Tourism 1.2 (geography)

Motivation for Travel.

  1. Need For Relaxation

  • Some people want to relieve stress and have a change in their routines. Hence they would go travelling to rest and rejuvenate.

→ For example, some people may seek nature in order to escape their environment and to rest and rejuvenate. British Tourists tend to visit Phuket in Thailand for one main reason , which is for their scenic beaches to allow tourists to relax and rejuvenate.

  • Some people also prefer to participate in recreational activities overseas, hence they would go to theme parks and recreational areas to experience a different routine.

→ For example, Universal Studios Singapore is a theme park that offers a variety of shows, attractions and rides for people to participate in to relieve stress and have fun. In 2018, Universal Studios Singapore has welcomed around more than 18 million that year.

  1. Need for unique experiences.

  • People desire for unique experiences and go travelling in order to satisfy their sense of curiosity of the world and to explore different environments and cultures that are not well known. Due to the rise of social media, people have been sharing their unique experiences, increasing people’s motivation to go travelling to have their own unique experiences.

→ For example, The number of people going to visit Antarctica on cruises have increased significantly over the past 2 decades due to people’s growing curiosity in visiting one of earth’s last uninhabited regions.

  1. The Need for Personal Growth and Self-Fulfilment.

  • People consider travelling as a way to gain and grow their knowledge and skills in order to have personal growth and to fulfil their fullest potential.

→ For example, many cooking schools have sprung in Bali to teach tourists how to cook Balinese Cuisine, allowing for people to learn about Balinese Cuisine and gain skills on how to cook it as well.

→ Another example is Pilgrimage Tourism, tourists travel to sacred sites to learn more about their faiths and religions. Muslims tend to go visit areas like Mecca in Saudi Arabia in order to learn more about their faith and perform rituals to help them grow spiritually.

→ People also stretch themselves physically and mentally by challenges difficult and challenging activities such as climbing Mount Everest in order to achieve their fullest potential and growth in resilience and strength. The number of people climbing Mount Everest has increased significantly in the previous years.

Increased Ability To Travel. (BILL)

  1. Business Innovations

  • In this day and age, Business Innovations help to provide value-for-money experiences for tourism and travelling. People are now able to access and pay for tickets for travelling online as business innovations offer more affordable alternatives.

  • They are able to offer affordable alternatives as they purchase their transportation and accommodation services in bulk, hence purchasing them for cheaper prices, allowing it to be sold are affordable prices.

→ For example, online business innovations such as Trivago and Expedia allow for people to compare prices and trip reviews of different hotels directly on their platform, allowing to book certain package deals at cheaper prices making travelling more affordable. Often, these websites offer discounted prices for transport and accommodation.

  1. Increase in Disposable Income

  • Since the end of World War II, economic development has to the increase of disposable incomes in many different countries. This resulted in more people spending money on travelling, allowing for Tourism to grow. Increasing people’s ability to travel as well.

→ For example, Gross Domestic Product in China has quadrupled and International Tourism grew from 9 million to 154 million departures from 1999 to 2019.

  1. Lower Accommodation Costs (CROP)

  • The variety of accommodation types across the years has increased from rented properties to even hotels. There are business innovations that make it possible for property owners to rent out their houses and to afford a wide range of options for different budgets.

→ For example, the Business Innovation AirBNB offers a wide range of housing properties at competitive prices available for different budgets, allowing people to rent houses at prices that they can afford. The number of people staying in AirBNB rented properties everyday is over 2 million people in 2019.

  1. Lower Transportation Costs.

  • Transportation costs have greatly dropped and have been reduced over the years due to the emergence of budget airlines such as AirAsia, allowing people to travel more affordably due to more competitive prices. This is able to happen as budget airlines use fuel-efficient planes to reduce the amount of fuel needed, and land at airports with cheaper air taxes.

→ For example, Budget Airlines such as AirAsia and Scoot are able to give significantly lower and cheaper prices has become increasing popular within South East Asia.

Increase in Mobility.

  1. New Forms of Transport.

  • Due to globalization and the rapid development of transportation, it has resulted in new forms of transport being produced. Allowing for travelling to be much cheaper and faster compared to the past.

→ For example, in 1965, a conventional train from Tokyo to Osaka would take around 6 hours and 40 minutes in order to complete the whole ride. However, with the development of new modes of transport which is the Shinkansen Train Network, the ride duration has decreased to 3 hours and 10 minutes, which allows for faster and further transportation and has increased tourism in places that are served by the Shinkansen Train Network.

  1. Expanding Public Transport Networks.

  • In the recent years, countries are now expanding their public transport networks in order to increase accessibility and convenience to certain tourism areas. Some networks can include airports and trains. Connectivity has also increased

→ For example, The opening of Changi Airport Terminal 4 has allowed for more flights to other parts of Asia and flights entering Singapore, making tourism more convenient as there are more timings available for people to travel in and out of Singapore.

→ Another example is the recent development of the Downtown Line, increasing connectivity and accessibility to common tourist locations such as Gardens By The Bay , Chinatown and Little India, which increases tourism in these areas, and allowing for people to commute easily.

  1. Increase in Private Car Ownership

  • The increase in usage of using Private Cars allows for families to spend as much time as they want on certain tourism locations as well as having the freedom to decide which destinations to go to and to be able to travel conveniently to other locations. This has boosted tourism significantly in the certain years.

→ For example, in 1965, private car ownership has significantly increased in America, which resulted in an increase in domestic tourism. As American families continue to increasing use their own private cars, the hotel and motel business has also flourished and has grown and expanded significantly.