Ch15

11th Edition - 2009 Chapter 15: Tourism Policy: Structure, Content and Process
Tourism: Principles, Practices, Philosophies
Part Four: Tourism Supply, Demand, Planning and Development
Learning Objectives
• Demonstrate the critical importance
of tourism policy to the
competitiveness and sustainability
of a tourism destination
• Outline the structure and content
of a typical policy framework for
a tourism destination
• Identify some of the methods,
techniques, and approaches used to
assist in tourism policy formulation

The Competitive/Sustainable
Tourist Destination: A
Managerial Framework
Destination
Destination
Tourism Policy
Structure and
Content
Tourism Policy
Structure and
Content
The Policy
Formulation
Process
The Policy
Formulation
Process
Policy
Formulation
Methods
Policy
Formulation
Methods

Tourism Policy:
A Definition
Tourism policy can be
defined as follows:
A set of regulations, rules, guidelines,
directives, and development/
promotion objectives and strategies
that provide a framework within
which the collective and individual
decisions directly affecting tourism
development and the daily activities
within a destination are taken

Examples of the many
“stakeholders” in tourism within
a given destination/region.
• Residents of the “Host” Destination
• Local/Municipal/Regional/Provincial/National
Governments
• Local/Regional/National Environmental Groups
• Local visitors/excursionists
• Remote visitors/tourists
• Tourism industry sectors:
 Transportation
 Accommodation
 Attractions
 Events
 Commercial Outdoor Recreation
 Commercial Visitor Service
• Destination Management Organization (DMO)
• Culture/Heritage Groups
• Social/Health/Education Groups

Areas Addressed by
Tourism Policy
1. The roles of tourism within the overall socio-economic
development of the destination region
2. The type of destination that will most effectively fulfill the
desired roles
3. Taxation – types and levels
4. Financing for the tourism sector – sources and terms
5. The nature and direction of product development
and maintenance
6. Transportation access and infrastructure
7. Regulatory practices (e.g. airlines, travel agencies)
8. Environmental practices and restrictions
9. Industry image, credibility
10. Community relationships
11. Human resources and labor supply
12. Union and labor legislation
13. Technology
14. Marketing practices
15. Foreign travel rules

Some Elements of Successful
“total tourism destination
management”
COMPETITIVENESS
[Resource Deployment]
Business/Economic
Management Skills
SUSTAINABILITY
[Resource Stewardship]
Environmental Management
Capabilities
•Marketing
•Financial Management
•Operations Management
•Human Resources Management
•Information Management
•Organization Management
•Strategic Planning
•Water Quality Management
•Air Quality Management
•Wildlife Management
•Forest/Plant Management
•Visitor Management
•Resident/Community
Management
•Commemorative Integrity
Information Management
Destination Monitoring Destination Research

General Economic & Social
Policies Affecting Tourism
• Taxation – affects costs and thus profitability;
• Interest Rate Policy – affects costs and thus profitability;
• Bilateral Air Agreements – determines foreign visitor access;
• Environmental Policy – limits growth and access to attractive, but
sensitive areas;
• Customs and Immigration Policy – can facilitate or hinder
international visitation;
• Communications Policy – can restrict use of certain advertising
media;
• Minimum Wage Policy – can affect labor markets;
• Welfare Policy – can influence nature and behavior of work force;
• Education Policy – can affect quality of workforce;
• Cultural Policy – can affect preservation and promotion of national
heritage;
• Foreign Investment Policy/Regulations – can affect availability of
investment capital;
• Local Zoning Policy/By-Laws – can restrict or encourage tourism
facility development;
• National/Provincial/Local Policy re: funding support for major
public facilities (e.g. stadiums, convention centers, museums,
parks) – can drastically affect destination attractiveness;
• Infrastructure Policy – can make destination safer for visitors, or
restrict resident travel to foreign destinations;
• Currency/Exchange Rate Policies – directly affects destination cost
competitiveness; and
• Legal System – determines consumer/visitor protection legislation
(e.g. liability for failing to deliver advertised
facilities/tours/experiences).

Transportation
Industries and
Infrastructure
Tourism: Some of its multiple
interfaces with other sectors of
the economy and society
Legal/Political
Players
Technology
Sector
Environmental
Movement
Entertainment
Industry
Resource
Extraction
Industries
Health Services
Sector
Education
Sector
Financial
Sector
TT
OO
UU
RR
II
SS
MM

The Structure and Composition
of Tourism Policy

Destination Vision Framework
Core
Vision
Elements
of the Vision
Ecology
Awareness
Visitor Experience
Economy
Community
Governance
Values
On Which the Vision is Based
Principles
Guiding Implementation of Vision
Preamble

The Process of Tourism Policy,
Strategy Formulation and
Implementation
Definitional
Phase
Definition of Tourism
Destination System
Explication of a Tourism
Philosophy
Crafting of a Destination
Vision
Objectives and Constraints
Analytical
Phase
Internal Analysis
•Review of existing policies
and programs
•Resource audit
•Strategic impact analysis
External Analysis
•Macro level analysis of
current and future
demand
•Micro level analysis of
current and future
demand and behaviors
•Review of competitive and
supportive tourism
development and
promotion policies
Operational
Phase
Identification of strategic
conclusions
Implications of conclusions
for supply and demand
development
Policy/Program
recommendations
Implementation
Phase
Implementation of strategy
for Destination
Development,
Promotion, and
Stewardship
Allocation of
responsibilities for
recommendation
implementation
Identification of sources of
funding to support
competitive initiatives
and stewardship
programs
Specification of timing for
recommendation
implementation
Monitoring and evaluation
of the results
© John Wiley & Sons, Inc, 2009

Ch15

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