The Essence of Memorable Tourism Experiences - Essay Example

Reading Research Exploring the Essence of Memorable Tourism Experiences The problem that is being examined in this study is based on the reasons behind why tourists keep going back to the same destination while at the same time recommending these places to others. In order to answer this question, there is a direct attempt to show how memorable experiences might be have a crucial effect on making tourists attracted to a destination so that they visit it often. The main objective of this study was to develop an understanding of the relationship between memory and the ability of tourists to return to destinations that they had previously visited. The study attempts to show that there is a direct relationship between memorable tourism experiences and the number of tourists who visit a destination. This is through an exploration of the experiences of tourists and the elements of the visits that they make that ensure that they not only choose to return to a destination, but also their ability to either recommend destinations through word of mouth to their friends and acquaintances. The study makes an examination of the experiences that are likely to have a positive effect on the memory and how this effect can be studied in a bid to develop information that can be useful to the tourism industry. Among the research questions that are being asked in this study is concerning the elements that can be considered to be the building blocks of memories. Furthermore, there is a question concerning what the triggers of memory are and what types of experiences ensure that these memories are retained. Another question that is asked is based on the methodical challenges that might be encountered when making a study of memories. Finally, the study attempts to develop an understanding of how practitioners in the tourism industry can work towards the development of memorable experiences for tourists. The main method of study that was put into use in the gathering of information was through interviews that were based on open-ended questions designed to ensure that the various dimensions of memory experiences were captured. Furthermore, it was found to be essential for the interviewer to ask questions in a predetermined order so that it could be determined whether the answer to a previous question could influence the one of the next. The data was collected from a Canadian University and it was based on the grounded theory in order to increase its efficiency and credibility. The results showed four dimensions to the study and these included affects, expectations, consequentiality, and recollection so that a combination of events that took place before, during, and after the trip allowed for the development of memorable experiences among tourists and their determination to return. In conclusion, this study is pertinent in the study of the factors contributing to the memorable experiences that tourists have and the manner through which these experiences influence them concerning their choice of destination. Furthermore, it helps the tourism from a managerial point of view to develop an environment that ensures memorable tourism experiences that guarantee the destination being more attractive. The Perceived Social Impacts of the 2006 World Cup on Munich Residents This study attempts to deal with the little research that has been conducted concerning the social impact of major sporting events at the expense of more research being done on economic impacts. In order to achieve this objective, the study concentrates on the social impact of the 2006 World Cup on the city of Munich, specifically on the local residents, since this was one of the cities hosting the event. The main objective of this study is to identify the feelings of residents concerning the various activities that took place in order to prepare for the city’s hosting of the World Cup as well as the reasons behind whether they backed these projects or not. Furthermore, the study has the objective of determining whether local residents felt that their city had improved because of its having hosted a major international event and whether these improvements were likely to have a lasting impact on their society. The main method of conducting the study was qualitatively using a multistage sampling technique that ensured that the individuals chosen for the study were randomly selected. In this way, the study would not only be able to acquire a level of credibility but would also ensure that the individuals that were sampled were not selected only from a single group of people. Therefore, through this process, some 180 local residents from the city were selected and these were used to determine the feelings of the local population within the city concerning whether there was a positive or negative effect on it because of hosting the World Cup. Of the 180 selected, some 132 of them agreed to become participants in face-to-face interviews and this helped the researchers to better gauge the reactions of participants to the questions that they were asked. The findings that were made in the study showed that for a large percentage of those interviewed, hosting the World Cup had a positive impact on the society as a whole because they came to experience increased security throughout the city as well as urban regeneration projects that greatly improved their lives within the city. Furthermore, a result of the city’s hosting the World Cup was that it created an environment where there was a positive response among the residents that made possible good fan behaviour. It is because of the city being chosen to host the event that the local residents came to not only respond positively to it, but also present an atmosphere that was welcoming and positive. However, the findings also reported some negative impacts on the local population and these included an increase in crime as well as prostitution because of an influx of a large number of non-local individuals into the city. The displacement of local residents was also found to be among the negative issues that arose from the event. However, the negative impacts received a lower response rate from among those who were interviewed meaning that most of them viewed the event positively. Assessing the ability of the Egyptian hospitality industry to serve special needs customers Special needs customers who more often than not need the help of their partners in order to live their lives as normally as possible are individuals who many in the hospitality industry tend not to put into consideration when planning for accommodations as well as other tourism activities. it has been noted that those individuals with either physical or mental disabilities as well as their partners tend to have problems getting the facilities that they require in hotels. Therefore, this study attempts to investigate the ability of the hospitality industry in Egypt to provide accommodation for the needs of customers with disabilities. The modern world is increasingly becoming conscious of the special needs that people with disabilities require to ensure that they live as normally as possible. It is because of these considerations that the hospitality industry in Egypt has chosen to take steps to remedy the deficiencies that have come to be noted in the provision of services for disabled individuals as well as the partners. In order to achieve the objectives of the study, the use of questionnaires was found to be essential because it ensured that data concerning the perceptions of respondents were put under investigation in order to provide a more conclusive picture. Furthermore, the use of questionnaires enabled the researchers to determine the status of the Egyptian hospitality industry when it came to accommodating customers with special needs. The sample that was selected targeted some of the main actors within the Egyptian hospitality industry and this was done in a bid to get a firsthand account of the subject matter under investigation. Therefore, the need for a firsthand account meant that the study sample comprised of six of the major five star hotel chains in Egypt so that their opinions concerning the handling of special needs customers could be determined. Within these samples, the personnel representing some of the most significant departments among them were contacted and asked to complete the questionnaire prepared. Among the departments whose members were asked to participate in the study included human resources, sales and marketing, as well as rooms division. The results of the study showed that there was a need for the Egyptian hospitality industry to improve the services and products that they offered to those people who have special needs because the lack of these services were essentially marginalising a significant number of potential customers. Furthermore, it was found that there was a need for staff in the hospitality industry to be provided with the basic training that was required to ensure that they were effective in handling and providing satisfaction for this extremely sensitive segment of their customers. The study concluded that there was still a lot to be done to ensure that the Egyptian hospitality industry was capable of handling customers with special needs. These were to include proper means of transportation, the ability of customers to move around without any barriers hindering them, guestrooms designed specifically for disabled guests, among others. Community sports projects and effective community empowerment: a case study in Rochdale The use of sports has been considered as a means of ensuring community empowerment and this has yet to be studied comprehensively in order to find out whether it actually works. This study attempted to conduct an investigation concerning the use of sport in ensuring community empowerment while at the same time helping in determining whether this use is actually useful. Community empowerment can be considered a motivating factor for most local populations and this has created a situation a number of volunteer groups have come up in a bid to use sports as a means of achieving it. Therefore, this study chose to focus on a small town in the provincial regions of the United Kingdom where it was believed that the lessons learned could be generalised into a larger perspective. The study was conducted because of the need to better understand the role of sports in the empowerment of underprivileged communities while at the same time find out how well the programs that have been set up have worked. The investigations carried out were, as mentioned above, conducted in a manner that could enable the results to be generalised in such a manner that a better understanding of community-based sports delivery could be achieved. The project that was put under study was the one in the town of Rochdale and this showed that because of the sporting project being away from the mainstream, it was able to better adapt to the local environment as well as the specific needs of those who participated in it. It created a situation where the project under study succeeded in the development of a significant degree of local control as well as ownership, which allowed for its continued efficiency. The local degree of control allowed for the project its main objective of ensuring that the community was empowered in such a way that it was able to run its own activities without necessarily relying on any outside help. However, the results of the study also revealed that the sustainability of many sports projects were at risk because of the inadequacy of funding from the mainstream that would have helped in the setting up of projects in a larger scale. Furthermore, because of the limitations, there developed a situation where there were vulnerabilities in the manner through which funding that ensured broader structural changes were acquired and utilised. In conclusion, the results challenged the manner through which the values and approaches were handled by larger projects other parts of the country. The project in Rochdale was found to signify exemplary good practices and this ensured that although it did not have as much funding as similar projects elsewhere; it was able to fulfil its objectives through the direct involvement of the local population within it. A consequence of the Rochdale project is that it challenged its neighbours to consider taking up some of its practices so that they too could be able to ensure their success. References Atef, T.M., 2011. “Assessing the ability of the Egyptian hospitality industry to serve special needs customers,” Managing Leisure, vol. 16, no. 3, pp. 231-242. Ohmann, S., Jones, I. & Wilkes, K. 2006, “The Perceived Social Impacts of the 2006 Football World Cup on Munich Residents,” Journal of Sport and Tourism, vol. 11, no. 2, pp. 129 – 152. Partington, J. & Totten, M. 2012, “Community sports projects and effective community empowerment: a case study in Rochdale,” Managing Leisure, vol. 17, no. 1, pp. 29-46. Tung, V.W.S. & Ritchie, J.R.B. 2011, “Exploring the Essence of Memorable Tourism Experiences,” Annals of Tourism Research, vol. 38, no. 4, pp. 1367 – 1386. Read More