Introduction to Destination Management Defining Tourism Destination Tourism

Introduction to Destination Management Defining Tourism Destination Tourism destination is an Area/ a region , a physical space in which a tourist spends at least one overnight. It consists of: • Tourism products • Supports services • Attractions • Resources

• It has physical and administrative boundaries defining its management • Images and perceptions defining its market competitiveness. • Local destinations incorporate various stakeholders often including a host community, and can nest and network to form larger destinations.

Elements of Tourist Destination • Attractions: – Natural(Himalaya, lake, sea, landscape, rivers, beaches, etc. ) – Man made( historical monuments iconic buildings such as the Eiffel tower, heritage monuments, religious buildings, conference and sports facilities, museums, theatres, art galleries, cultural events) • Access: (Air, land, sea) • Accommodation: (hotel, resorts, home stay, camping, time sharing sites, recreational vehicles etc) • Amenities: (facilities such as visitor information, recreations facilities, guides, operators and catering and shopping facilities)

• Activities: Natural (fishing, hunting, bird watching etc), Man made (cultural show, swimming, game etc. ) • Affinity: (relationship between host and guest), guest is god, decoration, smiling, hospitable behavior etc • Actors: – Stakeholders (Government, local community, business organization) – Human resources (skilled, semi-skilled, labour) • Act: Rules/regulation • Administration: Planning/Management

• Absolute: Image, uniqueness, incomparable (Mount Everest, fewa lake with fish tail, Tilicho lake, kande bhykur etc)The image of the destination includes uniqueness, sights, scenes, environmental quality, safety, service levels, and the friendliness of people. • Advertisement: marketing • Amount : Price factors relate to the cost of transport to and from the destination, the cost on the ground of accommodation, attractions, food and tour services. A tourist’s decision may also be based on other economic features such as currency exchange.

Destination Management • Destination management is the co-ordinated management of all the elements that make up a destination (attractions, accommodation, amenities, access, actors, act, absolute, administration etc). • Destination management takes a strategic approach to link-up these sometimes very separate entities for the better management of the destination. • Joined up management can help to avoid duplication of effort with regards to promotion, visitor services, training, business support and identify any management gaps that are not being addressed.

• There are various options for destination management governance as follows: • Department of single public authority; • Partnership of public authorities, serviced by partners; • Partnership of public authorities, serviced by a joint management unit; • Public authority(ies) outsourcing delivery to private companies; • Public-private partnership for certain functions – often in the form of a non-profit making company; • Association or company funded purely by a private sector partnership and/or trading – again for certain functions.

Destination Management • Summary Elements DMO Leading and coordinating Delivery on the ground Marketing Creating a suitable environment (policy, rules , regulation

Creating a suitable environment. This is the foundation of destination management on which the marketing of the destination and the delivery of the experience are dependent. Creating the right environment includes: • Planning and infrastructure; • Human resources development; • Product development; • Technology and systems development; • Related industries and procurement.

Marketing includes: • Destination promotion, including branding and image; • Campaigns to drive business, particularly to SMMEs (Small medium and micro enterprises); • Unbiased information services; • Operation/facilitation of bookings; • CRM (Customer Relationship Management). Delivery on the ground. Ensures the quality of every aspect of the visitor’s experience once they arrive. This includes: • Destination coordination and management for visitor ‘quality of experience’, especially the public • realm;

• • • Product “start-ups”; Events development and management; Attractions development and management Training and education; Business advice; Strategy, research and development.

Destination Management Organization(DMO) • Destination organizations are the responsible to promote destination. • Destination management calls for a coalition of many organisations and interests working towards a common goal i. e. development of tourism. • The Destination Management Organisation’s role is to lead and coordinate activities under a sound strategy. • DMO do not control the activities of their partners but bring together resources and expertise and a degree of independence and objectivity to lead the way forward.

• They do not compete each other rather the do complementary work to manage destination for the development of tourism • DMOs must develop a high level of skill in developing and managing partnerships to manage destination • They need to play leading role to achieve the goals – Marketing goal: promotion, publicity, product identify and development, market segmentation – Leadership goal: leading, coordinating, formulating policy, rules and regulation, maximize industry effectiveness – Infrastructure goal: transportation, communication, health, safety and security – Managerial goals : planning, organizing, staffing, directing, controlling, communicating, effective use of resources etc.

Categories of DMOs • National: National Tourism Authorities (NTAs) or Organisations (NTOs), responsible for management and marketing of tourism at a national level. For e. g. Nepal Tourism Board is a national tourism organization of Nepal responsible for promotion • Regional: responsible for the management and/or marketing of tourism in a geographic region (may be eastern, middle, western, mid-western, and far western) • Local: responsible for the management and marketing of tourism based on a smaller geographic area or city/town (Pokhara, chitawan, palpa, Koshi tappu, Solu etc. ).

• Destination management is very complex task. • The DMO’s most critical assets are its credibility as a strategic leader in tourism destination marketing and development and its ability to facilitate industry partnerships and collaboration towards a collective destination vision.

How Does Destination Management Work? Involvement of public and private sector stakeholders for destination management: • • • • National (MOCTCA, NTB) Economic development agencies Local authorities/government (DDC, Municipality, VDC) Town centre management organizations National Park/ Protected Areas authorities Transport companies Events Organizers Cultural organizations Accommodation providers (hotel, motel, resort etc) Restaurant, leisure and retail operators Intermediaries (for example tour operators and conference organizers) Destination representation agencies Media Local tourism associations and partnerships (local tourism development committee) Representative Agencies (NATTA, TAAN, HAN, REBAN, TURGAN etc) Skills development organizations.

Mechanisms for co-ordination and co-operation stakeholders: • Tourism management development groups • Liaison groups • Functional groups • User groups for: – Joint strategy development. – Joint destination management planning. – Implementation on a coordinated basis. • Product development and promotion projects. • Bringing together partners for focused project planning (including investment planning) and • implementation over specific timescale.

The process The Destination Management Plan (DMP) is a key instrument for building partnership and commitment. • Integrate the action of separate organizations • Confirm and strengthen the link between strategy and action • Apply the DMO’s knowledge and expertise to the project planning of other organizations • Foster an evidence-based and learning approach to destination promotion and management