4…………………………. representing the warmth of the country

5…………………………. representing the people ready to receive visitors.

Activity 8. How is a country brand created? Read about Argentina’s previous

Marca País and discuss
the following in pairs:

● Who are Gliocchi? What

did they do?
● Who took part in the
process of the brand
creation?
● What tools were used
during the process?

Branding a country is a master plan which allows for the successful

positioning of the country in certain markets in the world, promoting its
distinctive factors and highlighted attributes (culture, science, sports,
etc.), fostering exports and increasing tourism and investment.

Gliocchi was responsible for the creation of Marca País Argentina,

Argentina’s nation branding concept and developed its corresponding
strategy, Estrategia Marca País Argentina.

These involved the Ministry of Tourism, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs

and the Secretariat of Media of the Argentine Nation.

In order to develop it, surveys were conducted internationally,

international events were organised and various alliances were made,
including the agreement with Aerolíneas Argentinas, in which the
application of the logo was agreed on more than 100 Aerolíneas
Argentinas and Austral aircrafts.

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This is our new nation brand, how is

it different from the previous one?

Which one do you prefer? Why?

Do you know how the new brand

was chosen and what it
represents?

Activity 9.

Why rebranding? In some situations it is necessary to rebrand a country. As

a professional you may be involved in this process. Let’s look into the possible
reasons and results.

Listen to this item of news, HOLLAND STARTS REBRANDING AS THE

NETHERLANDS, published by Tourism Review News Desk on January 6, 2020.

Mark these sentences True or False

1. Holland is one of the regions of the country.

2. The government has decided to rebrand the country as the Netherlands because
Holland does not include the whole territory.

3. They intend to attract mass and cheap tourism.

4. Amsterdam citizens would like to promote sustainable tourism in their city.

5. This will be the new logo.

6. According to the government, it will be worth spending around 200,000 euros on

the renewal.

7. With this change, all the visitors to the Netherlands will understand more clearly
what they will find in the country.

8. The new logo will be used only in the tourism sector.

9. The Netherlands is ranked as the fourth economy in the world

10. It is important to focus on sustainable development because the number of visitors

is expected to grow in the next decade.

Activity 10: discuss in groups

Which are the different reasons why a country might need a change of brand?
Which can be the aim of this change? Which can be the results?