Restoring Tourism Destinations in Crisis

A strategic marketing approach

David Beirman

• Publisher: Routledge
• Year: 2020
• Print ISBN:
  9780367719241
• eBook ISBN:
  9781000247183
• Topic: Business
• Subtopic: Business General
• Index: Business

This is an outstanding book. It offers a comprehensive range of in-depth case studies that looks at past tourism crisis and analyzes the responses made. A must-read book for those in the industry, related associations and the various levels of government as they consider how to pro-actively deal with the potential for future crisis related to tourism.

Perry Hobson, Head, School of Tourism and Hospitaliy Management, Southern Cross University and Editor-in-Chief Journal of Vacation Marketing.

Tourism everywhere is vulnerable to changes in public perception. When news about an earthquake, a violent conflict or a contagious disease in a distant location hits the television, tourists cancel holidays.

The September 11, 2001 terrorist attack against the USA impacted on airlines and tourist destinations worldwide, as did subsequent attacks on tourists. These events highlight the importance of destination crisis management for the global tourism industry.

Experienced tourism marketer and trainer, David Beirman, has created a guide to crisis management for tourism operators and offices. He argues that managing public perception is critical to the recovery of a destination after a crisis, and that much depends on providing clear, frequently updated and accurate information. He provides detailed case studies of different types of crises from around the world, with analyses of the strengths and weaknesses of the approach taken by tourism managers.

This is an invaluable reference for tourism managers anywhere in the world, and a useful resource for tourism students.

Part
I Overview

1 Defining Tourism Destinations in Crisis

Basic Definitions

The marketability of individual destinations and global tourism is vulnerable to sudden changes in market perceptions. Acts of man or nature can transform the reputation, desirability and marketability of the most popular tourism destinations overnight. The 1991 Gulf War involved a United Statesled 30-nation coalition of forces against Iraq. The attacks on New York City and Washington DC on September 11, 2001, in which hijacked Boeing 767 and 757 commercial aircraft were engaged as flying missiles which blew up the World Trade Center in New York City and part of the Pentagon in Washington DC, massively disrupted global tourism. The 2001 attacks generated worldwide panic, compromising the security of commercial aircraft and global tourism safety with specific focus on the United States, Europe, Central Asia and the Middle East. Many cases outlined in this study demonstrate that a crisis in one country has a ripple effect on neighbouring destinatiorls.

For the sake of clarification, a destination may be defined as a country, state, region, city or town which is marketed or markets itself as a place for tourists to visit. In most cases referred to in this book, countries will be the primary focus of attention.

For most international travellers, tourism is a discretionary act. Many countries have invested heavily in tourism and have acquired a high level of economic dependence on inbound tourism. Events which compromise the viability of a destination may result in considerable economic disruption to the country, state or region. For individuals, this situation could result in loss, of income, unemployment and poverty. However, few tourists will consider these implications in determining their choice of destination. Their prime concern is to travel to a destination satisfying their own desires with a minimum of complications or threats to their safety and well-being.

Global tourism crises, including those mentioned above, are evidence that destination crisis marketing can no longer be treated as a problem confined to a few specific destinations; it is now a global issue. Since September 11, destination crisis marketing has been moved beyond the cloisters of academia to become a critical economic, political and social priority for many nations to which tourism is a significant industry.

A book dealing with destination crisis requires a contextually appropriate working definition of the term 'crisis'. Bill Faulkner and Roslyn Russell in their discussion of turbulence, chaos and complexity, refer to crisis and disaster. They mention that the common definition of crisis is 'an action or failure to act that interferes with the organisation's ongoing functions and the attainment of its objectives, viability, or survival. . . with detrimental effects as perceived by employees, clients or constituents'. This definition is more appropriate to managerial failure than the crises caused by external factors.¹ Certainly there are no shortages of travel industry crises resulting from mismanagement. However, the crises examined and analysed in this volume have all arisen due to events beyond the direct control of destination authorities. Faulkner and Russell's second definition of a disaster is more applicable to the cases discussed in this book. They define a disaster as a situation in which 'a tourism destination is confronted with sudden, unpredictable, catastrophic changes over which it has little control'.

To modify Faulkner and Russell's definition and relate it to the crises, examined in this study the author defines a destination crisis in the following terms: 'A crisis is a situation requiring radical management action in response to events beyond the internal control of the organisation, necessitating urgent adaptation of marketing and operational practices to restore the confidence of employees, associated enterprises and consumers in the viability of the destination.'

The threat of terrorism is understandably a major issue in destination choice. The popularity and desirability of specific destinations is influenced by many factors. These include economic factors such as affordability, special events such as Olympic Games or World Expos and the vagaries of fads and fashions. A wide range of perceptions governs the desirability and appeal of a destination to the potential traveller, Seryhmus Baloglu and Ken W. McCleary define the forces which influence destination image formation as shown in Figure 1.1.²

Figure 1.1:Forces which influence destination image development

Figure 1.2:Path modules of determination of destination image

Travel Motivation

A major determinant in a traveller's decision to visit a destination is the perception of safety and security. Specific events or a series of events may undermine these perceptions of a destination. This book will examine five specific event typologies which undermine the safety and security image of tourist destinations and result in a destination crisis. These are:

• international war or conflict and prolonged manifestations of internal conflict;
• a specific act or acts of terrorism, especially those directed at or affecting tourists;
• a major criminal act or crime wave, especially when tourists are targeted;
• a natural disaster, such as an earthquake, storm or volcano, causing damage to urban areas or the natural environment and consequently impacting on the tourism infrastructure;
• health concerns related to epidemics and diseases; these may be diseases which impact on humans directly or diseases affecting animals, which limit access to tourist attractions.

These: events or circumstances, individually or in combination, have a negative impact on perceptions of the safety, security or desirability of tourist destinations. Each circumstance poses challenges to tourism authorities and the tourism industry to implement appropriate strategies to restore the image of affected destinations. Certainly, those factors do not represent the totality of issues which can impact negatively on destination image; however, the core issue in this book involves analysing how a destination and its tourism industry conduct a marketing campaign to restore its image and recover its market from the damage caused by these events. A number of case studies are used to demonstrate that a properly focused marketing campaign plays a major role in restoring a destination's image and consumer perceptions of it. Restoration marketing is an integral element in the overall recovery of the destination.

Contingency management is discussed as a major component of tourism destination marketing. The specific contingencies examined—war, terrorism, crime waves, epidemic and natural disasters—have devastating impacts on any .community, region, state or nation. This book focuses on their repercussions on eleven destinations around the world. Any destination is potentially vulnerable to one or more of the above threats to destination safety and market perception; consequently, it is imperative for all destination authorities to prepare and develop contingency plans to respond to varying levels of threats.

Case Studies

Each of the eleven cases will focus on specific events and the responses of the tourism industries and local tourism authorities to them. The cases include:

• New York and global—the challenge to restore New York and the United States as a tourism destination following the September 11 terrorist attack and the subsequent global ramifications;
• Egypt—restoring confidence after terrorism directed at tourists in 1992-97;
• Israel—the marketing response to the conflict generated between Israel and the Palestinian Authority following the breakdown of the peace process since September 2000;
• Sri Lanka—marketing a destination during a civil war;
• Fiji—Fiji's response to the coup of 1987 and the George Speight rebellion of 2000;
• Turkey—Turkish tourism recovery after the 1999 Izmit earthquake;
• United Kingdomresponse to the foot-and-mouth disease outbreak of 2001;
• •outh Africi.arketing a destination during the post-Apartheid crime wave;
• • stralia:—smania's response to the Port Arthur massacre of 1996;
• • Catia—the Croatian tourism industry's recovery after the war with Serbia, 1992—96;
• • t Philippines—restoring tourism after natural disasters, civil war and political instability during the 1990s.

While each case contains unique characteristics, there are a number of common elements which apply to these case studies. The above events resulted in a significant downturn in tourism numbers to the destination and created a climate of fear and concern about its overall safety and viability. In all cases, a marketing strategy was required to restore confidence in the destination. The duration of these strategies was subject to significant variations. In the case of war and natural disaster, considerable time was involved in repairing physical damage to the infrastructure of the destination as a prerequisite to starting a marketing campaign.

It is an erroneous assumption that a restoration and recovery marketing campaign can be implemented only when the: crisis is deemed to be: over. In the case of Britain, Sri Lanka and Israel, marketing of the destinations continued during Britain's foot-and-mouth disease problems of 2001; the political conflict between Israel and the Palestinians since September 2000 (unresolved at the time of writing) and Sri Lanka's long-term civil war are examples of ongoing crises where marketing has been necessary. Some of these marketing strategies may be broadly defined as 'damage control'. Some of these marketing programs have involved an aggressive campaign to lure tourists by either highlighting alternative images to those disseminated by the mass media, or through the method of 'isolation'—'that is, promoting parts of the destination unaffected by the existing problem. In all cases, marketing strategies were implemented to address the specific problems encountered and create public awareness of actions undertaken to redress them. In all case studies, a media and public relations Campaign was directed at the travel industry with emphasis on prioritising promotions directed at key source markets. In the majority of cases examined, the restoration of tourism was regarded as a significant element in the overall economic, social and political recovery of the destinations concerned.

The field of destination recovery and restoration is an under-researched discipline within tourism studies and management practice. Yet it is a critically important element of tourism planning. The 'what if or contingency planning aspect of tourism, especially destination management, has been a long-standing weak link in tourism destination management and marketing. By comparison, international airlines have well-established contingency measures in place in the event of crashes. However regrettable, aircraft sometimes crash, cruise ships sink and hotels can be destroyed by natural disasters or through the deliberate or accidental actions of human beings. The calmest, most orderly and tranquil locales can quickly descend into chaos through an act of nature, criminality, war or terrorism. A dramatic example of an aberrant, one-off crisis occurred in Tasmania, Australia at the historical site of Port Arthur in April 1996 when (according to the official version)³ a young man armed with an automatic rifle killed 35 people, many of whom were interstate and overseas tourists. This event instantly plunged the Tasmanian tourism industry into crisis and engendered a marketing recovery process which is considered a role model for destination marketing management of a recovery program following a single-event crisis.

The case studies include Countries as diverse as Israel and Sri Lanka, both of which have experienced repeated and prolonged episodes of war and intercommunal acts of terrorism. Although tourists have rarely been specific targets of terrorism in Israel, Israeli tourism authorities and marketers have endured a constant struggle to counter a widely held perception that Israel is a dangerous destination for tourists. Although most political violence has been confined to specific regions, Israel presents an especially interesting marketing case study of perception management. There are many parallels between the Israeli experience and that of Sri Lanka, where conflict between the government and Tamil separatists has largely been confined to the northeast of the country. Unlike the Israel situation, Tamil terrorists have occasionally targeted tourists within the broader context of their civil war tactics.

Political terrorism in Egypt specifically targeted tourism as a core strategy to undermine the national economy and the political system. Repeated acts of terrorism directed at tourists during the 1990s culminated in the Luxor massacre of November 1997. International tourism is the dominant source of foreign currency income for Egypt, so a slump in inbound tourism directly impacts on the Egyptian economy. Following episodes of terrorism, the Egyptian government, in association with the Egyptian Tourist Authority, embarked upon an intensive campaign to restore confidence in destination Egypt. The strategy incorporated two significant prongs: the correction of security lapses that made tourists a soft target for terrorism in Egypt; and a major PR and marketing campaign to incentivise tourism and restore international confidence in Egypt as a major destination.

Croatia represents a notable example of a country which sought to integrate tourism within a national recovery strategy following prolonged warfare, Large regions of Croatia were off limits for international tourists during four years of conflict with neighbouring Serbia. In the Croatian case, the restoration of the tourism industry was integrated within a state-driven policy of economic recovery and was a major factor in attracting foreign investment and foreign currency. The signing of the Dayton Agreement in December 1995 was far more effective in restoring traveller confidence in Croatia than any specific marketing campaign.

In 1987 and 2000, Fiji experienced two episodes of political instability, which heavily impacted on its economically vital tourism industry. The 1987 coup, led by Sitiveni Rabuka, which overthrew an elected multiracial government, and George Speight's abortive attempt in 2000 to overthrow and take hostage the elected multiracial government, had a severe impact on the Fijian tourism industry. During the events and in their immediate denouement, the Fijian Ministry of Tourism and its marketing arm, the Fiji Visitors Bureau, mounted carefully planned campaigns in association with airlines and tour operators to restore tourism confidence in Fiji's tourism industry. During both crises, the Australian and New Zealand governments actively discouraged their citizens from visiting Fiji, which impacted heavily upon Fiji's two largest tourism source markets.

The Fijian case highlights the significance of government tourism advisories as a factor in shaping tourism perceptions of specific destinations. Aside from advisories that directly prohibit citizens from visiting a specific country or region, negative advisories about the safety or advisability of visiting a destination influence tour operators, travel insurance providers and travellers in their respective decisions to promote, provide insurance cover or visit a destination.

South African tourism h...

Table of contents

• Cover
• Half Title
• Title Page
• Copyright Page
• Contents
• List of figures and tables
• Acronyms
• Acknowledgments
• Preface
• Author's note
• Part I Overview
• Part II Terrorism and political violence
• Part III Natural disaster
• Part IV Epidemic
• Part V Crime
• Part VI War
• Part VII Combination crises
• Notes
• Select bibliography
• Index