Visitor Attraction Management: Tourist Needs, Strategies & Analysis

This report provides a comprehensive analysis of visitor attraction management, focusing on overlapping attractions, the importance of different attractions, and the needs and motivations of various visitor types. It evaluates the impact of tourism on visitor attractions in the UK and analyzes the influence of tourist motivation theories on management practices. The report also discusses the procedure involved in theme park development, highlighting potential issues. Furthermore, it analyzes different management strategies and evaluates techniques for achieving sustainability in visitor attractions. This document is available on Desklib, a platform offering study tools and resources for students.

VISITOR ATTRACTION
MANAGEMENT

Table of Contents
INTRODUCTION...............................................................................................................2
TASK 1...............................................................................................................................3
OVERLAPPING OF VISITOR ATTRACTIONS IN RELATION TO VARIOUS TYPES
OF ATTRACTION..........................................................................................................3
ANALYSIS OF IMPORTANCE OF DIFFERENT VISITOR ATTRACTIONS.................5
TASK 2...............................................................................................................................7
2.1 ASSESSMENT OF NEEDS AND MOTIVATION OF DIFFERENT VISITOR
TYPES............................................................................................................................7
2.2 IMPACT OF TOURISM ON THE TOURIST ATTRACTION IN UK.......................10
2.3 ANALYSIS OF THE IMPACT OF THEORIES OF TOURIST MOTIVATION ON
THE VISITOR ATTRACTIONS MANAGEMENT.........................................................13
TASK 3.............................................................................................................................16
3.1 DISCUSSING ON THE PROCEDURE INVOLVED IN THEME PARK
DEVELOPMENT ALONG WITH THE ISSUES...........................................................16
TASK 4.............................................................................................................................19
4.1- ANALYSING THE DIFFERENT MANAGEMENT STRATEGIES.........................19
4.2- EVALUATING THE DIFFERENT MANAGEMENT TECHNIQUES IN RELATION
TO THE SUSTAINABILITY..........................................................................................22
CONCLUSION.................................................................................................................25
REFERENCES................................................................................................................26
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INTRODUCTION
Visitor attractions can be defined as the various man-made constructions, natural
places with special features that attract a large number of tourists locally or from the
different areas of the world. The visitors visiting these tourist destinations have some
specific choices and needs related to the tourism that needs to be fulfilled by these
tourist destinations. There are different theories of motivation that motivate the tourists
to visit these destinations and fulfil their tourism desires. In this report, the different
impacts on various visitor attractions of the UK are evaluated.
The process of development of a theme park named the “the London Resort” in
Swanscombe Peninsula, Kent is described in the form of management report. During
the development of the theme park, several potential issues are being faced and it goes
through various processes which are being discussed. Lastly, the management
techniques to attain sustainability are being further evaluated.
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TASK 1
OVERLAPPING OF VISITOR ATTRACTIONS IN RELATION TO VARIOUS
TYPES OF ATTRACTION
Individuals visit various places for the
leisure activities, to gain knowledge or
fulfillment of their hobbies. These places
are known as tourist attractions where
the visitors visit out of their personal
interests or recreational activities
(Goodwin and Francis, 2003). The
visitor attractions may be the places
exhibiting a cultural significance or some
historical evidences. The types of tourist
attractions are classified as-
 The tourist places having natural
beauty
 Man made attractions which are
designed for the religious or
some cultural purposes
 The places that are developed for
some events like Olympics
 The man made places which are
particularly designed for the
tourists like the theme parks,
museums etc (Dewhurst and
Thwaites, 2014).
Taking a deep insight into the visitor
attractions of UK, in London the British
Museum portrays the creative works of
artists from the prehistoric era and is
completely dedicated towards displaying
the artistic works relatable with art, the
rich culture of UK and history (Gertner,
2010). The attraction holds importance
for the Pantheon sculptures and the
Rosetta stone. Another attraction is the
National Maritime Museum also known
as Greenwich’s Royal Museum has
been declared as a world heritage site
by UNESCO which showcases the
British Art and also has a royal
observatory. Another is a royal palace
situated in Greenwich known as the
Queens House.
Figure 1: National Maritime Museum
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Source: [Trip Advisor, 2018]
It was the residence of Queen in its
prehistoric times but later was opened
for the public for witnessing the Marine
painting collection and the portrait
collection of the significant personalities
between 17-20th century (British
Museum, 2018).
The places discussed so far held a
different significance in their earlier
period and the common man was not
allowed to enter them but later emerged
as beautiful tourist attractions. These
became significant tourist destinations in
England (Frost, 2014).
Figure 2: London Eye
[Source: Trip Advisor, 2018]
The other tourist attractions like the
Eden project and the London Eye are
intentionally built for the visitors (London
Eye, 2018). On the other hand, the
tourist places like the Windermere lack
and the Coast of Pembroke Shire are
the natural places with phenomenal
beauty and breathtaking beauty
(Thompson, 2015).
The events like the cultural and various
sports events organized at the global
and local levels such as the signing
quests, the Olympics and various
festivals fascinate huge audience
towards a particular place as they arrive
for witnessing the grand events. This
also lead them to visit the other tourist
attractions of the place (MacCannell,
2012).
Figure 3: British Museum
[Source: Trip Advisor, 2018]
The notion of the overlapping of the
tourist places happens when as seen
from the above examples a place of
certain other significance to a particular
audience becomes a tourist attraction
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for all. Taking example of the
Westminster Abbey Church is a Gothic
Church in London where worshippers
visit for prayers and religious
importance. At the church, a number of
events are being organized that drive
people towards the place and the
children are being taken here for the
educational tour (Swarbrooke and Page,
2012). In the earlier times it was visited
only by a specific group but now has
become a tourist attraction because of
its historical significance. In this manner,
various places of specific importance
become the tourist attractions over the
times and thus contribute towards the
tourism of a place.
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ANALYSIS OF IMPORTANCE OF
DIFFERENT VISITOR
ATTRACTIONS
The visitor attractions are developed
focusing towards attracting a larger part
of the audience with the similar
interests. The tourist places play a
significant role in establishing an image
of the place among the visitors (Connell,
et al 2015). Also, the visitors provide
contribution in a major way for the
development of the business due to
tourism and also give a boost to the
tourism industry for developing new
strategies for marketing along with
opening up new opportunities for
development. The tourist places like the
Eden project is a place attracting large
number of nature lovers and those who
love gardening. The various categories
of the tourist attractions as already
discussed in different manners provide
contribution towards the growth and
development of tourism in the country
(Cooper, 2012). The importance of the
types of visor attractions are explained
as-
 The places revitalize the areas
having enormous natural
beauty along with opening up
scope for gaining more
economic benefit for the place.
The natural places also provide
the action and development
plan along with the presence of
some religious locations can
also be renovated to make a
good tourist attraction thus
encouraging the cultural
competence (Ram, et al. 2016).
 The places of tourism attract
the business ideas like the
opening of the hospitality sector
ventures like restaurants and
hotels etc along with the artifact
stalls which can make up good
profits from sales.
 The destination product which
consist of the non materialistic
and the materialistic
components are the core
activities for the visitor at any
place. So, the combination of
the destination product
generates the good economic
benefit for the place (Leask,
2010)
 It provides benefit by opening
up the employment
opportunities for the local
residents and who live near the
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famous tourist attractions. It
also opens up opportunity for
primary sector and secondary
sector development. This is
known as the multiplier effect.
 It also enhances the local
places culture and the heritage
which are then more developed
and also helps in up keeping
the rich and varied heritage.
For instance, the museums and
the royal palaces in the UK
helps in preserving the rich
heritage and history of the
nation (Henderson, 2010).
 The visitor attraction which are
made for the events such as
Olympics hold significance as
the visitors who visit for the
events also go out for visiting
the other famous attractions
which help in generation of
more benefits for the country in
the form of business and sales
from tourism.
Figure 4 – Statistics of overseas
visitors
[Source: Mathew and Chris, 2016]
 The man made tourist places
also are important for the
tourism industry as in case
when the seasons change the
places like hilly areas and sea
side are closed. So for the off
season the man made locations
contribute towards generation
of some revenues (Boniface, et
al. 2016).
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TASK 2
EXECUTIVE SUMMARY
It is given that the visitors are divided into different market segments as per their needs
and demands. Along with this, it has been revealed that the tourism has impacted the
visitor attractions in UK at a significant rate both in negative and positive terms. Also,
the theories of tourist motivation have been studied upon that include Maslow’s theory,
responsible tourism theory and the smart consumer theory.
INTRODUCTION
In the report, the types of visitor will be discussed upon evaluating their needs and
motivations. Followed by it, the impact of the tourism on various visitor attractions will be
evaluated along with conducting an analysis of the impact of various theories of the
visitor motivation on the visitor attraction’s management.
2.1 ASSESSMENT OF NEEDS AND MOTIVATION OF DIFFERENT VISITOR
TYPES
In the tourism sector, the demand and expectations of the consumers have reached
another level over the years and they expect a lot more from the tourism industry. To
fulfill the expectations of the consumers, the management at visitor attractions and the
tourism authority of the United Kingdom devise many new methods for carrying out the
promotional activities in order to address the needs of the visitors and encourage them
to visit various tourist places (Wedel and Kamakura, 2012). It has been also observed
that there has been 7% increase in the marketing spend in the year 2016 as compared
to the previous year.
The tourism industry has gained significant growth over last decade with the
development of a number of tourist places like adventurous theme parks and country
parks, the tourist spots for trekking and undertaking adventure sports, the ecological
parks for sustainable tourist development and protection of the ecological environment
etc.
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The marketing team has the liability for identification of the tourists on the basis of the
demographics of the location, the geographical location and the psychographic aspects.
It is a part of market segmentation which helps in determination of the target market and
thereby the consumers.
Demographic- In the demographical terms, it is all reliable on the visitor’s gender, their
age groups, and the income level of the people. Also, the culture to which the people
belong has a lot of impact on their visiting patterns along with the religious practices
they follow. Understanding in broader terms, the age group of the individuals needs to
be considered along with their gender. The age group impacts as most of the middle
age people and old aged like to visit the museums like the British Museum and the
National maritime museums (Menzly and Ozbas, 2010). The income level also impacts
as people with less income find it difficult to visit places which charge high fees. Some
other aspects like the occupation, ethnicity and the socio economic background of the
people can also be considered.
Geographic- in this, the target market is classified on the basis of particular regions.
The people from specific regions like country, city, and village or population density are
being targeted. This helps the visitor attractions authority to concentrate on a particular
region and to target the market of the place by using the strategies for market targeting
(Loveridge and Mok, 2012).
Psychographic- In this type of segmentation of market, the market is being bifurcated
based on the personality and psychology of the people, their way of living and their
attitudes towards certain types of tourist places. This helps in analyzing the thinking and
perceptions of the people, here their perceptions about what type of tourist attractions
they like whether man made or natural or historical or adventurous (Cleveland, et al.
2011).
The other parameter is the special interests of the visitors which must be considered in
the market segmentation such as a special group of individuals want to travel to a
trekking place once in every 3 months, So such needs of the special interest people
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need to be addressed (Long, 2013). This has formed a bigger part of tourism known as
niche tourism.
The needs of the customer’s requires to be paid attention towards like some people
with disability or any disparity may want special attention and a guide to interpret their
thoughts and make them feel conformable at the tourist place. Some tourists have some
special needs of cultural or religious so the tourist attractions provisioning those need to
be pay attention towards (Murphy, 2013).
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2.2 IMPACT OF TOURISM ON THE TOURIST ATTRACTION IN UK
The tourism in the United Kingdom has positive and negative impressions on a number
of scenic tourist attractions of the country. The good impacts of tourism on the tourist
places in UK are as follows-
 In the earlier times, some of the parts of UK were untouched by the notion
tourism. But with the changing needs of customers, the places turned out to be
good places of attraction. This has helped in improvement of the economic
condition of the places where tourism has developed (Mason, 2015). The positive
impact on the economy has been observed in the form of opportunities arising for
the employment for the local residents, new start up ventures for the local
entrepreneurs.
 It is observed that the social and cultural life of the people have enhanced a bit
due to the rise in tourism and there have been many opportunities opened up for
the local people to learn and gain more knowledge about the rich and cultural
heritage of other places from the tourists and learn about their religions and
cultures. The people are more contended and satisfied with their life as their
needs are fulfilled and their contentment levels have risen (Smith, 2014).
 The maintenance and further development of the tourism industry in the United
Kingdom has benefitted in the form of preservation of the rich heritage of the
country by securing the old monuments and history like the British Museum and
the Stonehenge which are the oldest visitor attractions in the country. The
cleaner and much healthier surroundings have been developed as a result of the
improvement in the tourism sector ultimately resulting into the conservation of the
environment and varied culture of the country (Theobald, 2012).
 The facilities for the visitors have gained some momentum as the local residents
have established businesses which provide various services to the visitors thus
taking care of their needs and demand. Thus, the rise in the tourism activities has
augmented the facilities for the tourists (Mayer, et al. 2010).
 The interpretation of the rich history of various sites such as historical
monuments and art museums have given great opportunity for the enthusiasts to
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