Tourism Professionals Research Articles

LGBTQI+ Friendly Hotels: Evaluating the Case of Greek Hotels

SummaryAccording to the relevant literature, LGBTQI+ tourists travel for a variety of reasons, exactly like all tourists. However, the need to escape to a safe destination is a top priority within a heteronormative environment, and sexual orientation is a determinant factor for holiday choices. Research on LGBTQI+ tourism has been mainly focused on revealing LGBTQI+ travellers’ motives, whereas tourism professionals in this segment have been scarcely approached. Twenty in-depth interviews were conducted with hotel managers of gay-friendly hotels in Greece, to provide an insight on their point of view. The interviews were structured around three main pillars: a) hotel managers’ perceptions regarding LGBTQI+ demand, b) services – experiences offered to LGBTQI+ hotel guests and c) marketing strategies to target LGBTQI+ guests. Results indicate that LGBTQI+ travellers pay great attention to the gay-friendliness of hotel and in-room services. Marketing activities for the LGBTQI+ segment are rarely part of a coherent strategy and mainly include occasional activities in order to expand the hotels’ clientele. Although the attitude of the hotel staff is a key point, personnel training on catering for LGBTQI+ travellers, diversity and sensitivity are absent.© The Authors 2023Improved version of posting: “Sexual Identity and Gay-Friendly Hotels. The Managers’ Point Of View.” presented at APTA 2022, KOREA, JEJU 180 6st-8th July 2022

Research on the Current Situation and Countermeasures of Tourism Employment in Lishui City under the All-region Tourism

With the release of optimized epidemic prevention and control policies in China, the tourism industry is experiencing a strong return. However, the post-epidemic tourism era has led to rapidly changing tourist demands, which have greatly increased the professional ability and quality requirements of tourism workers. Therefore, the post-epidemic tourism employment problem has become a concern for both the government and the industry. This paper analyzes the talent demand in the tourism industry in Lishui City under the background of all-regional tourism and makes suggestions. While the rapid development of tourism in Lishui City has brought about increased employment opportunities, the tourism labor market in Lishui still faces various challenges, such as a shortage of tourism management talents, low cultural quality of tourism workers, and lack of tourism professionals. In addition, employment quality has declined due to high worker mobility and personnel loss caused by COVID-19. To address these issues, this study proposes several measures: establishing the concept of all-round tourism, promoting high-quality development of tourism to create more jobs, improving the quality of tourism workers and services, adjusting the tourism employment system, and optimizing the employment structure of the tourism industry by adjusting its layout. This paper offers useful suggestions to address the challenges faced by the tourism industry in Lishui City in the post-epidemic era.

Employee communication and soft skills influencing tourists’ satisfaction

This paper seeks to study tourists’ perceptions of the effect of the communication skills of tourism service providers on soft skills and on satisfaction with the rendered service. Primary data were collected using a structured questionnaire, while the quantitative analysis uses the PLS-SEM method. The results show that communication skills have a positive and significant influence on soft skills. Customer satisfaction is positively impacted by both communication skills and soft skills. The paper offers support to the career development and exploitation of tourism professionals, relying on their developed and improved soft and communication skills.

코로나19 팬데믹 상황에서 시니어 서비스 기술 이용의도에 관한 연구

For the elderly population, the ever-growing consumers of tourism, technology has played a vital role through the pandemic while new forms of service technology sustained the hospitality and tourism industry through the pandemic and presents opportunities for future business paradigm shift. Therefore, it would be of great interest for the hospitality & tourism professionals to gain understanding of the elderly’s behavior toward adoption and usage of service technology during the pandemic. The objectives of this study were 1) to determine the most influential factor behind the elderly’s behavioral intention (BI) to use service technology over the current pandemic; 2) to examine the moderating effects of age on the three core determinants of BI, i.e., performance expectancy (PE), effort expectancy (EE), and social influence (SI); 3) to compare the elderly’s BI against the mid-aged & the younger age group. Through a self-administered online survey, responses from 789 participants across the three age groups were used for data analysis utilizing descriptive analysis, factor analysis, and hierarchical regression analysis. The results indicated that 1) SI was the most influential factor behind the elderly’s BI; 2) the impact of PE increased toward the younger groups while the SI’s impact grew toward the older groups; 3) in contrast to the elderly, for both the mid-aged and the younger group, PE was the most influential factor. Based on these results, specific measures of SI are recommended for further encouragement of the elderly’s use of service technology. Implications, limitations along with recommendations for future studies are discussed.

THE NEED OF THE REPUBLIC FOR PROFESSIONAL TOURIST STAFF

This article calculates the forecast values of the Republic of Uzbekistan in the tourism personnel, which must be associated with long-term plans for the development of the tourism industry. In addition, these plans should be an integral part of the policy of employment and employment within the framework of state programs for the socio-economic development of the regions of the republic. Such a systematic approach will make it possible to accurately and reasonably implement the forecasts of the needs for professional tourism personnel

Features of soft skills formation in the study of the discipline "Market of tourist services"

The article highlights the peculiarities of the formation of soft skills in students majoring in "Tourism" while studying the discipline "Market of tourist services". The article focuses on the key soft skills, including empathy, emotional intelligence, teamwork skills, customer service, networking and leadership, which are extremely important for the competitiveness of future tourism professionals. It is emphasized that the development of these soft skills contributes to a better adaptation of graduates to the needs of the labour market, where quality communication and customer service skills determine success in the tourism sector. The article describes that the formation of soft skills in the course of studying the discipline "Market of tourist services" involves the use of interactive methods, in particular: role-playing games and practical tasks that help students develop the necessary soft skills in real situations.

The Influence of Tourism Educational Qualification Levels On Perceived Contextual Job Performance Behavior in Tour Firms in Nairobi

The aim of this study was to establish the influence of the Tourism Educational Qualification levels (TEQL) on Contextual Job Performance Behavior (CJPB) among employees in tour firms in Nairobi, Kenya. Studies have confirmed that besides formal job requirements for core- competencies, other forms of behaviors are also critical for the competitiveness of the tourism industry. This is due to the globalization of businesses, technological innovation, and the ever-evolving needs of the 21st century tourist among others. However, few studies have given attention to the correlation between educational qualifications and contextual performance behavior. Data was quantitively gathered from one hundred and thirty-one (131) supervisors, who rated three (3) randomly selected employees from the following levels of qualification: a bachelor’s degree holder; a diploma holder; & a certificate holder, on their CJPB. Both descriptive and inferential data analysis was conducted to assess the extent to which TEQL influences CJPB. The research findings showed that TEQL explained 59.1% of the total variations in the CJPB (R²= 59.1%). The regression coefficient output showed that TEQLs positively and scientifically influenced CJPB (β=0.769, p=0.001). The implication of these findings confirms that transitioning from a lower level of tourism educational qualification to a higher level improves an employee’s contextual job performance behavior by 0.587 units. It is for this reason that investing in developing tourism professionals has benefits for both employers and employees. This study recommends that tourism educators embed contextual skills in tourism programs in order to produce graduates not only with core competencies and business acumen, but also with humanistic values to cope with emerging trends.

Rispetta la montagna – Risparmia l’acqua e riduci i rifiuti quando visiti le Dolomiti WHS

In 2009, the Dolomites have been inscribed in the World Heritage List as a serial property for criteria VII and VIII. In recent years, the Dolomites have become an even much more attractive destination for visitors. Many of them do not know how to behave appropriately in this sensitive environment. The Covid19 pandemic has further accelerated these phenomena. With the project "Respect the mountain" (DE: Achtsam am Berg; IT Rispetta la montagna), an awareness-raising process is being implemented since 2021 in South Tyrol, addressing visitors, locals, and tourism professionals in the area of the Dolomites WHS. It aims to raise awareness of environmentally friendly behavior, with focus on water saving and waste reduction. The project is a cooperation between the Department of Nature, Landscape and Spatial Development of the Autonomous Province of Bolzano-South Tyrol - Coordination Office Dolomites UNESCO World Heritage, IDM South Tyrol and the Agency for Environment and Climate Protection of the Autonomous Province of Bolzano-South Tyrol. Tourism associations oversee the implementation.

Application of modern interactive teaching methods in professional tourism education

Application of modern interactive teaching methods in professional tourism education

Elucidating International Travelers’ Tourism Image of Taiwan: A Qualitative Approach

Although Western alien visitors to Taiwan have a unique, well-informed perspective of what appeals to tourists from their countries, little research has been conducted to assess their insights, representing a significant research gap. To fill this gap, this study aims to elucidate how international tourists perceive Taiwan as a tourist destination by collecting detailed qualitative data via in-depth interviews of twenty-four international expatriates. This study illustrated the image differences before and after the visit of international tourists by analyzing the dimensions of tourists’ consensus maps and the changes in their perception of the natural, social, cultural, gourmet food, and Aboriginal image of Taiwan. This study provides a better understanding of how international tourists in Taiwan view its current and potential appeal as a tourist destination, so as to identify ways of attracting new tourists from their cultures. Patterns emerged that suggest new approaches for promoting Taiwan tourism and tourism sustainability which might not occur to Taiwanese tourism professionals due to the interviewees’ unique points of view. This research concludes that the application of cultural promotion strategies, planned tour packages, and improvement of the image of nature, culture, society, food, and Aboriginal people in Taiwan will thereby improve the overall satisfaction of international tourists, building online image, and forming e-word-of-mouth.

Neutrosophic MABAC Method for Solutions of Ecotourism Centers (EC) in COVID-19

The Covid-19 epidemic has had devastating effects on the economy and generated many issues for enterprises worldwide. As a result, it is imperative that during periods of pandemic, options be made available to help impacted companies recover and enhance their operations. One industry that has encountered this issue and has had to overcome substantial obstacles is ecotourism centres. In the first part of this study, we offer several valuable and realistic action strategies for ecotourism centres. Tourism professionals, faculty members, executives, proprietors, and some staff from eco-tourism centres got together for brainstorming meetings to come up with implementation plans. The stated action plans are prioritised based on four factors. One MCDM approach, known as Multi-Attributive Border Approximation area Comparison (MABAC), uses distance and area-based computing algorithms to systematically represent a complicated choice. In this study, we suggest a bipolar neutrosophic MABAC that incorporates the three possible memberships truth, indeterminate, and false into a single set. Using a bipolar neutrosophic language scale, a panel of specialists was asked to rate the outcome values of requirements and options. The major output of the suggested approach is the distances of options from the Border Approximation Area of bipolar neutrosophic MABAC.

ТЕНДЕНЦИИ И ГЕОГРАФИЯ ОРГАНИЗОВАННОГО ВЫЕЗДНОГО МЕЖДУНАРОДНОГО ТУРИЗМА ИЗ ПЕРМСКОГО КРАЯ В УСЛОВИЯХ СОВРЕМЕННЫХ ВЫЗОВОВ

The paper studies functional peculiarities of tour operators and travel agencies at the regional level and their role in the transformation of the outbound tourist flow in the context of modern political and economic challenges. The research aims to identify trends in the development of international tourism from the Perm region, to identify foreign countries of tourist interest, and to justify the choice of holiday destinations in these countries taking maximum account of the preferences of the region’s inhabitants. Based on the monitoring of international flight programs, on data obtained from surveys of local residents and tourism professionals, etc., the groups of tour operators engaged in the region’s outbound tourism and the peculiarities of their participation in the formation of tourist flow were determined, the main trends in the development of organized outbound tourism were revealed, and a portrait of an international Perm tourist is presented. The result of the research is the justification of the prospects of choosing by tour operators, guided by the preferences of the region’s residents, of Eastern holiday destinations. The author proposes her own method of choosing destinations based on the calculation of the PHD (preference of holiday destination) coefficient. The factors for choosing preferred places are grouped into three blocks – accessibility, resource-infrastructure, and climatic factors. A systematization of the factors according to the significance of the evaluation indicator is proposed: the factors are ranked as priority factors, factors correcting the choice, and factors rarely determining the choice. The PHD formula is given. To preserve outbound international tourism as a mass type of tourism accessible to the population of the region, a line of charter tours from Perm is needed with a geographical focus on the basic directions and places indicated in the article as those meeting the needs of the regional tourist. The estimation of the relative preferability of individual holiday destinations within the same direction should be considered as a guideline for tour operators in determining priorities when concluding contracts with counterparties and making presentations for travel agencies, and it should be used for other regions as well.

Impact of social media on tourism industry in india

Tourism is a great source of revenue for any country, and the media plays a critical role in promoting tourism in many ways, including information search, decision-making behaviors, and focusing on best practices for interacting with customers. Educational tourism is one of the fastest-growing sectors of travel and tourism, but it often goes overlooked by tourism professionals and marketers. The emergence of social media has caused a significant shift in marketing strategies. Individuals, corporations, Non-Governmental Organizations (NGOs), governments, and other organizations can use social media to view, produce, and share information, ideas, career interests, and other forms of expression in digital communities and networks. According to research, social media plays a vital role in promoting educational tourism, which improves and enhances a country's economic, social, political, and cultural life. This study proposes that, for destination visits, the variables of customer perceived value should be examined using the social networking approach.

Tourism management as a component of professional tourism training

Professional tourism education in the field of tourism has recently entered the problematic area of pedagogical research, but it should be noted that by now clear results have been achieved. An important and significant feature of educational activities at a university with a tourism profile is innovation and creativity. Educational learning activity is characterized not only by a certain dynamics, a set of alternatives, but also qualitatively new functions that are not only found in the world, but also confirmed personally in the educational process. When studying and researching the educational process, the motivational direction, orientation and aspiration of the subject to activity are taken into account. The processes of regionalization in modern Kazakhstan have created the need to apply and introduce a national and regional component in the training of specialists, which, of course, is aimed at determining the self-determination of students, the formation of national identity and education based on the cultural traditions of their peoples, understanding and knowledge of the peculiarities and specifics of the region where their work will be carried out.

Comparisons of Ecotourism Efficiency and Spatial-temporal Evolution Based on DEA-Malmquist Model: A Case Study of Jiangsu Province in China

The DEA-Malmquist model was used to measure the ecotourism efficiency of 13 cities in Jiangsu Province from 2010 to 2020, and the spatial and temporal differences were further analysed. The results show that the tourism technical efficiency in Jiangsu Province in China is generally at a high level, and the tourism scale efficiency restricts the improvement of tourism technical efficiency. The unbalanced of the technical progress in tourism between the prefecture-level cities is obvious. Overall, the change of technical progress in tourism has the strongest impact on the total factor productivity index. Therefore, strengthening the inter-regional cooperation of tourism development, training of tourism professionals, improving the structure of tourism industry, optimizing the allocation of tourism production factors, and expanding the scale and agglomeration effect of tourism can improve the efficiency of ecotourism.

ДЕРЖАВНЕ РЕГУЛЮВАННЯ ЯКОСТІ ТУРИСТИЧНИХ ПОСЛУГ В УМОВАХ ВОЄННОГО СТАНУ В УКРАЇНІ

In the context of wartime in Ukraine, due to the facts of existing and potential risks, there is a need to strengthen the role of state regulation, which is also important in relation to the quality of tourism services, which determines the relevance of the chosen research topic. The purpose of the article is to consider and formulate the essence and significance of the State regulation of the quality of tourism services under martial law in Ukraine. The scientific novelty of the study is to systematize the views of researchers on the role and importance of the state regulation system, to determine the features and specifics of state regulation of the quality of tourism services under martial law in Ukraine. The object of the study is the system of state regulation of the quality of tourist services under martial law in Ukraine. The subject of the study is a set of theoretical, methodological and applied principles for defining and formulating the essence and significance of state regulation of the quality of tourism services under martial law in Ukraine. To cover the topic of the scientific research, the methods of observation and comparison (regarding the period of the Russian aggressor's invasion of the territory of Ukraine before and after the introduction of martial law), synthesis and analysis (to systematize the essence and importance of the system of state regulation of the Ukrainian economy and tourism in particular), statistical methods (for quantitative features and relevant analysis) were used. The author summarizes the arguments regarding the essential importance of the role of the State of Ukraine in regulating the quality of tourism services under martial law. The article systematizes the scientific theoretical, methodological, analytical and applied foundations and the relevant legislative and regulatory framework regarding the importance of the system of state regulation under martial law in Ukraine and the need to identify and take into account the significant factors influencing the development of tourism. It is proved that creating a positive image, gaining competitive positions in the market of tourist services due to high quality and its guarantee at all stages of the life cycle of a tourist product is the way to positioning a business entity as an effective and reliable business partner and a promising leader in the tourist industry. The results of the study may be of interest to tourism professionals, researchers, and students of higher education institutions majoring in tourism.

International Experience in Formation of Foreign Language Communicative Competence in Tourism Students in the Context of Blended Learning

The modern formation of foreign language communicative competence in tourism students in the context of blended learning is a key issue for the effective organization of the educational process. The issue of using blended learning as a tool for improving the practical and professional skills of tourism students is subject to wide discussion, as it has many advantages and disadvantages. The proposed results of the study are aimed at improving the organization of the educational process, as well as creating the most effective means for the formation of foreign language communicative competence of tourism students. The study aims to conduct an analytical assessment of the theoretical aspects of the formation of foreign language communicative competence, as well as to find ways to practically develop it in future specialists. With the help of scientific research methods, the foundations of the functioning of universities are formed, taking into account the prospects of digital technologies and the needs of the tourism services market. The results of the article can be useful for improving the distribution of the educational process of educational institutions between traditional and distance learning. The article examines the components of foreign language communicative competence and their cultural, ethical, and semantic aspects as the main principles of professional communication of tourism professionals. The results of the study indicate the need to integrate the educational process into distance learning. However, the traditional form should not be excluded, as it can be useful for the development of verbal communication skills. The study is important from the point of view of theoretical peculiarities of the formation of foreign language communicative competence in tourism students.

НІШЕВИЙ ТУРИЗМ ЯК ШЛЯХ РОЗВИТКУ ПОВОЄННОЇ УКРАЇНИ

The article examines the current problems of the development of the national tourism market in the post-war period. It is determined that the future of tourism in Ukraine is associated with the development of niche tourism types, accordingly, the essence of this form of tourism, criteria for identifying niches, methods and ways of their formation are established, and problems encountered in the process of their organization are outlined. In post-war Ukraine, it is advisable to develop such types of niche tourism that correspond to European tourism development trends and take into account the post-war state of the country. European trends include promoting unknown tourist destinations; increasing attention to education and training of tourism professionals; cooperation with governments and the private sector for cultural exchange. Ukrainian realities include creating a concept of memorializing historic places, developing memory-related tourist itineraries associated with the struggle for independence; forming unique tourist destinations and tourism products in the regions. Post-war tourism development was actively discussed at the level of the State Tourism Development Agency, regional administrations, and local communities at the First National Tourism Summit. The result of the discussion is the formation of the Concept of Memorializing Historic Sites in the Kyiv region. Among the priority types of niche tourism, cultural, health and wellness, rehabilitation, inclusive, "dark" tourism and memory-related itineraries are highlighted. Cultural tourism increasingly uses elements of intangible cultural heritage to preserve authenticity and shape the region's image. Creative tourism is developing as a new paradigm of cultural tourism, increasing the role of new experiences that tourists gain from participating in various activities. Health tourism is at the peak of popularity due to the steady demand for physical and spiritual healing and rehabilitation. Local communities and entrepreneurs are involved in the development of inclusive tourism which corresponds to global trends and existing demand. Each region should already identify its macro and micro niches and develop marketing programs for their promotion with the involvement of the local community. To improve the quality of personnel training for the development of regional niche types of tourism, relevant educational disciplines should be included in educational programs on the various levels.

Development of regional tourism: factors affecting the formation of professional competence in future professionals in tourism

Development of regional tourism: factors affecting the formation of professional competence in future professionals in tourism

On the importance of understanding older tourists: addressing the complexity of ageing travellers

Ageing transcends age and goes beyond the older generations. Awareness of the way older individuals behave in tourism beyond clichés, labels and stereotypes and a clearer perspective of the economic benefits of the silver economy for companies in general and the tourism sector in particular is critical. Tourism providers, governments, and stakeholders in many developed countries of the world have identified older travellers as a priority market because of global demographic changes and the increased participation of older individuals in tourism and leisure activities. Despite the fact that the tourism industry is experiencing its most difficult period in history as a result of COVID-19, an increasingly healthy older individuals market segment with financial means to travel for leisure and a desire to visit new places holds enormous potential for cultural heritage and tourism. Methodology: In order to better understand the need and wants, some gaps in the literature have been identified in relation to the need to comprehend the requirements and expectations of an ageing population in order to have a better grasp of future tourism trends related to older travellers (Huang and Tsai 2003; Lehto et al. 2008), as well as the awareness of the potential economic value of the silver economy, which is less understood (McGuirk et al., 2021). In numerous ways, the increased demand for travel by older individuals presents a challenge for tourism professionals (Bakucz et al., 2021). Objectives: The aim of this article is twofold: to increase awareness and understanding of a yet misunderstood and undervalued market segment, beyond stereotypes and clichés and (2) to contribute to the tourism industry in terms of practical considerations. Findings: The findings regarding awareness and practical implications aid stakeholders in gaining a better understanding of older travellers and the need to meet the changing needs and expectations of an ageing population.