Introduction
Click on the audio player to listen to the learning activityintroduction.
What you will learn
After completing this learning activity, you will be able to:
- describe the role and characteristics of each of the sectors of the tourism industry
- identify and describe a variety of factors that have contributed to the growth of the tourism industry
- explain the importance of understanding the life cycle of tourist destinations
- describe, on the basis of research, the various strategies used by tourism companies to increase their market share
- describe the role of the government and of industry associations in regulating and supporting the tourism industry
- explain how societal trends are changing the tourism industry
- identify the sectors of the tourism industry that are prominent in your local community and/or region and those that are prominent in the province as a whole
The business of hospitality and tourism
And a big business it is! The hospitality and tourism industry is composed of five sectors. Click on each image to find out what they are.
Carousel content with 5 slides.
A carousel is a rotating set of images, rotation stops on keyboard focus on carousel tab controls or hovering the mouse pointer over images. Use the tabs or the previous and next buttons to change the displayed slide.
- Slide 1: Transportation
- Slide 2: Accommodation
- Slide 3: Food and beverage
- Slide 4: Entertainment and recreation
- Slide 5: Travel services
Do you dream of visiting a sandy beach, with swaying palms and hot sun? Or maybe you fantasize about travelling to a city with a world-class art museum, so you can gaze at famous paintings you’ve only seen in books?
For many people, travel is a pleasure to savour – something to save for, to daydream about, and to enjoy planning. One of them is Rick Mereki, a filmmaker who travelled all over the globe to get the footage for the one-minute video, “Move.” Take a look at it now. Do you recognize any of the famous cities in the video?
A brief history
For those with the travel bug, experiencing other countries is an important part of their lives and it’s been like that for centuries.
Lodgings built specifically for travellers have existed since biblical times. People have always experienced an urge to travel – whether for business, leisure, or discovery. It was the movement of people and animals that created the development of our early roads. And inevitably, places to rest were soon established alongside well-travelled ancient roads and rivers.
The Romans built baths as far away as England; these were pools built on hot springs designed for hygiene and relaxation. These Roman baths are considered the first “tourist attraction.”
The early 1700s saw hotels and inns constructed all over Europe. These businesses resembled the hotels we recognize today.
Restaurants or establishments serving food to guests were not yet common, though street vendors sold food along busy roads and in cities as early as medieval times.
Restaurants as we know them evolved during the French Revolution in the mid-1700s. Lists of the dishes offered (the menu), individual tables (as opposed to communal tables), and meals served on plates (rather than in the cooking vessel itself), set these establishments apart. The English word “restaurant” comes from the French word restaurer, which was a rich and filling meat broth meant to revive and “restore” a person’s strength.
The first travel agent
In the 1840s, a man named Thomas Cook organized the first group excursion. He arranged a trip for 500 passengers to travel by train 12 miles. The business he founded still exists today as one of the world’s largest travel companies with thousands of employees located in 17 countries.
Is travel and tourism a big business? You bet it is!
In the years following World War II, incomes increased, as did the amount of vacation leave from work. This led to a travel boom that has remained steady to this day.
Today, restaurants and hotels are on every corner and people around the globe spend billions annually on travel.
How has it changed?
Have our attitudes and our experiences changed very much from the past with respect to the hospitality industry? Use the case of airline travel, for example.
Have a look at AOL’s comparison of airline “Travel then and now (Opens in new window).” Use the information you find there to complete the chart.
| Characteristic | Then | Now |
|---|---|---|
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Attitude of travellers |
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What travellers wear |
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In-flight entertainment |
Tourism in Canada
Using the Internet or your library, search for information related to the Canadian Tourism Commission, Canada’s national tourism marketer. Use the search terms “About Destination Canada.”
What is the vision for the tourism website you explored? Look for information about the vision or purpose. Alternatively, search for information related to tourism specific to where you live.
To encourage travellers from all over the world to visit Canada. The current focus for marketing are the countries Australia, Brazil, China, France, Germany, India, Japan, Mexico, South Korea, the United Kingdom, and the United States.
This answer is based on the Canadian Tourism Commission website at the time this course was written.
How do they achieve that vision? What are the strategies or programs in place to encourage people to visit?
Several marketing techniques, especially in markets where Canada is already a recognized brand. Marketing strategies include: direct to consumer such as advertisements in newspapers and magazines; media and public relations activities such as organized travel for journalists in exchange for positive media stories; work with overseas travel companies; engage in social media; and do research.
This answer is based on the Canadian Tourism Commission website at the time this course was written.
Why do you think governments have tourism commissions or programs to encourage tourism?
What are the benefits of tourism?
Tourism is good for the economy of a country or region for a few reasons. Tourism creates jobs in all five sectors and in a variety of skill sets. Jobs in the tourist sectors, especially the food and beverage sector, employ a large number of young people. Visitors inject money into local economies when they dine, stay, shop, and visit attractions.
The ups (and a few downs) of tourism
The past few decades have seen a number of events that have influenced tourism a great deal, in Canada and around the world.
- The severe respiratory illness SARS crippled Toronto’s tourist industry in 2003, as potential visitors made alternative travel arrangements out of fear of contracting the disease.
- The poor economy in the U.S., and the strong Canadian dollar, decreased the number of American visitors, once one of Canada’s main tourism markets.
- Severe weather events, such as hurricanes and tsunamis, can affect travel for years: New Orleans, Louisiana, once a thriving tourist destination, is still recovering from 2005’s catastrophic Hurricane Katrina.
- Historical events like the very significant one in New York City on September 11, 2001 changed many things about the travel industry, imposing airline restrictions, increasing security in airports, and impacting travel habits and spending for several years.
- The rising cost of fuel has prompted a new trend in travel – the “stay-cation” – which involves taking a vacation close to home and exploring your own “back yard.”
The life cycle of a tourist destination
Trendy and popular tourism destinations change from year to year. Pick up any travel magazine and you will see lists of what’s hot and what’s not in travel destinations. Destinations have a life cycle and are not popular forever – they experience a rise, a peak, and then a decline, which has effects on the region, the locals, and the economy.
Review this video for more information on the life cycle of a tourist destination.
If you sketched the life cycle of a tourist destination seen in the video, it would look something like the following: a curving “y” laid on its side.
See if you can you identify the tourist destination stages by dragging the words into the correct order in the following exercise.
Tourism on the rebound
Tourism in Canada and Ontario has experienced a rebound in recent years and current trends show positive growth. But as part of that rebound, the way people shop for travel has changed in the past decade. It is very common for people to book travel online, without the assistance of a travel agent. This has led to aggressive marketing by travel companies as consumers become savvier at finding lower rates and fares. Sites like www.expedia.com, www.travelocity.ca, and www.kayak.com are able to purchase travel in bulk and pass the discount onto the customer.
Travel review sites, where average citizens post honest depictions of their travel experiences, are very popular and a common first stop for customers shopping for travel. More people than ever are travelling, contributing billions to economies worldwide.
Currently, tourism is alive and well in Canada, with new hotels opening every few months. Canada’s largest city, Toronto, currently has an inventory of 36,000 hotel rooms.
Review “Toronto tourism attracting higher-end clientele,” a CBC news story from August 2012 about the new type of traveller visiting Toronto.
Describe the “new” type of tourist that is visiting Toronto.
High end, has money, arrives by plane, stays longer, considers Toronto a hip and trendy place to visit, from big cities, from overseas, from China
What is drawing this new type of tourist?
Media such as articles and advertisements.
What is an example of something a tourism business is doing to accommodate these guests?
Adding more multilingual content.
New, high-end hotels are serving these new visitors.
Read “Toronto’s contemporary new Four Seasons Hotel opens doors,” an article from the Toronto Star about the opening of a brand new hotel.
Toronto's contemporary new Four Seasons Hotel opens doors
By Susan Pigg, Business Reporter
It's just a given that you've arrived – in life and in travel – when you pull up to a Four Seasons Hotel anywhere in the world.
But at the luxury chain's new flagship hotel, which opens Friday on a stunning expanse of prime Yorkville real estate, "arrived" takes on even greater meaning.
This newest Four Seasons, the 90th in the world-renowned five-star chain, is a dream finally brought to life in granite, glass and glamour for legendary hotelier Isadore Sharp.
"You might say that this was 50 years in the making," says Sharp on the eve of Friday's ribbon-cutting. "To now have what we can classify as a true Four Seasons in Toronto, where it all started, is a momentous occasion. It is going to astound people when they arrive."
The contemporary hotel-condo complex, which soars 55 storeys from the toniest corner in the city – Bay St. and Yorkville Ave. – is a stark contrast to the old hotel which, in Sharp's own words, "felt like driving into a garage."
This new complex, which features 259 hotel rooms and 210 high-end condos, 110 in a 26-storey east tower, is utterly the opposite and a gallery for some 1,700 commissioned paintings, sculptures and designs that showcase Canadian talent.
The hotel is open and inviting, right from the sprawling driveway meant to look like a Persian rug of interlocking brick to the sky-high lobby with private, but public, seating areas meant for getting multi-million deals done.
The celebratory drinks and dining are just a few steps away, atop a floating marble staircase that leads to Café Boulud, the latest food mecca from Michelin-starred chef Daniel Boulud and a spot Sharp hopes will become as much the go-place for locals as the old hotel's beloved Studio Café.
While Café Boulud, is far more bold and contemporary than the classic Studio Café, they were both lovingly designed by the same woman, Sharp's wife Rosalie.
Right below the restaurant is dbar, featuring what is sure to become the most coveted seat in town – a semi-circular couch that would be sitting right at the bustling corner of Bay and Yorkville, were it not for the wall of glass that keeps the bar both separate from and part of the streetscape at the same time.
The hotel rooms are consummately Four Seasons and equipped with state-of-the-art gadgets, like an iPad, that guests have come to expect.
"The new Four Seasons Hotel Toronto is who we are today and what we represent as we move forward over the next 50 years – the world's best luxury travel experience and a modern centre of the city's social and business life," says general manager Dimitrios Zarikos.
For the first time, the Toronto property will feature 30,000 square feet of bliss that's destined to be "the best spa experience in the city," says Katie Taylor, CEO of Four Seasons Hotel & Resorts.
She, like Sharp, doesn't seem worried at all that the Four Seasons is coming late to the game as the last of the big five-star brands to open – behind the Ritz-Carlton, Trump International and Shangri-La – during economic uncertainty that continues to paralyze much of the world.
In fact, Sharp remains proud that the Four Seasons set a new high-water mark for luxury living in Toronto: Its penthouse sold for a record $28 million to an international buyer and its preconstruction condos set a new record at $1,200 per square foot.
Sharp believes all those additional plumped pillows and fluffy bath robes will lure even more big spenders to the city.
Tourism Toronto agrees, saying they're now seeing the growth of a new class of visitor to the city, "the sophisticated urban traveller."
"The five-star boom has helped change the way people think about Toronto," says Andrew Weir, vice president of communications for Tourism Toronto.
"It's bringing more business and convention travel, but it's also attracting a higher end sophisticated leisure traveller who is not driving across the border because shopping is 60 cents on the dollar. They are flying here and staying longer and spending more money because they are seeing Toronto as one of the great urban experiences in North America."
The Four Seasons, like all hotels, suffered a downturn during the 2008 recession. But projects that were delayed are back on track. Four Seasons now manages 90 properties. Another 63 are under construction or in the planning stages and slated to open in the next decade.
While the company is now controlled by Saudi Prince Al Waleed bin Talal's Kingdom Holding Company, every design detail still crosses Sharp's desk for final approval.
All those five-star, $400-a-night and up beds in Toronto may keep some folks up at night, but not Isadore Sharp.
"When the world goes into a deep slump, everybody says the luxury market is going to disappear. But nobody goes backwards in lifestyle. People tighten their belt, buckle down, they conserve as best they can."
Then when things start returning to normal, so do they, says Sharp.
"There are always people who will aspire to get into that top end. It's just human nature. We're a consummative society and people like to improve their life.
"The things the Four Seasons does helps them do that."
Answer the following questions about the article:
How many hotels does the Four Seasons chain operate?
90 hotels around the world, with 63 more under construction or planned.
What gadget is featured in each hotel room?
An iPad.
List three other luxury hotel brands that recently opened in Toronto.
Ritz-Carlton, Shangri-La, Trump International.
How does Andrew Weir, vice president of communications for Toronto Tourism, describe today’s tourist?
“…a higher end sophisticated leisure traveller who is not driving across the border because shopping is 60 cents on the dollar. They are flying here and staying longer and spending more money because they are seeing Toronto as one of the great urban experiences in North America.”
Activity
Based on the video and the article, what conclusions can you draw about growing tourism trends? Identify five and record them now in your own notes.
Customer target markets
Certain groups of visitors would choose a hotel such as the one in the article. A group of people to whom a business is directing its product is known as a customer target group.
Determining who the target group will be is essential to any business. It’s also the key to effective marketing. For example, an adventure touring company specializing in intensive rock-climbing holidays wouldn’t reach its target group by advertising in a senior’s magazine. The company would be more likely to attract rock climbers (or potential rock climbers) by placing ads in a sports magazine.
The tourism sectors
Because it is so big and so varied, the hospitality and tourism industry is divided into sectors. You learned what those sectors are at the very beginning of this learning activity. Record them now in the first row of the “Sector businesses (Opens in new window)” table. The first one is done for you.
Next, under each sector column, record as many different types of sector businesses as you can.
The five sectors of tourism
Transportation
Employers in this sector are companies that provide transport by:
- air: includes major airlines, airport shuttles, helicopters, and hot air balloons
- water: includes ferry services, fishing boats, jet skis, and cruise ships
- rail: includes light rail, cross country trains, subways, and commuter trains
- road: includes bus companies, limousines, car rentals, and taxi companies
Accommodation
Employers in this sector include accommodations such as a:
- hotel: includes motels, inns, B&Bs (bed and breakfasts), and resorts
- campground: includes rustic camping, recreational vehicle (RV) parks, cabins, and lodges
- rental: recreational vehicles, condominiums, and cottages
Food and beverage services
This is the largest sector. Most of these jobs are entry level and do not require post-secondary education. Some examples are:
- food focussed venues: includes fine dining restaurants, dining rooms, cafeterias, and fast food outlets
- drink focussed venues: includes hotel lounges, bars, pubs, and nightclubs
- caterers: includes catering for private parties, clubs, resorts, convention centres, and cruise ships
Recreation and entertainment
This is the second largest sector and is very diverse. It includes:
- zoos
- museums
- theatres
- sports facilities
- amusement parks
- government parks
- heritage sites
- hunting and fishing
- outdoor adventure outfitters
- casinos
Travel services
This sector sells and markets travel and tourism packages inside Canada and beyond. Some examples are:
- retail travel agencies
- travel advertisers and marketers
- wholesale tour companies
- tour guides
Check your knowledge
Match the business to the sector.
Researching your country/province/region
Portfolio
During the course you will be completing assignments and saving them in a folder on your computer called “My hospitality and tourism portfolio.” Create this folder now.
It will be easy for you to know whether it is a portfolio assignment because you will see the icon below whenever you need to complete a task and save it to your portfolio. In the end you will have built a very valuable tool for moving on in this field to further education or to employment.
You will submit your portfolio for marking at the end of Learning activity 4.5. While all the portfolio assignments must be completed and submitted, three of them will be thoroughly assessed by the teacher. Portfolio assignments that are not complete will be returned to you for completion.
Save a copy of the “Portfolio checklist (Opens in new window)” in the folder you have created called “My hospitality and tourism portfolio.” As you complete a portfolio assignment, you can check it off in your saved “Portfolio checklist” document.
Portfolio item
Some learning activities contain two portfolio tasks and you may choose the one you would like to complete. You will be told when there is a choice between one portfolio assignment and another.
For this learning activity, choose one of the following portfolio assignments.
- Tourism destinations
- Most tourist destinations around the world have websites to promote their region.
- Choose three Canadian tourism destinations that you are interested in. Visit their tourism websites. Be sure to visit the official government tourism website – look for words like “official” or sites that end in .org or .gov. Typing “official tourism websites” brings up hundreds of great sites from around the country.
- For each destination, explore the area’s attractions and events. Make a note of three attractions or events of particular interest to you, as well as the site’s URL. Save this file to your portfolio.
- Looking at your community through a tourist’s eyes
- What does a tourist see, do, and eat when they visit your community? What makes your region special? Use the Internet or your local tourism office to research your area and then fill in the “Summer months itinerary”(Opens in new window) for an overnight stay for a family of four who are travelling for leisure. Save the itinerary for adding to your portfolio.
- A good starting point for researching this activity would be the Canadian Tourism Commission site. If you live outside Canada, try looking on your country’s tourism commission website.
- Be sure to select activities and attractions that are unique to your region.
Conclusion
Now before you move on to Learning activity 1.2, make sure that you have saved your assignment to your “My hospitality and tourism portfolio.” Call your assignment “Learning activity 1.1” when you save it.
Now that you have a good knowledge of hospitality and tourism in general, and the sectors of tourism, let’s move on to Learning activity 1.2: Career options in the hospitality industry.