Development and Management of Visitor Attractions

John Swarbrooke, Stephen J. Page

• Publisher: Routledge
• Year: 2012
• Print ISBN: 9781138129528
• eBook ISBN: 9781136410604
• Topic: Business
• Subtopic: Hospitality, Travel & Tourism Industry
• Index: Business

Now in its second edition, the successful 'Development and Management of Visitor Attractions' has been fully revised and updated to cover the latest issues in this ever-changing area of tourism. New features/topics include: * The Millennium Dome * National Lottery funded projects * International case studies * Updated statistics and examples The author examines the factors that contribute to the success of visitor attractions. 'The Development and Management of Visitor Attractions' 2nd Edition, covers every aspect of the process of developing and managing different kinds of attractions. Theories explored throughout the text are illustrated through a range of examples and case studies drawn from a number of countries.

Part One The Context

Chapter 1 Introduction

DOI: 10.4324/9780080494500-1

Attractions are arguably the most important component in the tourism system. They are the main motivators for tourist trips and are the core of the tourism product. Without attractions there would be no need for other tourism services. Indeed tourism as such would not exist if it were not for attractions.

Definitions

Attractions are a very complex sector of the tourism industry and are not well understood. There are few books specifically about attractions and there is no generally accepted definition that is relevant to all visitor attractions, although there are several which are worthy of repetition here, including the following:

The attraction must be a permanently established excursion destination, a primary purpose of which is to allow public access for entertainment, interest, and education, rather than being primarily a retail outlet, or a venue for sports, film, or theatrical performances. It must be open to the public without prior booking, and should be capable of attracting day visitors or tourists’.

(British Tourist Authority, quoted in Travel and Tourism Analyst, 2000)

Writing in Travel and Tourism Analyst, Stevens criticized this definition, saying: ‘It reveals a myopic, restricted and outdated view of the attractions sector. It ignores the rapidly changing nature of consumer demand that has fuelled recent developments’. Furthermore, the British Tourist Authority definition would exclude ‘temporary’ attractions such as the Millennium Dome in London, expositions and all other events and festivals.

Likewise, the definition would exclude those sporting venues which have developed related visitor attractions such as football club museums, and the Euro 2000 attraction at PSV Eindhoven in the Netherlands. Many more similarly ambitious projects are planned in places as diverse as Cardiff, UK, and Toronto, Canada.

There are some alternative definitions of attractions which are broader and seem more in tune with recent developments in the sector. One of these is:

A visitor attraction is a feature in an area that is a place, venue or focus of activities and does the following things.

1. Sets out to attract visitors/day visitors from resident or tourist populations, and is managed accordingly.
2. Provides a fun and pleasurable experience and an enjoyable way for customers to spend their leisure time.
3. Is developed to realize this potential.
4. Is managed as an attraction, providing satisfaction to its customers.
5. Provides an appropriate level of facilities and services to meet and cater to the demands, needs, and interests of its visitors.
6. May or may not charge an admission for entry. (Walsh-Heron and Stevens, 1990)

One reason it is difficult to come up with a definition that encompasses all attractions is that it is a diverse and complex sector.

The sector is fragmented geographically, with different interpretations and approaches being taken in the USA and Europe for example. Furthermore, it is split into several very different subsectors such as heritage and theme parks. These are two reasons why there is no single industry voice which operates for attractions.

This also explains why it is so difficult, often, to gain data on the attraction sector in different countries. As Stevens has noted: ‘Overall data about this sector is first difficult to access in many countries, second, incompletely collected and third, prone to the idiosyncratic influences of individual [attraction] owners. As such it is difficult to find comparative information and relevant time-series data’ (Stevens, in Travel and Tourism Analyst, 2000).

In general terms, attractions tend to be single units, individual sites or clearly defined small-scale geographical areas that are accessible and motivate large numbers of people to travel some distance from theirhome, usually in their leisure time, to visit them for a short, limited period. This definition clearly excludes uncontrollable and unmanageable phenomena that are sometimes described as attractions, such as climate. Therefore, this definition implies that attractions are entities that are capable of being delimited and managed.

A typology of attractions

While no clear definition exists, attractions can be split into four main types:

1. Features within the natural environment.
2. Human-made buildings, structures and sites that were designed for a purpose other than attracting visitors, such as religious worship, but which now attract substantial numbers of visitors who use them as leisure amenities.
3. Human-made buildings, structures and sites that are designed to attract visitors and are purpose-built to accommodate their needs, such as theme parks.
4. Special events.

Please note that the word ‘visitor’ is used here to cover all visitors from local residents to foreign tourists and includes both excursionists/day-trippers and the staying visitor. We will return to this issue later in the chapter.

There are two important differences between these types of attractions. The most obvious is that the first three are generally permanent while the last category covers attractions which are temporary and usually have a limited lifespan which is known in advance. The second major difference is between the first two types of attraction, where tourism is often seen as a problem and a threat, and the last two types, where tourism is generally perceived to be beneficial and an opportunity.

With natural attractions and human-made attractions that were not purpose-built to attract tourists the emphasis is on visitor management to cope with the problems caused by the visitors. The main concerns are the environmental impacts of tourism, such as pollution and erosion, together with the effect of tourism on the original purpose of the site or building whether it be farming on a hillside or religious worship in a cathedral.

On the other hand, the aim of attractions which are purpose-built to attract tourists is often to incre...

Table of contents

• Cover Page
• Half Title Page
• Dedication
• Title Page
• Copyright Page
• Contents
• Preface to the first edition
• Preface to the second edition
• Acknowledgements
• List of Figures
• List of Tables
• Part One The Context
• 1 Introduction
• 2 The role of visitor attractions in tourism
• 3 The visitor attraction product
• 4 The visitor attraction market
• 5 The business environment and visitor attractions
• Part Two The Development of Visitor Attractions
• 6 The development process and the role of feasibility studies
• 7 Factors influencing the success of visitor attractions
• 8 Financing visitor attraction projects
• 9 Designing visitor attractions
• 10 Project management
• Part Three The Management of Visitor Attractions
• 11 The role of the manager and management styles
• 12 The marketing concept
• 13 Strategic marketing planning
• 14 The implementation of marketing strategies
• 15 Human resource management
• 16 Financial management
• 17 Operations management
• 18 Ethical challenges in attraction management
• 19 Managing quality
• 20 Managing change and planning for the future
• Part Four Case Studies
• 1 Lessons from the Millennium Dome, London
• 2 The Millennium Commission and attraction projects in the UK
• 3 Relationship marketing: the RAF Museum, Hendon, UK
• 4 Industrial tourism: ‘The Potteries', UK
• 5 Parcs d'attractions in France
• 6 Visitor attractions in Paris
• 7 Parc du Futuroscope, France
• 8 The clubs of Ibiza
• 9 The product life cycle and Legoland, Denmark
• 10 Mine attractions in Norway
• 11 Bay Street complex, Malta
• 12 The impact of political change on the attractions sector in Russia
• 13 The management of archaeological sites in Greece
• 14 Major museums in New York
• 15 Leading theme parks in the USA
• 16 Disney California Adventure, USA
• 17 Special interest attractions in South Africa
• 18 The international casino market in New Zealand
• 19 Visitor attractions in Brazil
• 20 Sporting attractions
• 21 Food and drink attractions
• 22 The evolution of wildlife attractions
• Part Five The Future of Visitor Attractions
• Bibliography
• Index