Contemporary Issues and Trends Impacting Travel and Tourism Industry

This report delves into the contemporary issues driving changes in the travel and tourism industry, examining technological advancements, political factors, and economic conditions. It identifies key challenges such as terrorism, environmental concerns, and political instability, and explores emerging trends like adventure tourism, gastro-tourism, medical tourism, sport tourism, and rural tourism, with a specific focus on the rise of adventure tourism in the UK. The report further investigates how organizations like Whitbread Plc (Premier Inn & Restaurants and Costa divisions) respond to these changes, employing tools like SWOT analysis to develop effective strategies. Finally, it discusses the potential consequences for businesses that fail to adapt to market changes, highlighting the importance of proactive and informed responses in the dynamic travel and tourism sector. This document is available on Desklib, a platform offering a wealth of study resources including past papers and solved assignments.

CONTEMPORARY ISSUES IN TRAVEL AND TOURISM

Table of Contents
INTRODUCTION................................................................................................................................3
LO1...................................................................................................................................................4
1.1 ISSUES CURRENTLY DRIVING CHANGES IN TRAVEL AND TOURISM INDUSTRY................4
1.2 DIFFERENT CURRENT ISSUES IN TRAVEL AND TOURISM INDUSTRY.....................................6
LO2...................................................................................................................................................8
2.1 CURRENT TRENDS AND THEIR IMPACT ON THE TRAVEL AND TOURISM INDUSTRY.............8
2.2 TREND OF ADVENTURE TOURISM IN UK.............................................................................10
LO3.................................................................................................................................................12
3.1 RESPOND TO CHANGE.........................................................................................................12
3.2 STRATEGIES FOR PREMIER INN & RESTAURANTS AND COSTA TO RESPOND THE CHANGES
...................................................................................................................................................16
3.3 JUSTIFICATION OF THE STRATEGIES FOR RESPONDING THE CHANGE................................18
LO4.................................................................................................................................................19
4.1 IMPACT OF TRENDS AND ISSUES THAT DRIVE CHANGES IN TRAVEL AND TOURISM
INDUSTRY...................................................................................................................................19
4.2 CONSEQUENCES OF BUSINESS FALLING TO RESPOND MARKET CHANGE..........................21
CONCLUSION.................................................................................................................................22
REFERENCES...................................................................................................................................23
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INTRODUCTION
Travel and tourism industry is making continual growth. It contributes significantly to the
nation's economy. It plays an important role in the improvement of country's infrastructure,
employment rate other such areas which are crucial for the growth and development of a
nation. There are different issues which are hindering the growth of this industry. This report
probes all those contemporary issues which are affecting this industry. It demonstrates the
different issues which are driving changes in travel and tourism industry. It also elaborates
different trends and niche markets and their impact on the travel and tourism industry. The
response of organization to change in travel and tourism industry is also described in this
assignment It further covers the consequence of business failing to respond effectively to travel
and tourism industry.
The case study of different companies such as Titan travel, Whitbread and Trailfinders Ltd is
adopted in this work to make a deep and clear understanding of the topic. Various features
associated with travel and tourism industry is described with respect to this organization.
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LO1
1.1 ISSUES CURRENTLY DRIVING CHANGES IN TRAVEL AND TOURISM
INDUSTRY
There are various changes in occurring in Travel and tourism industry. Travel and tourism
industry is changing continuously due to a different kind of the issues. There are contemporary
issues which are changing this industry significantly (Sharpley and Telfer, 2014).
Titan Travel is one of the leading tour operators in the UK. It is imperative for Titan travel to
consider all the issues which are driving changes in travel and tourism. Chief issues that are
driving changes in travel and tourism industries are:
 Technological advancement
 Political issues
 Economic issues
TECHNOLOGICAL ADVANCEMENT
Technology plays a crucial role in the field of travel and tourism. Technological advancement
delivers different benefits to travel and tourism industry. Technological Improvement in areas
of transportation is one of the favourable factors for tourism industry (Cook, 2015). The
Internet is a main technological factor which plays an important role in boosting tourism by
making it fast and easily accessible by tourism. The improvement in the technology has changed
significantly to the travel and tourism industry. It is imperative for Titan Travel to focus on the
changes derived be technology in order to make it advantageous for the business (Molz,2012).
POLITICAL ISSUES
There are various political factors which are influencing the travel and tourism industry and
changing to its great extent. The key political factors which affecting this industry are
government's laws and legislation. The changes in visa policy and transportation policy change
the tourism. Brexit is also a major political factor that can have changed this industry. After
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separation of UK from European Union rules and regulation associated with tourism also
changed.
ECONOMIC ISSUES
The economic condition of a nation also reflects significantly on the growth and development of
the travel and tourism industry. There are various economic factors such as recession, inflation
and exchange rate that are responsible for changes in travel and tourism industry (Kim, 2012).
Titan travel should focus on the all the above-mentioned factors in order to understand and
analyse the changes and their impact on the business. Titan travel should consider these factors
to build effectual strategies.
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1.2 DIFFERENT CURRENT ISSUES IN TRAVEL AND TOURISM INDUSTRY
There are various issues which are affecting the travel and tourism to a great extent. It is
imperative to identify all the issues and to develop effective strategies to overcome them. Key
current issues which are influencing the business of travel and tourism industries are outlined
below –
 Terrorism
 Environmental concern
 Political and economic factors
TERRORISM
Terrorism is a great challenge for the travel and tourism industry. It reflects adversely on the
growth and development of this industry. The enhancement in the terrorist attack is a major
threat to this industry which leads to signification reduction in the number of the tourists. It is
essential for government or responsible authority to develop effective strategies to overcome
this issue (Baker, 2014)
ENVIRONMENTAL CONCERN
Tourism delivers different benefits which are essential for the significant growth and
development of a nation still there are few negative impact of this industry. It possesses
adverse impact on the environment as it gives rise to various factors which damage the
environment. Overcrowding, pollution and misuse of the natural resources are key factors that
affect the travel and tourism industry (Briassoulis and Van der Straaten, 2013).
POLITICAL AND ECONOMIC ISSUES
Political unrest and instability of the economic factors are also important factors which give rise
to different issues. Change in different political factors such as the political relationship
between two countries, visa policy, and other such factors reflects on the tourism. Economic
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factors such as recession, exchange rate, taxation rate, interest rate influence the volume of the
tourists. In case of travel and tourism industry of UK, Brexit is one of the major factors that have
changed this industry to a great extent. It is very important for a company associated with the
tourism industry to consider all these political and economic factors which affect the travel and
tourism industry.
It is imperative for Titan Travel to focus on the issues associated with travel and tourism
industry. The company should build effective plans by considering the difference in order to
respond these issues (Sharpley and Telfer, 2014).
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LO2
2.1 CURRENT TRENDS AND THEIR IMPACT ON THE TRAVEL AND TOURISM
INDUSTRY
Travel and tourism industry is changing by every passing day. There are different trends which
are influencing the tourism industry. Titan travel should focus on the all the different new
trends which are changing this industry (Mariani, et al. 2013).Key current trends that attract the
large volume of tourists from different countries of the world are:
Key current trends which are influencing the travel and tourism industries are:
 Adventure tourism
 Gastro-tourism
 Medical tourism
 Sport tourism
 Rural tourism
ADVENTURE TOURISM
Adventure tourism refers to tourism which involves the exploration of the different risky places
or things which need extra skills or physical exertion. People visit the different place and take
parts in different risky and thrilling sports or activities such as mountain biking, bungee
jumping, rafting, rock climbing etc. The large volume of the youth tourists are attracting
towards this tourism. The popularity of adventure tourism is increasing as it provides new,
thrilling and memorable experience to the tourists. Titan tourism should focus on this tourism
to meet the need of the tourists. It should develop its plan by considering different adventurous
places and activities to attract the adventure tourist (Beard, et al. 2012).
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GASTRO TOURISM
In gastro-tourism tourists, tourists visit different countries to taste the unique and delicious
food. Gastro-tourists are foodies who visit another place to taste the local and regional food.
They also have interest in learning different cooking styles and to gain knowledge of ingredients
used in food. A nation should develop effective tactics to develop the food regions to attract
the food loving tourists (Sidali, et al. 2015).
Figure 2: Gastro Tourism
[Source: http://ukspainlife.com/gastro-casa-candidate-coming-valencian-tourism-award/]
MEDICAL TOURISM
Medical tourism refers to tourism in which tourists visit other countries to receive better
medical treatment. One of the reasons behind the enhancement of the popularity of medical
tourism is that the availability of better and low-cost medical treatment in other countries.
Advancement in medical science is also an important reason which attracts the patients
suffering from fatal diseases.
SPORT TOURISM
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In sport tourism people travels to different countries for watching any sport or to participate in
a sport event. A large volume of the fan or audience attends the sports events such as football
matches or cricket tournament. The UK hosts many major sports events which attract a large
number of the fans or audience. More than 9 million tickets were sold in London Olympic 2012
which reflect positively on the tourism industry of UK. Many countries are focusing on the
organization of big sports events in order to appeal the large volume of the tourists.
RURAL TOURISM
Rural tourism is a popular emerging tourism trend which is attracting the large volume of the
tourists. Rural tourists visit the rural areas of a nation to explore the lifestyle of the rural people
and to understand and experience their traditions, customs and culture. Visit Britain is focusing
on developing this niche market in order to attract the rural tourism.
Figure 1: Rural tourism
[Source: http://rural-tourism.purzuit.com/]
Titan Travel should focus on the all the above mentioned current trends to enhance the sale
and profitability. The enhancement in the popularity of all the above-mentioned niche market
is a great opportunity to achieve the significant growth and development in business.
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2.2 TREND OF ADVENTURE TOURISM IN UK
The craze of the adventure tourism is enhancing day by day in tourists. Youngsters are
attracting toward adventurous tourism to a great extent. The main reason behind the
popularity of adventure tourism is that it allows tourists to enjoy the thrill and risky experience.
The volume of the tourists belong to adventure tourism is growing significantly. The countries
like Spain, France, Germany and Iceland are the most popular adventure tourism destinations
for the international tourists. Europe dominates the adventure tourism market and contributes
40% to total market share. The most popular adventure sports that attract tourists are hiking,
paragliding, kite surfing, rafting, skydiving etc. It is imperative a country focus on the
development of adventure destinations or sites in order to appeal adventure tourists (Buckley,
2012).
POSTER
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LO3
3.1 RESPOND TO CHANGE
The changes in travel and tourism industry affect significantly to the business of a company It is
crucial for a company to identify and analyse the different changes and their impact on the
business operation. Evaluation of the impact of all these factors helps an organization in the
identification of different issues which can affect its business operations so that appropriate
strategies can be developed to avoid them. An organization should respond effectively to all
the changes in order to avoid to resolve the issues and to utilize them as a competitive
advantage (Evans, et al. 2012).
Whitbread Plc. Is the largest hotel, restaurant and coffee shop operator in the UK. Whitbread
operates its business in two divisions Premier Inn & Restaurants and costa. Changes in travel
and tourism industry affect the business of the Whitbread Plc, therefore it is imperative for the
company to develop effective business strategies to respond all the changes in an effective
manner (Becker, 2016).
It is important to analyse the impact of all the changes in the tourism industry in order to
respond them. There are various tools which can be adopted to analyse the impact of different
changes. SWOT and PESTLE analyse effective and most widely used tools to examine the
different internal and external factors which can influence the business operation of a
company.
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