Varoon Nasa

Varoon is a Master in Tourism Destination Management student from India. He’s currently writing his thesis and will be looking for a job in The Netherlands afterwards as part of the opportunities provided by the so-called Orange Carpet regulations. He shares some of his experiences in this short blogpost.

Studying in The Netherlands seemed a place so far away for a Bachelor student from India. Yet studying tourism was always my passion and I started researching for a good university with a competitive study program while finishing my last semester in my Bachelors in India. NHTV Breda came across as an interesting and esteemed university with professional credibility. The Master in Tourism Destination Management programme (TDM) enabled me to gain extensive theoretical knowledge which was later used effectively in our field research in Tasmania (Australia), Singapore and Bali. TDM is by far the only course which offers a student to work directly in the destination and explore the tourism environment first hand.

The Netherlands for me was the best choice while choosing a country to study as it gave me an opportunity to interact and study with people from all over the world. As a part of the orange carpet opportunities, The Netherlands offers international students the oppertunity one year after finishing the study to to look for a high skilled job. Currently I am working on my thesis with close contact from my supervisor, which in itself is a whole other experience from what we all were studying while on field research. Future plans would include finishing my thesis as soon as possible and working in Europe for some time and then returning to the place I call home India.

TDM students on Bali Radio

During the field trip 2010, TDM students interviewed Ratna Soebrata, who is a very active representative of the tourism industry on Bali. Besides her job at the Pacific Asia Travel Association (PATA) on Bali as well as her own tour operating company and numerous other important tourism positions, Ratna is also working at a local radio station on Bali.

As an expert in tourism, Ratna moderates the ‘Insight Tourism’ show, which is on every Thursday night. The show informs the audience about developments in tourism on Bali and seeks to provide interesting conversations on tourism with guests and listeners alike. Three TDM students were invited by Ratna to be her guests at the show, which was broadcast live on April 13 from 19.15 until 20.30. The girls had a good chat with the host about the changes that are happening on Bali, the most beautiful places and tourism products Bali has to offer as well as the Balinese culture. Laura, Carla and Judith would like to take this opportunity to once again say thanks to Ratna for this great experience and her very welcoming and hospitable attitude.

Prof. Dr. Brian Wheeller

Recently Brian Wheeller has given keynote presentations at three international conferences: ‘The Best of Times: The Worst of Times’ at the Cities as Creative Spaces for Tourism, University of Bogazici, Istanbul, Turkey: ‘What do they know of Tourism who only Tourism know’ at the Beyond the Boundary: Creating New Epistemologies in Tourism, University of West Indies, Bridgetown, Barbados and ‘Sustainable Tourism? Time to Exit Fantasy Land’ at the ‘Sustainable Tourism …Just Do it’ conference at Etten-Leurs, The Netherlands.

A personality like Brian Wheeller will help strengthen the leading role that NHTV would like to play in international tourism destination management around the world.

Open evening on 15 April

Time: 18.30 to 21.30 hrs

What can you expect?

On this open evening you can get acquainted with the study programmes offered by NHTV Breda University of Applied Sciences. To find out which study programme suits you, you can attend presentations, ask questions to students, lecturers and student counsellors, and get a taste of the atmosphere. Registration is not necessary.

TDM

The TDM department can be found on the 2nd floor of the main N: building at Hopmansstraat 1 in Breda. Several employees are available to answer any questions you might have. Don’t miss this opportunity to get a taste of the atmosphere at NHTV and at TDM in particular!

Directions to the various locations can be found here.

Registration is not necessary.

On Saturday 13 March 2010 from 10.00 a.m. till 15.00 p.m, the NHTV will open its doors so that you can get acquainted with the various study programmes offered by NHTV Breda University of Applied Sciences.

This is a great opportunity to meet our lecturers as well as current students and get a taste of the atmosphere at NHTV. You can find TDM on the second floor of the main building at Hopmansstraat 1.

Directions to the various locations can be found here.

Free buses go from the train station to the locations. The NHTV buses stop at the international bus station.

Registration is not necessary.

Representatives from the master programme in Tourism Destination Management will present at the Master fair in Utrecht. The fair is held on 26 and 27 February 2010 at Jaarbeurs in Utrecht, The Netherlands.

This would be a great opportunity to find out more about NHTV University and our Master programmes in particular! It is also possible to plan a meeting with one of the lecturers present, just send us an email at master-tdm (at) nhtv (dot) nl

See you there!

For more information (in Dutch):  http://www.masterbeurs.nl

An article about alternative tourism in Palestine by NHTV Lecturer Rami Isaac, was published in Tourism, Hospitality, Planning & Development Journal:

Violence, conflict and war, being sporadic or systematic, may affect uninvolved potential tourists. The eruption of the second Palestinian uprising (Intifada) in October 2000 (its Arab name Al-Aqsa Intifada) introduced Bethlehem to a reality of fluctuating political violence and counter-violence, tension and instability. But it has also promoted and brought about the emergence of a new tourist phenomenon whereby certain tourists and visitors come to the city, which lies at the heart of the Palestinian-Israeli conflict, in order to show their solidarity and support for Palestine and Palestinians.

Isaac, R. (2009) Alternative Tourism: Can the Segregation Wall in Bethlehem be a Tourist Attraction? Tourism, Hospitality, Planning & Development 6: 3, 247-254.

Photo credit: pedrosimoes7

As part of their TDM study programme, the master students at this moment are writing their own articles and contributing to debates on tourism destination management.

This is a roundup of their articles and we’d hereby like to offer you the opportunity to interact with the current master students and the TDM curriculum: feel free to read and comment on their contributions! We’re very interested in seeing you join the discussion!

20 Oct 2009, Nina Nguyen on Climate change and destination tourism development

Climate change is known as global warming, ice melt, violent storms, drought, floods, extinction of species, etc, Vietnam potentially is one of the countries where climate change could have the most dramatic impact. Climate change in Vietnam would threat 2,000 miles of coastline in danger of losing land and people as well as bring more frequent and severe typhoons and rising temperatures and changing rainfall patterns with. Vietnam has a large amount of forest area covering almost 40 percent of the country. According to Vietnam’s forest use classification system, 17 percent of these forests are considered special use, 41 percent are considered as protection and 42 percent are classified as production. Climate change by its very nature has not only become a challenge to environmental protection but also to tourism industry development in Vietnam.

Tourism is a resource industry, dependent for its basic appeal upon natural resources and society’s heritages. Natural resources are the combination of local physical attributes including:  climate, landforms, landscapes, flora or fauna; while socio-cultural heritages draw tourists’ attention to historic buildings, works of art, cuisine, festivals and spectacles. As tourism is a key industry in Vietnam, protecting mentioned tourism resources as well as related elements with respect to infrastructure, accommodation, transportation against the threats of climate change has become crucial than ever.

The major challenge of climate change with regards to Vietnam tourism is dynamics of tourism market. As demand side, tourists always seek for good weather by changing destination and travel patterns, Vietnam thus would face with high tourism seasonal problem during the rainy season. The damage of infrastructure would be recognized as tourists’ frustration while travelling within Vietnam as well as increasing the cost of maintaining. On the supply side, climate change presents a serious risk to areas which are highly dependent on tourism as a main source of income. The degradation of coastal zones, rising sea level and decline in biodiversity could make Vietnam lose its attractiveness to tourists. In brief, climate change could affect to the livelihood of the destination, decrease the amount of tourist arrivals as well as cause the lost in productivity by the cost of maintaining infrastructure, protecting environment.

According to the UNWTO’s “Climate Change and Tourism: Responding to Global Challenges” report, it is clear that tourism has become a non-negligible contributor to climate change. The economic, environmental and social impact of climate change makes tourism both a victim and a vector. Vietnamese government therefore should draw efficient development strategies to adapt to the changing of climate. Promoting public awareness on climate change, developing sustainable plan for building infrastructure, protecting tourism resources with regards to climate change should be essential goals in the country’s plan.

Bibliographic references

• Article: The Responsible Travel and Tourism Showcase is produced by Baxter Travel Media for the Responsible Travel and Tourism Forum and as a supplement to the Dec. 3/2007
• Digital edition of Canadian Travel Press, 310 Dupont, Toronto, Ont., M5R 1V9,
• WWF climate change program: No place to hide: Affects of climate change on protected areas
• http://www.terradaily.com/2006/070205100236.qijukvv4.html (Vietnam highly vulnerable to climate change: expert. HANOI, Feb 05, 2007)
• http://www.reliefweb.int/rw/rwb.nsf/db900SID/KHII-7WK5FW?OpenDocument (Vietnam: Economics of adaptation to climate change study. The World Bank Group, 30 Sept 2009)

25/10/09, Dina Kupryushina on consumer market trends and destination competitiveness

Tourism is undergoing through extremely difficult conditions as the international economy continue to deteriorate and Asia and the Pacific, being attractive and lucrative tourism regions in the world, are also strongly crushed with the impact of the global slowdown. As it was concluded by almost 100 experts from 25 countries participating for the second UNWTO conference on Tourism Trends and Outlook in Guilin , if tourism is promoted properly it can overcome the economic slowdown and difficulties and also to some extent can resolve the financial crisis of some countries. This paper discusses various elements of sustainable tourism in case of destination competitiveness with respect to South Asia and the concept of sustainability mixed with destination competitiveness is new to tourism world but it would definitely help to resolve black clouds of tourism crisis. This paper will also highlight the strategies and competitiveness development methods thereby recognizing the pattern of growth in tourism industry.

Destination Competitiveness-in case of South Asia

To develop competitiveness with regard to destination can be defined as the mixing of the individual products and experiences that would result a total experience of area visited. In the case of South Asia, the experiences and opportunities can be explained in terms of various areas of travel and tourism. Some developing countries despite of having advantages of travel destination for travelers are not able to receive attention from the global travel community, as such there is a need to draw strategic tourism planning and implement it effectively. Tourism industry in South Asia still lacks the key situational factors prevailing in much destination competitiveness. A few of key strategic gaps and challenges are highlighted below. Treating surrounding communities like a threat, lack of strategies and actions, narrowed and short time strategies has restricted tourism industry to grow.  Coordinated efforts, continuous support and coaching, sufficient financial support is crucial for improving attraction to destinations of South Asia countries.

In order to enhance destination competitiveness we have to understand various factors in a long-term period.  Support activities such as infrastructure, human resources, capacity, policies etc need to be combined with key drivers factors such as inputs (i.e. business model, cooperation, investments, resources), sustainable process (i.e. build image, competency, development, service delivery), operations (i.e. brand management, core competencies, expansion, positioning). Destination marketing is one of the important tools and helps highlight the service difference from competitors.  Sustainable service includes such features as services experiences, hospitality, accommodation, entertainment and it’s must be made to ensure quality of service approach to visitor satisfaction, moreover, innovation of services can create “value-competitive advantages”.

Ways for tourism competitiveness

Recognizing a pattern of development through tourism researchers contributing in competitiveness enhancement. Stimulation programs seek to create jobs and reignite growth. Tourism has more capacity for job creation and economic regeneration than virtually any other sector. Involving a diverse range of stakeholders in tourism destination development and planning. Value of ecotourism will give poor countries an advantage because of their nature, culture, and very lack of intensive development. The research is significant of understanding competitiveness variables to destinations in case of South Asian countries.

Sources:

• Article “Sustainable Tourism: A Case of Destination Competitiveness in South Asia” by Viju Mathew. South Asian Journal of Tourism and Heritage (2009) vol. 2, No.1
• Article “Asia Pacific Tourism Witnesses Improving Trends”, by Pacific Asia Travel Association (PATA)