BABY BOOMER DECISIONS TOWARDS TOURISM

Baby Boomer Decisions towards Tourism

Baby Boomer Decisions towards Tourism

Introduction

Tourism is an industry that can bestow benefits in three major areas: economic, cultural and environmental. It is an export industry that attracts new dollars and spreads wealth among a diverse range of businesses. It supports and encourages retention of culture and language. It can provide a strong argument for the preservation of pristine wilderness areas. These benefits make tourism a particularly appealing opportunity for the NWT.

Baby Boomers have had a tremendous impact on 20th century history and culture. Baby Boomers are defined as anyone born between 1946 and 1964. In the United States, nearly 30% of the population constitutes Boomers. The increased birthrate in the post-World War II era also affected Canada, where the generation is known as “boomies.” In Britain, Baby Boomers are simply referred to as “the bulge.” Baby Boomers have left an indelible mark on the modern history of the United States.

Discussion

Tourism can take a variety of forms from families travelling together for weekend excursions to university students taking study abroad programs. Future research on tourism needs to identify the changing consumer habits of various segments of the population from baby boomers to generation Y. Space travel is now a reality for some wealthy individuals but as technology develops and people have more leisure time it will be fascinating to see how quickly companies marketing tourism services adapt their advertising campaigns to take advantage of new destinations. How tourism changes and the technology changes that will occur are worthy of a deeper understanding of what people perceive as destination tourism. Other research methodologies should also be used in future research in order to triangulate research findings on destination image. People, communities and business are the three pillars of Tourism 2015. To realize the tourism potential of our territory, tourism development must respond to the goals and aspirations of all three pillars. Tourism can offer opportunities to assist achievement of personal career aspirations, the vision that communities hold for their future, and the business objectives of tourism enterprises (Read, 2007, 63).

In addition, because the industry cuts across a broad swath of sectors, coordination and cooperation among the many businesses involved is crucial for tourism development. The fundamental requirements for tourism development access, accommodation, food services, and attractions must be satisfied to realize tourism potential. All sectors of the industry must be fully engaged as active partners to move forward.

There is more than gold, diamonds and gas in our land. A strong economy is built on a foundation of diversity, and individual businesses must incorporate diversity in their business planning. Tourism is an industry particularly sensitive to events and factors that play out on a global scale. We have seen in the past decade how global events such as SARS, H1N1 and terrorist actions can have very drastic impacts on travel. Locally, resource issues with the wildlife our sports hunt outfitters depend on, illustrate how important it is to diversify a ...