Battlefield Tours and Dark Tourism - Essay Example

?Summary: “Thomas Cook 1919-1922: Battlefield tours and dark tourism” The article en d “Thomas Cook 1919-1922: Battlefield tours and dark tourism” presented relevant issues regarding the emergence of the said dark tourism which focused on battlesites and places associated with death. As disclosed, the trend towards battlefield tours in recent tourism endeavors have been observed to include re-enactments of the events that transpired and memorial remembrance to loved ones whose deaths have been associated to the particular place. The battlefield tourism apparently started after the World War in places like Belgium and France that were described as desolate and desert-like due to the aftermath of destruction from the war. It was thereby specifically identified that Thomas Cook had envisioned to take this remarkable opportunity to market visiting these battlefields in 1919, as advertised in the Traveller’s Gazette. As reported, two forms of travel were initially offered: (1) the first class luxury travel and (2) a more popular travel by motor car from Paris. Excerpts of descriptions of these battlefields were cited to provide the readers with the overview on how these were promoted through the Traveller’s Gazette. Facts were likewise provided in the rates for luxury travel, as well as scheduled departures for the battlefield tours during those times. Likewise, rates and schedules were also revealed for the popular travel tours which initially lasted for about one-week. Overall, the article was successful in indicating that even events related to deaths of loved ones through their bravery and courage in battlefields have been strategically capitalized to spur growth in tourism. Summary: “A New Way of Thinking About Tourism” The article entitled “A New Way of Thinking About Tourism” discussed the innovative point of view that classifies tourism as mobile and highly connected to people’s daily activities. The form of tourism, seen to focus on mobility was emphasized to include elements such as the integration of visiting various tourist places into social activities within a shorter time frame, say, for a day. As emphasized, the key message that was proffered regarded tourism not as a distinct and separate activity that people get to delve into; but rather, as a connected part of the social activities that form people’s lives. The author rationalized that the focus on mobility naturally emerged with the onset of the telecommunications developments in recent times. The effect of the cited space-time compressions enabled immediate access to places and locations with speed that spans across distance in shorter time frames. As emphasized, readers were illumined on the possibility of thinking about tourism through a leisure mobility spectrum which was apparently described as a day’s activity could include visiting tourist spots, hotels, and other tourist events and be able to access or return to one’s domicile within a day’s frame. The thrust of tourism and mobility is to integrate and connect events usually associated with tourism to other social activities, which are seen as connected, rather than distinct, separate or distant. The recent developments in transport, technology, communications, and opportunities to span across borders of time and space were noted to be instrumental for the emergence of mobility in tourism. Summary: “Get Ahead: why travel and tourism is the sector to be in” Recent trends on the global market see the travel and tourism industry as one among those with vast growth potentials. In the article entitled “Get Ahead: why travel and tourism is the sector to be in” written by Jesse Whittock and published online in the Travel Trade Gazette on November 28, 2012. Sourcing the information from the chief executive of People 1st’s travel and tourism, hospitality and passenger travel sector skills council, Brian Wisdom, it was revealed that despite the economic gloom, this particular sector remains robust with statistics that back up the optimistic trend. As noted, “these industries contribute ?60 billion to the UK economy each year and employ nearly three million people across 400,000 establishments. Wisdom projects there will be 45,000 travel agents, 17,800 tour guides and 7,200 travel agency managers in employment over the next three years, steady figures considering the employment market” (Whittock, 2012, par. 2). As such, tourist and travel agents were advised to be trained in their respective fields of endeavor to appropriately address the needs and demands of their clientele. Those working in customer service roles were recommended to undertake training that focuses on: “good first impressions, remembering and using names, effective listening and empathy, disabled customers and serving different cultures” (Whittock, 2012, par. 5). Likewise, it was also recommended that managers brace themselves for growth and improvement through management and supervisory training programs that focus on areas such as enforcing conformity to standards, assisting in coaching, and monitoring progress and the effective delivery of service. Summary: “Tech: why agents should not overlook SMS marketing” In an article entitled “Tech: why agents should not overlook SMS marketing” written by Matthew Parsons and published online through the Travel Trade Gazette on November 28, 2012 proffered pertinent issues relative to consistent reliance on text messages, which had been deemed crucial and evidently applicable in contemporary settings. As disclosed, despite the prolific use of social networking sites and other technological applications, it was apparently advised that travel agents should not discredit the relevance of tapping text messages which remain to be preferred by various customers. There were tips on using SMS more effectively by: (1) keeping messages straightforward and simple; (2) ensuring that messages could be linked and access to the organization’s website; (3) being creative; and (4) applying contemporary strategies through sending appropriate text messages. Opportunities such as upselling, disseminating itineraries, and cross-selling were noted to be evidently possible through SMS. There is also the suggested need to focus on full reporting, for the purpose of tracking “the success of campaigns that use unique IDs, or to identify which phone numbers are no longer in use, out of range, or the phone switched off” (Parsons, 2012, par. 13). The advantages of allegedly keeping the text options open include cost efficiency, speed, access to website, and the ability to provide immediate news and updates relevant to the tourists’ itineraries in the most effective and personalized manner. The ability to improve customer service is the primary goal that texting could apparently successfully provide. In this regard, texting has been deemed contemporarily effective. Summary: “Cornell study links hotel reviews and room revenue” In the article written by Danny King entitled “Cornell study links hotel reviews and room revenue” and published online in Travel Weekly on November 29, 2012 presented the findings on online reviews which apparently showed direct links “between the rise or fall of revenue per available room (RevPAR) and improvements or declines in the online reputation of a hotel, driven by ratings on sites such as TripAdvisor and Travelocity” (King, 2012, par. 2). The findings were significant especially to low-priced hotels, as compared to luxury hotels, which were percieved to exhibit stable demands due to customer confidence and loyalty rates. King asserts that the results have implications in the hotel industry through the disclosure that online media significantly impacts the hotel industry’s performance. This fact was corroborated by “a Hotel & Motel Management/Market Metrix study (which) reported that more than 50% of potential hotel guests cited an online review as a factor in choosing a hotel, overtaking factors such as location, price and loyalty points” (King, 2012, par. 9). The experiences and comments from hotel advisors, experts and results of other studies relate different opinions and comments on this particular study and adviced caution in interpreting the veracity of the results. It was noted that consumers still rely on hotels that have been consistently known to provide exemplary customer service and need no further review from online sites to generate or spur increased demand. As warned, online reviews could be used to the advantage of travel agents and customers, depending on how the reviews turn out towards gaining a competitive advantage for the hotels being reviewed. Summary: “New software aims to deliver personal touch to online booking” The article entitled “New software aims to deliver personal touch to online booking” written by Kate Rice and published online in Travel Weekly on November 27, 2012 disclosed the new technological application tools such as “Travel Seeker HD and Featured Results, both offered by Amadeus, and Vayant’s FastSearch” (Rice, 2012, par. 5) which would ultimately boost personalized online booking. These tools were deemed inspirational and personalized by enabling customers to view the destinations and get first hand visual experiences of events and activities online. Likewise, these applications are also targeted to be useful for travel agents and could be apparently integrated with Facebook, to wit: “users can see fares to cities where their friends live. They can sort by activities, like museums, beaches, skiing or theme parks, by dTravel Seeker HDestination or even by nonstop flights by touching an icon. Then they can factor in a date by touching a calendar icon and budget by touching a piggy bank icon. They adjust the budget with their fingertip” (Rice, 2012, par. 16). The article expounded on the vast uses and high personalized options that online travel agencies (OTA) implement. With Amadeus’ applications being announced to be accessible in 2013, the announcements made are crucial to prepare OTAs and agents to get hold of these innovative tools and assist them in enticing tourists and visitors to be more inspired to get bookings that uses the latest in technological applications that are highly personalized and caters to the distinct needs, drives and demands of a more discerning clientele. Reference List Author. Date. “Thomas Cook 1919-1922: Battlefield tours and dark tourism”. Book Title. Publisher. Author. Date. “A New Way of Thinking About Tourism”. Book Title. Publisher King, D. 2012. "Cornell study links hotel reviews and room revenue." Travel Weekly.[Online]. Available at: http://www.travelweekly.com/Travel-News/Hotel- News/Cornell-study-links-hotel-reviews-and-room-revenue/ (Accessed November 30, 2012). Parsons, M. 2012. "Tech: why agents should not overlook SMS marketing." Travel Trade Gazette, [Online]. Available at: http://www.ttgdigital.com/toolkit/tech-why-agents- should-not-overlook-sms-marketing/4686011.article (Accessed November 30, 2012). Rice, K. 2012. "New software aims to deliver personal touch to online booking." Travel Weekly. [Online]. Available at: http://www.travelweekly.com/Travel-News/Travel- Technology/New-software-aims-to-deliver-personal-touch-to-online-booking/ (Accessed November 30, 2012). Whittock, J. 2012. "Get Ahead: why travel and tourism is the sector to be in." Travel Trade Gazette.[Online]. Available at: http://www.ttgdigital.com/toolkit/get-ahead-why- travel-and-tourism-is-the-sector-to-be-in/4686016.article (Accessed November 30, 2012). Read More