Tourism In New Zealand Essay Research Paper

Tourism In New Zealand

Executive Summary

The following report provides an accurate and informative overview of the nature of tourism, its history and growth, the structure of the New Zealand industry and the impact of tourism from a New Zealand perspective. The report will draw a conclusion which Highlights area of consideration in tourism planning.

Conclusion and Recommendations

For New Zealand tourism has a lot to offer but at the same time, care has to be taken not to mistreat it. The social and cultural impacts of tourism on New Zealand so far have been on the whole beneficial but as tourism continues to grow this could change. Non-economic benefits of tourism are maximized when visitors and hosts share mutual interests and when trade is relatively small. However these factors limit potential tourist markets and income. One solution to this problem could be promotion of New Zealand as a high quality destination at a higher price, i.e. less tourists spending more money.

New Zealand tourism is largely reliant on Eco-tourism so to maintain the tourism industry it is imperative that our environment is conserved. However tourism itself can have negative effects on the environment. The tourism sector must act responsibly in its use of the environment and any use must be sustainable.

It is the economic effects of tourism which bring the most benefit to the host nation. Tourism is a low import user which means more of the money earned here stays here. The government is earning money through tourist taxes such as the airport tax, increased export earnings and income tax revenue from people employed by the industry. A balance must be struck between these benefits and associated negative impacts on the community and the environment.

If New Zealand is to see more growth in tourism we must try and make the country more attractive to visit. More flights, low visa requirements, favorable exchange rates are all facilitators that will make New Zealand more appealing. With a high level of promotions overseas that will motivate tourists to think of our country as a destination which will be able to satisfy their needs.

The Nature of Tourism

There is not really a universally accepted definition of tourism. In 1994 the World Tourism Organization (WTO) revised its definition. It says the tourism comprises of the activities of persons travelling to and staying in places outside their usual environment for not more than one consecutive year for leisure, business and other purposes and that it includes both tourists (overnight visitors) and excursionists (same-day visitors). Whether or not excursionists or business travelers are engaging in tourism is still a mater of debate. Tourism is generally referred to as an industry. However it does not produce something physical like other industries.

The tourism product includes everything that the tourist purchases, sees, experiences and feels from leaving to returning home. The main sectors involved are accommodation, transport, attractions, activities and sales. Often these sectors do not recognize their part in the tourism industry and this hinders the supply of a superior tourism product.

Statistical measurement in tourism is very important. In the 1950 s and 60 s the potential economic benefits from tourism were recognized. There became a need to forecast and plan for the industry s future. There are two main classes of information, primary data (data collected with the aim of solving a problem) and secondary data, which is obtained from an external source such as the New Zealand Tourism Board (NZTB), or from a census. The most common method of primary data collection is through a survey. Surveys ask questions to the target population. Data obtained from a survey is usually quantitative in nature but to a limited extent can also be qualitative, the how and why of travel.

The indefinite and wide spread nature of the tourism industry makes it difficult to measure its impact on the economy, where does tourism stop and something else start? Data collection from a base level starts with a definition and when that definition is no universal it can make comparisons very difficult.

Generally statistics about tourists cover three areas. Volume -the number of tourists arriving at a destination and the length of their stay. The expenditure – statistics about tourist expenditure and where the money goes. Finally tourist characteristics include- age, sex, race, time of visit, occupation, accommodation used and so on. There are plenty of New Zealand Tourism surveys available, some examples are The New Zealand International Visitors Survey 1996/97 or the New Zealand Tourist Attraction Survey.

History & Growth

Travel facilitators and motivators have been fundamental in the development of tourism to where it is today both in New Zealand and internationally. Travel facilitators are simply the factors that facilitate travel for a person. These are an adequate disposable income and enough leisure time. As a result of the industrial revolution in the second half of the 19th century global tourism increased as the middle class became increasingly wealthy. Then with the introduction of paid holidays and pay parity for men and woman, within the last fifty years the amount of tourism has risen sharply. Other facilitators include ease of access to travel documents such as visas or passports, attractive exchange rates and political stability. Political problems in the Middle East do not facilitate travel to that region. In the same way, the murder of tourists in Africa recently does not motivate travel to that area. Motivators are things directing us to travel. A motivator might be a personal need that must be satisfied or it may be a pulling factor like the qualities of a specific destination.

Developments in New Zealand the last fifty years have dramatically changed tourism. The beginning of Saturday and later Sunday trading one, while licensing changes resulting in longer hours for bars and restaurants have maid New Zealand more attractive. Transportation developments have been significant for this country because of our isolation. The jet engine made it cheaper and considerably faster than boat travel to get here. Later changes in the law allowed for greater competition and more diverse transport options within the country.

To New Zealand, tourism is not just about international movement. A significant part of the New Zealand industry is domestic tourism, that is when a person travels outside their place of residence to another region within the country. Although less visible than international tourism; the importance of domestic visitors can not be underestimated, as they provide the regions with their base market, fostering regional development and maintaining much of the tourism infrastructure used by overseas tourists .

Structure of the Tourism Industry

There are a number of major international organizations, which are primarily involved with tourism. The World Trade Organization (WTO) is the biggest. WTO began in its current state in 1975 but was previously known as the International Union of Official Travel, which began in 1925. The current objective of the WTO as the put it, is to give tourism the importance it deserves . WTO is recognized by the United Nations (UN) giving it the right to speak to governments concerning tourism issues. The UN itself is also partly involved in tourism where it falls within the UN s objectives of developing international trade, economics and social welfare. Another body is the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) Committee on Tourism. This committee reports on tourism development and statistics of member nations.

Tourism has an influence on most areas of society, employment, environment, health, economic stability and quality of life. Therefore it is the concern of governments, the public sector, is to ensure the negative consequences is minimized. At the 1968 UN Conference on International Travel and Tourism it was made clear the government intervention and management is required for the smooth running tourist activities between countries.

In New Zealand the biggest participants in creating the creating the tourism product are from the private sector, that is individual operators like airlines, accommodation chains, attractions and tour operators. These sectors have their own organizations. For example hotels are represented by the Hotel Association of New Zealand (HANZ). The sales sector has groups like the travel agents Association of New Zealand or the Inbound Tourism Organizations Council. In Turn they all feed into the New Zealand Tourism Industry Association (NZTIA). The NZTIA can then represent their interests to the New Zealand Tourism Board (NZTB) , which is the country s national tourism Organization, or the ministry of commerce, which is responsible for tourism legislation.