The future of Tourism: Touristology’s point of view!

The other day, I got an interview about “The future of Tourism”. You can read it here. Next week, I will have to talk about the same. What better way to practice this interesting topic that sharing it with you, my fellow Touristologists?!?

I always get your feedback that make me both a better Touristologists and a happier person!!!

First of all, we have to be specific about the typology of Tourism that we want to talk about because, it is compulsory to provide different analysis for the Generic or Mass Tourism of for the Specialized one.

Generic Tourism has as a main characteristic a Tourist focused on a low price and as winners of the game the enterprises able to control all the members of the chain of value using economy of scale. You can talk about a big tour-operator, the new search engine, the new Social Networking Site or the new Platform Economy related to Tourism.

Then, we have the Specialized Tourism where the Tourists are focus on value and the winner will be the enterprises able to discover a segment, disclosure to them the necessities, that they have, better satisfied during a trip and controlling all the chain of value giving support to ITS Tourists from the beginning to the end of the trip.

Future of Mass/Generic Tourism? Price will continue being the most important thing. To provide it the winner will need to manage great numbers of Tourists (origin of OverTourism ) and reduce the cost of its packages. Consequences for Tourism Destinations? Less profit for local enterprises, less salaries for local employees and less local taxes.

Is Mass/Generic Tourism a bad think? NO! But if we are unable to compensate it with Specialized Tourism… We won’t provide a solution to the dark side of the most beautiful sector ever! For example, making strategic alliances with other Cities/Tourism Destinations. Creating international routes seducing YOUR Tourists to go to one place or the other based on the situation of each City/Tourism Destination.

Becoming waves Managers of Tourists, embracing the principles of Yield/Revenue Management!   So, the future of Tourism… IT’S UP TO US!!!

At the end of the day, specialized Tourism is strongly related to the origins of travel from the beginning of the humankind. We have to remember that one of the supposed origins of the world Tourism is related with The Grand Tour.

Travel has always been a great provider of international networking for business or for sharing a passion. You can think to Marco Polo for instance! Travel has always been a great provider of new perspectives because you get isolation of your normal environment. For that reason, divorce Hotel or divorce Tourism are good business endeavors. Travel has always been the origin of a bunch of creativity. Was Darwin travelling when He developed one of the main ideas in Biology? A trip has always been an excellent way to create bonds between Tourists travelling together. I’m sure that you know examples of team building for enterprises or for families both classic ones or new ones (PANKS, Single Dads, GrandParents…).

To me, the best Psychologist of the world is the mother of my kids BUT Abraham Maslow is also a genius who always try to use Psychology not only to recover people from emotional damage BUT also to help them to become extraordinary ones! In the same way, Tourism can be the source of motivation and the lighthouse to see how to become a better human being AND to have better economies for Tourism Destinations! We deal with these ideas in this post.

Let me share with you two good examples of becoming a better person enjoying a transformative experience through a trip. As always… waiting for YOUR examples!

What do you think about digital nomads? You can get more information here

What do you think about getting an university degree in your favorite science during a trip? Visiting different Universities in different countries. Doing internships in different enterprises, getting a holistic vision, working with international teams, getting experience, contacts… seeing the big picture. Becoming the best mind in the science that you choose OR discovering connections between different sciences as Consilient Thinkers like to do!

Of course, to manage the communities related to these segments and provide support from the beginning to the end of the trip you can use technologies. They are also an important component of the Future of the Tourism!

What about Blockchain? Providing the information that you decide and for specific scenarios, in order to get credits in different Universities, to share your professional experience…

Blockchain allow us to verify our identity and all the information that it is necessary for the transaction that we want to do. I repeat, NOT all the information, ONLY the information that we need! Remember, customization without privacy it is a nightmare!

Blockchain allow us to create “smart contracts” to link together actions and consequences. For instance, to get access to different places with a single identification…

Blockchain can be very useful for secure micropayments. For instance, to get rewards in a kind of Loyalty Program.

What about Artificial Intelligence? To get customized 3 C’s (Content, Commerce and Community), to avoid scams, to ….

What about AR (Augmented Reality) and VR (Virtual Reality) to get these 3C’S right here, right now.

All these technologies will also allow you to create and manage teams around the world!

Before, during and after the trip, each student, each professor, each potential employer will see in their Smartphone or in the new, new device that soon will appear (the new version of intelligent glasses, an implant in your brain or eye…) the results of an Artificial Intelligence Model able to recognize people and places relevant to them making real the word Ubiquitous Computing coined by Mark Weiser.

Thanks to Augmented Reality this customized information will appear where necessary making easier networking activities, events, congress… AND thanks to Blockchain the information for each person will be only the authorized one for each specific situation.

YES! I think that Artificial Intelligence, Augmented Reality and Blockchain will improve the transformative experience of doing Tourism!!!

In a nutshell, the future of Tourism? A world of endless opportunities for My Touristologists!!! As I always say… IT IS UP TO YOU!!!

You are the best minds working in the best sector ever!