Tourism Theories and Practices / Unit 6: Tourism Attractions and Products

Tourism Theories and PracticesUnit 6: Tourism Attractions and Products By end of this unit, you should be able to:  Divide tourist attractions into Four major types and their attendant subtypes  Appreciate the diversity of these attractions  Discuss the management implications that pertain to each attraction type and subtype  Identify the various attraction attributes that can be assessed in order to make informed management and planning decisions  Explain the basic characteristics of the tourism industry's main sectors  Critically assess the major contemporary trends affecting these sectors  Describe the growing diversification and specialisation of products provided by the tourism industry  Discuss the implications of the concepts of integration and globalisation as they apply to the tourism industry. 6.1 Introduction The previous chapter outlined the 'pull' factors that stimulate the development of particular places as tourist destinations, and described the tourism status of the world's major regions in the context of these forces. This unit continues to examine the supply side of the tourism system by focusing on the tourism product, which can be defined as the combination of tourist attractions and the tourism industry. While commercial attractions such as theme parks, casinos and museums are elements of the tourist industry, others, such as generic noncommercial scenery, local people and climate, are not. For this reason, and because they are an essential and diverse component of tourism systems, attractions are examined separately from the industry in the following section. We then follow with a discussion of the other major components of the tourism industry, including travel agencies, transportation, accommodation, tour operators and merchandise. The chapter concludes by considering structural changes within the contemporary tourism industry. 6.2 Tourist Attractions The availability of tourist attractions is an essential 'pull' factor, and destinations should therefore benefit from having a diversity of such resources. The compilation of an attraction inventory incorporating actual and p