The Types of Tourism That Can Be Promoted at Afifi Island - Case Study Example

Name Professor Course Date Executive Summary This report sets out to suggest a number of ways in which Afifi Island may position itself in the global tourism market. The report shall do so by indicating the types of tourism that can be promoted at Afifi Island, how the markets can be targeted and a discussion of the potential impact of tourism for the development of the island this will be done by drawing upon other destinations to as to support the proposal. Afifi Island seems to be a suitable area which can be developed to attract a great number of tourists since it is easily accessible through the airstrip and has sceneries such as the two beaches and the rain forest which tourists can visit. A major recommendation relates to the aspect of advocating for sustainable tourism. The tourists and local should also be encouraged to play an essential role in waste management. The tourists and locals should be made to collect and recycle more than their own waste. Table of Contents Executive Summary 1 Table of Contents 2 1.Introduction 2 2. Discussion 3 2.2 Understanding the tourism market - present & potential, and trends in demand 4 2.3 Identification of development opportunities 6 2.4 Discussion of this tourism impact 7 1. Introduction Tourism is mainly rated as being the fasted growing industry in a number of countries such as Latin America, Africa and in Australia and it even outranks drugs and remittances in a great number of countries being the greatest source of foreign income for the country. Based on these it would be essential for those countries who have not embraced tourism totally to do so as gain from its revenue. This report sets out to suggest a number of ways in which Afifi Island may position itself in the global tourism market. The report shall do so by indicating the types of tourism that can be promoted at Afifi Island, how the markets can be targeted and a discussion of the potential impact of tourism for the development of the island this will be done by drawing upon other destinations to as to support the proposal. 2. Discussion 2.1 Afifi position Afifi Island is termed as a small but independent state off the West coast of Africa and it occupies an area of about 754 square kilometres and has a population of 100,000 inhabitants. The island is volcanic in origin and has a number of sandy beaches, but the interior is covered in rainforest which is protected through National Park status. Access to the island is possible via a small airstrip which can accommodate propeller aircraft up to a capacity of 50 passengers. Long haul flights can feed into connecting flights from Banjul in The Gambia. There are two coastal hotels, each with approximately 100 bedrooms, several beach guesthouses, and a handful of eco-lodges in the interior of the island. The likely competitors to the tourism sector in the island come from other islands situated in the Atlantic Ocean since they are located in same geographical area these islands include Cape Verde, Tome and Principe. They are likely to be the stiff competitors and some tourists may opt to visit tem instead of Afifi Island and thus the need to make Afifi an effective tourist destination to attract more visitors into the area. The area is likely to receive a great number of tourists from Africa who may need to explore the area. 2.2 Understanding the tourism market - present & potential, and trends in demand A major tourism trend that will be considered will be the need or urge of tourists exploring untouched and other unique places. A great number of tourists in the modern world are essentially looking for opportunities and explore areas that are less known and most especially the ones that are unique and untouched (Aas, Ladkin and Fletcher 48). Afifi Island seems to be well suited and seems to fulfill the needs of tourists since the areas seems to be unique and untouched. By visiting the area, tourists will discover unique and untouched places and create unforgettable memories from the experience. Another trend relates to the need of customized travel. Afifi island need to offer this kind of service to the travelers visiting the area by allowing them to choose and compose their own travel package (Korstanje 107). This is mainly as a result of the fact that a great number of tourist’s destinations are replacing the standardized packages with individualized and customized trips. Afifi island need to make use of these developments to gain a competitive advantage from some of their competitors who may still be using the standardized package. Through these they will act as facilitators as opposed to a provider of the standardized trips. Afifi Island seems to have a strength in that it has the facilities that are likely to attract a great number of visitors to the area and it history of being as a result of a volcanic is also strength. Based on the information available on Afifi Island, tourism in the area need to take place in a fast manner to allow the area to develop and to create job opportunities for the locals. The developments should take place at some considerable distance from the beaches and along the transport system. Since Afifi Island will be a new comer in the industry it is likely to face stiff competition from the already thriving tourism sectors near them (Pizam 1). Based on these strategies need to be put in place to place them at an advantageous position than their competitors. Based on the fact that Afifi Island have two sandy beaches, and a rainforest which is protected through National Park status there are a number of tourism activities that need to be promoted in the island. A major activity is for the adventure lovers they will be provide with adventure opportunities in the rain forest and they will be encouraged to engage in both soft and hard adventure activities. Another activity will be for those who need relaxation since they will have the opportunity to relax in a beach of their choice between the two beaches or in both of them. Through this activity the tourist will also be allowed to engage in scuba diving, fishing, whale watching, relaxation therapies and spa just to mention a few (Singh 56). The figures below shows the activities that the targeted groups will engage in Adventures in the rain forest Whale watching Scuba Diving A major gap that needs to be addressed is the actual sleeper buses. A great number of tourist destinations do not have this kind of business but they are extremely valuable for the travellers. Afifi Island needs to consider and purchase this kind of buses to ease the travel of the tourists. The below picture shows an example of such a bus Another gap exists in relation to the services offered and mostly emergency services. To enhance the visit Afifi need to have facilities that can cater for the need of the tourists in the most effective manner since these seems to be a limiting factors to the young and senior citizens when choosing tourist destinations (UNEP and UNWTO 12). A website should also be set up to ensure that any potential visitors obtains all the available information they may need for example quality and price of various facilities, number of remaining guesthouses and there should also be a possibility to buy tickets prior to arriving to the destination and this should be done online. 2.3 Identification of development opportunities The target market for the tourism activities mentioned are the young people between the ages of 18 to 30 years. The selection is based in the fact that this group of tourists are younger and they are more likely to organise independent adventure activities as groups. The groups will mainly be attended to or be accompanied by tour operations (Peeters and Dubois 450). The same group will be targeted in regard to relaxation in beach and later engage in the various activities that are available. The group have the energy and the will to engage in the activities so as to create a lasting experience for the tourism activities. Another group that will be targeted are the retired/senior citizens. This group have a lot of free time to engage in various tourism activities offered at the island and they also have the resources to do so. The value proposition for Afifi Island will be striving to create lasting and unique experience. Afifi island will differentiate itself and position from others in the same industry my offering their visitors will other value added services. For example from time to time they will offer discounts to tourists to encourage them to visit during other times. Another way that they will position themselves is by ensuring that they allow the visitors to select their own and personalised package and offer excellent customer service. Through these they are more likely to gain and attract new visitors even from areas that are geographically dispersed from the island (Larsen and Guiver 968). 2.4 Discussion of this tourism impact Tourism activities in an area have both positive and negative impacts. Based on these it would be advisable to enhance and advocate for responsible and sustainable tourism in Afifi Island so as to ensure that the tourism activities are of benefit to the current and future generation. In regard to sustainable tourism it would be essential to advocate for optimal use of the environmental resources that are available through these there will be tourism development while at the same time maintaining the indispensable ecological processes and thee will also be conservation of biodiversity and natural heritage (Olsen, Koster and Youroukos 80). Another positive impact is the creation of long term economic operations which will offer social and economic benefits to all the stakeholders’ involved such as income earning opportunities and stable employment opportunities for people of Afifi Island and there will be also social services to the host communities which will play an essential role in elevating poverty in the island. Sustainable tourism will also be enhanced by ensuring that the visitors and investors in the area have total respect for the socio and cultural authenticity of the communities living in Afifi Island, they will also be expected to conserve the living and built cultural heritage as well as the traditional values and contribute immensely to intercultural understanding and tolerance (Lew 415). Despite the positive impacts there exist a number of threats and constraints that may hinder tourism development and they need to be addressed for the tourism development plan in Afifi Island to run smoothly and without or with minimal hurdles (Cooper et al 17). A major constraint is the lack of essential social services such as sports, hospitals and other recreational facilities. This may be a major hurdle that may affect the development of tourism in Afifi Island. Considering the fact that Afifi is an island it should have these facilities to ensure that the visitors do not incur additional expenses when trying to access these services. Another constraint is low level of uptake of technology and poor infrastructure. Through the area can be reached through air strips it also need to have a number of roads in good condition for the travellers who will want to visit the rain forest. 3.0 Recommendations and conclusion Based on the discussion above, Afifi Island should be developed into a major tourist destination. This is greatly attributed to the fact that the area has all it takes to be a tourist attraction site for instance the two beaches and the rain forest which is protected through National Park status and the area is also easily accessible through an airstrip. A major recommendation relates to the aspect of advocating for sustainable tourism. In regard to these, Afifi Island Tourist Office should ensure that cultural heritage of the area is not eroded. The tourists and local should also be encouraged to play an essential role in waste management. The tourists and locals should be made to collect and recycle more than their own waste (Lazzeretti and Petrillo 67). 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