tourism development plan meaning

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Tourism Policy, Planning, and Development

General overview.

Tourism policy, planning, and development are all very connected and do not just occur when a geographic area decides to be a tourism destination. Policy, planning, and development are included in numerous aspects of communities.

continue but from different perspectives. An example would be the use of the destination/product lifecycle, discussed later. It is important to understand what tourism planning and development are individually as well as collectively. Planning is essential to effective development. Tourism is not always a beneficial industry for a geographical area, but without planning tourism can damage the area, including natural and cultural resources (Morrison et al., 2018). A destination might consider “Who, What, When, Where, Why” when working on a tourism plan. The same can be considered for tourism development, as well as other topics included in this alternative textbook (e.g., marketing and promotion).

Tourism Policy

A policy is essentially a course of action taken by some organization or institution (e.g., government, business, educational institution). A tourism policy as defined by Edgell et al. (2008) “is a progressive course of actions, guidelines, directives, principles, and procedures set in an ethical framework that is issues-focused and best represents the intent of a community (or nation) to effectively meet its planning, development, product, service, marketing, and sustainability goals and objectives for the future grown of tourism” (p. 7). Stated more simply, Hall and Jenkins (1995) suggest “tourism public policy is whatever governments choose to do nor not to do with respect to tourism” (p. 7-8). A tourism policy is essentially a framework including guidelines, goals, and initiatives to work toward achieving the goals. Where as an act by government, such as the Travel Promotion Act of 2009 establishing Brand USA, is a law or statute.

A policy for international travel is having a current passport and for many countries a Visa. The application for a Visa to visit a foreign country allows countries to approve who may visit the country and not allow individuals for a variety of reasons (e.g., security threat). The U.S also has the Visa Waiver Program, which is an agreement with  40 countries allowing citizens of those countries to visit the U.S. for business or leisure travel purposes for up to 90 days without a Visa, provided they meet other requirements (U.S. Department of State – Bureau of Counsular Affairs, n.d.). The countries with the Visa Waiver Program also allows U.S. residents to travel to the respective countries with fairly similar criteria. The purpose of requiring a Visa is to regulate travel between countries. The Visa Waiver Program is an agreement to allow citizens of certain countries to visit without having to obtain a Visa if certain criteria are met. This essentially makes it easier to travel between the respective countries.

The International Trade Administration includes a Tourism Policy Council (TPC) to ensure national decision-making considers the national interests of travel and tourism (International Trade Administration, n.d.). The TPC provides resources to help with such issues or challenges as recovering from disaster, and links to Center for Disease Control (CDC), and many other potential issues or challenges for travel and tourism in the U.S.

At more local levels, Morrison et al. (2018) suggest tourism destinations can develop policies for development, marketing, tourist experiences, human resource issues, tourism organizations (e.g., structure), relationships throughout the community, quality assurance, and supporting services (e.g., safety and security).

Policy Setting Process

There are a series of recommended steps for the establishing policy (Morrison et al., 2018). First, identifying and assessing the circumstances related to the issue. This includes understanding contraints that you and/or will face. Constraints can be internal (e.g., locals’ awareness of tourism, training and education of employees in hospitality and tourism, budget) or external (e.g., economy,  price of gas, natural disaster). The tourism organization/local industry has more control or ability to do something about internal constraints, while have little or no control over external constraints. For example, nothing can be done about bad weather or if a natural disaster occurs. However, if locals are not aware of tourism in the local community, education and information can be shared to make locals more aware. This step in the process can also make you aware of new opportunities (e.g., an attraction to develop, new target market).

The next step is typically to create a policy statement to provide guidelines, goals, and initiatives to help guide the organization, destination, etc. While not directly a policy statement, most CVB vision statements include something that provides a guideline with somewhat vague goals. For example, it might be to maintain and/or improve the quality of life for residents of the destination by promoting the destination for tourism and conventions, which would include an economic goal. A policy statement for this vision would be more specific with the goals and initiatives identified to fulfill the goals.

Consultation with government, local tourism businesses, and any other stakeholders is next. This step is to get feedback about the policy statement. Following the consultation and depending on the outcome, the policy statement might be rewritten or modified. Next would be another round of consultation and then rewriting until the the policy statement is approved.

Now is time to implement the policy statement. This will include identifying specific roles of individuals, committees, organizations, etc. This step also includes developing the budget and timeline for the initiative(s).

Finally, those involved evaluation the policy. Were the goals achieved? Why or why not? However, you do not wait until the end of the established timeline for the policy to evaluate. There should be constant assessment to identify if you are likely to achieve the goals. Remember there are numerous constraints that are external (e.g., weather, natural disaster) that might dictate the need to adjust the initiatives and other efforts related to the tourism policy.

Tourism Planning

Prior to tourism planning it is important to consider other types of planning for a community or geographic area. Planning is not new. Gunn and Var (2002) indicate physical planning goes back to early Greek and Roman times. Planning is done to manage visual appearance and land use. However, planning incorporates many disciplines and perspectives: “Planning is a multidimensional activity and seeks to be integrative. It embraces social, economic, political, psychological, anthropological, and technology factors. It is concerned with the past, present, and future” (Rose, 1984, p. 45).

Gunn and Var (2002) suggest when plans (not only tourism, but community, etc.) are created they often include very high or lofty goals and it is difficult to actually achieve such goals for numerous reasons. Planning is very vague and has no real theory behind it. For community plans the general goal is a better place to live. For tourism planning the goal might be to provide visitors with a good experience. As stated earlier, an effective  tourism plan can also maintain or even improve the quality of life of residents, not just economically but the attractions provide activities for local residents as well as tourists.

Morrison et al. (2018) offer three primary reasons for tourism planning. The first two are related to impacts, to maximize the economic benefits and minimize damage to resources (i.e., natural, environmental, cultural). Another reason for a tourism plan is that tourism is constantly changing for many reasons (e.g., visitor expectations, needs, motives; politics; economy; technology). As a result, the plan needs to be adaptable.

Not all destinations have a tourism plan. Some reasons for not having a tourism plan include (Morrison et al., 2018):

• Objections – it should be taken care of by the private sector and there is no need for a formal plan.
• Cost – includes market research, consultations, and a lot of time.
• Complex – tourism is affected by numerous things, such as government policies, dynamic of the community and stakeholders.
• Diversity – various sectors involved directly or indirectly in tourism.
• Seasonality – in many destinations the jobs related to tourism can be seasonal (e.g., beach destinations, snow skiing destinations).
• Unpredictability – keep in mind the numerous things that affect and make tourism complex (e.g., natural disasters, crises, politics, economy).

Gunn and Var (2002) add the following tourism planning barriers:

• Lack of awareness of tourism impacts – which is ironic because it is a reason for a tourism plan.
• Do not understand tourism development – there needs to be a plan for developing tourism and then maintaining and even upgrading tourism (e.g., attractions, facilities, etc.).
• Inadequate infrastructure – might have deteriorated attractions, facilities, etc.
• Unorganized – no leadership to guide the process.
• Politics – usually various opinions among stakeholders (e.g., businesses, government, other stakeholders).
• Lack of hospitality training.

However, there can be serious consequences of unplanned tourism. In general, unplanned tourism is not likely to be sustainable tourism economically, environmentally, socially/culturally.

Tourism Planning Models or Approaches

Morrison et al. (2018) provide a seven step tourism destination planning model:

• Background analysis – including a SWOT analysis and assessments of government policies that affect tourism, inventory analysis (e.g., attractions, accommodations, restaurants, etc.), current demand for tourism at the destination.
• Research and analyses – identify/map locations of the inventory analysis, market survey of current visitors (e.g., motivations, what they like to do) and non-visitors (e.g., why have they not visited?, awareness of the destination, image/perception of the destination), competitive analysis (e.g., who are your competitors?, how can you differentiate your destination from competitors? what do and can you work to improve?).
• Where are we now? (position statement).
• Where would we like to be? (vision statement). Then, identify critical success factors or ways to measure and determine if you achieved your vision.
• Setting goals, establishing strategies, and setting objectives – develop a policy or (e.g., stimulate the economy). Set goals or achievable outcomes. Identify alternative strategies to achieve goals and select the most desired of the alternatives given environment or conditions (e.g., economy, resources, politics). Set objectives which are more short term goals to help monitor if you are going to achieve your longer term goals. If not, remember a tourism destination plan should be adaptable, which is the next step.
• Develop a plan – identify organizations and people to be involved and their roles, funding sources and budgets for different aspects of the plan, activities to implement your plan.
• Implement and monitor the plan – While the plan should be developed by input and participation by numerous stakeholders, it is generally implemented by a local tourism agency or organization (e.g., CVB). But, there should be committees derived of various stakeholders to which the agency is accountable. This helps monitor progress of implementing the tourism destination plan and adapt if needed.
• Evaluate the plan – measure performant of the various parts of the plan against the goals (e.g., did you achieve the goals? Why or why not?). Use the evaluation to see if and how you might adapt the plan moving forward.

Tourism Development

The tourism destination plan helps guide development of tourism. Destinations will be at various stages of development. So, it is not that the tourism plan is just for a destination just getting involved in tourism. As suggested by Mason (2003). development and change for destinations occurs as time progresses. The characteristics, motives, preferred activities and attractions, and many other things change over time and destinations redevelop to remain competitive. A fairly common way to view this is commonly referred to as “Butler’s Tourism Area Lifecycle”. There are five main stages to Butler’s Life Cycle (Butler, 1980):

• Exploration – at this stage there might be some tourism but not really an effort to provide traditional or common tourism attractions, facilities, etc. This stage mostly include tourists visiting facilities and local resources used by residents.
• Involvement – this is the beginning of the destination offering some facilities for tourists. The destination begins to more formally organize and provide or improve infrastructure, some attractions, and facilities for tourists at a local level.
• Development – the destination begins marketing and promoting the destination. This stage also begins development from outside organizations and/or businesses. The destination will begin to develop and look more like a noticeable tourist destination. More and more tourists will likely visit the destination as development progresses.
• Consolidation – at this stage the rate of increase in visitors will begin to decline. The rate of development will also begin to decline. Residents may become opposed to tourism with all of the non-locals who are in the community and there is more traffic and congestion. Some of the older attractions, facilities, etc. may also begin showing degradation.
• Decline – number of visitors will be begin to decrease as competitor destinations might have more appealing attractions, infrastructure, etc. The degradation of attractions, infrastructure, and other aspects of the destination will continue and possibly turn into what Butler (1980) refers to as a “veritable tourist slum” (p. 9).
• Rejuvenation – this outcome can occur by development of a new man-made attraction, which is likely to be followed by improvement of surrounding attractions, facilities, and other tourist needs. However, if competitor destinations also rejuvenate, the competition will remain and rejuvenation might be much less or possibly not rejuvenate and potentially decline. Another way Butler (1980) suggest rejuvenation can occur is to utilize natural resources that might not have been part tourism product throughout previous tourism development and marketing and promotion.

Butler (1980), as well as many other tourism scholars, suggest all of these efforts or stages of Tourism Area Life Cycle should be a collaborative effort within the community. For example, the government could offer incentives for private development of a new man-made attraction.

There are a number of potential ways to develop tourism. One way is to develop a “flagship” attraction, which are major attractions like a theme park (e.g., Disney Land, Disney World) and/or utilize natural attractions (e.g., ocean, lake, National Park). Gunn and Var (2002) offer recommendations for tourism destinations to develop destination zones. The zone would have clusters of attractions (e.g., museum districts) and a corridor connecting the clusters with some form of transportation. Clustering attractions provides tourists with more to do in a closer area so they spend more time at attractions and less traveling between attractions. The destination zone and clustering is a great example of planning and development and how integrated the two initiatives should be.

Morrison et al. (2018) suggest tourism involvement should be holistic. The holistic view would include consideration of the product (e.g., attractions, events, support facilities, transportation, infrastructure, etc.). Respective destinations could also ensure people (i.e., hosts, guests) are included to ensure there is community awareness and  inclusion of local businesses, organizations, and residents. Morrison et al. (2018) also suggest visitor management (e.g., signage) and identifying the visitor mix of the destination. Packages (e.g., all inclusive, hotel and tickets to attraction) and programs (e.g., events, festivals, other activities) could also be developed to attract more tourists. However, destinations should approach tourism development and/or redevelopment from a sustainable approach to avoid overtourism (i.e., too many tourists).

Sustainable Tourism Development

Tourism development should also be sustainable and include the three impacts of tourism (i.e., economic, environmental, social/cultural).

The United Nations (n.d.) proposes 17 goals to consider for economic development, which include economic (e.g., “No Poverty”, “Decent Work and Economic Growth”, environmental (e.g., “Clean Water and Sanitation”, “Affordable and Clean Energy”), and social/cultural (e.g., “Good Health and Well Being”, Quality Education”) goals. The 17th goal is “Partnerships For the Goals”, which are very important for tourism destinations, not only in tourism destination planning and development, but other aspects such as marketing and promotion.

Relating development back to the impacts of tourism (i.e., economic, environmental, social/cultural). Sustainable development should include these impacts. Morrison et al. (2018) through applying the triple bottom line to tourism offers some examples of efforts for sustainable development in each of the three areas:

• Social – include residents, be sure development improves or at least maintains locals’ quality of life.
• Environmental – protect resources, educate visitors and residents of ways to protect resources.
• Economic – new employment opportunities, increase spending of visitors, find ways to have businesses purchase locally to minimize leakage.

Tourism Development Strategies

Various strategies exist to develop tourism. For example, flagship attractions (e.g., large amusement parks, National Parks) can provide something unique to market and promote. Development of clusters of attractions (e.g., museum districts) provide several attractions near each other so visitors do not have to drive long distances between attractions. Such districts could also include development of a circuit or trail for transportation via hiking or biking. Aside from man-made attractions, events can be developed by destinations to highlight such things as cultural or other unique aspects of a destination.

Considering all of the possible options of tourism development provides a holistic view. Not only the examples of attractions and events, but packages and programs can developed. Destinations need to also consider all of the elements of tourism in development (i.e., attractions, infrastructure, transportation, built/support facilities, service quality/hospitality). Again, not only businesses and organizations directly involved in tourism, but all stakeholders (e.g., residents, other local businesses) should be included and/or given the opportunity to provide feedback regarding the tourism development plan.

The general goals of tourism development should include improving visitors’ experiences, improving the local economy, not damaging natural resources, and integration throughout the destination so that tourism attractions and venues are not isolated from the rest of the community (Gunn & Var, 2002). Such goals of tourism development require all three sectors (i.e., private, non-profit, government) to be involved and collaborate.

Tourism Development Roles

The private sector, non-profit, government, and local community (e.g., residents) should be involved in tourism development. The private sector role is entrepreneurial and operations (Morrison et al., 2018). The entrepreneurial role is to identify investors to develop man-made attractions, accommodations, food and beverage, and other facilities for tourists. Once built their role becomes to hire workers, manage the operation and ensure it is successful. After all, they are taking a risk as entrepreneurs.

As discussed in the Tourism Organizations section, the non-profit organizations include CVBs to market and manage the destination, chambers of commerce, associations such as a local sports association to attract sporting events to the destination. The CVB typically works with all stakeholders and leads the marketing and sales (e.g., conventions, trade shows) for the destination. Chambers of commerce might be the tourism marketing and sales organization in smaller destinations. However, many of these non-profit types of organizations collaborate with each other, as well as with private or for-profit-sector (e.g., members of CVBs) and government (e.g., hotel tax dollars as a funding source). Non-profit organizations might also operate such things as museums and historical attractions, as well as festivals and events. Such organizations might be local cultural organizations.

The government really does not manage tourism attractions. However, there are exceptions, such as National Parks. Government roles are to stimulate development of tourism, as well as establish and enforce procedures, codes, such as zoning (e.g., business, residential). Government might also get involved for the following reasons: bankruptcy of an attraction where the government needs to help the business in some way, ensure cultural aspects of the community are conserved, encouraging private sector development, find ways to work with potential attractions and other elements of tourism provided through the private sector where businesses may have concerns about being profitable (Morrison et al., 2018).

Government might fulfill some of the above reasons for their role in tourism development by offering incentives (e.g., tax breaks) to entice development by the private sector. Government might also offer a piece of land for private sector development, which lowers the businesses cost to develop at attraction, supporting facilities, or other element of tourism.

While the sectors may have relatively unique roles in tourism development, it is also important the cooperate with each other for the good of the destination. Edgell and Haenisch (1995) offer a model whereby there are times each will work independently of the other two sectors, times when two sectors work together (e.g., private sector and government), and times when all three work together. Edgell and Haenisch (1995) call this “coopetition”. For example, while attractions compete within the destination for tourists to visit respective attractions, if all stakeholders cooperate the develop and manage tourism, the destination will do better overall.

Project Development Analyses

Prior to developing an attraction, hotel, or other element of tourism, there should be an assessment or analysis to determine the feasibility of being successful. Private sector developers who need be profitable will typically do feasibility studies. This may start with a pre-feasibility study, which is essentially to see if the project is even viable. For example, does the project make sense given what the destination already offers? Pre-feasibility studies might be conducted by whatever company or organization is interested in the project. If it does, the next step would be a more robust feasibility study to identify such things as potential sites for the product being considered, assess the market demand of the project, projected revenues and expenses, capital costs to develop the project, and will there be enough return on investment (ROI) if the project is developed. The full feasibility study is often conducted by an independent consulting company to minimize biases. The feasibility studies helps the company or organization identify if the project should move forward or not.

The market demand study within the full feasibility study would include secondary and primary research. Secondary research would include existing data, such as hotel metrics (e.g., supply, demand or rooms sold over a given period of time, occupancy, average daily rate (ADR), and revenue per available room (REVPAR) if the project is a hotel. Primary market analysis requires collection of data. This can include surveys (e.g., visitors of the destination to determine if the potential project is of interest), focus groups to get in-depth insight as to the interest of visitors. Surveys can also be conducted to potentially identify potential demand for the project.

If a project is not intended to be profitable, such as one being developed by the government or non-profit organization, a cost-benefit analysis can be conducted. Such a study essentially identifies the potential benefits to society are worth the cost of the investment.

Butler, R. W. (1980). The concept of a tourist area life cycle of evolution: Implications for management of resources. Canadian Geographer, XXIV (1), 5-12.

Draper, J., Woosnam, K. M., & Norman, W. C. (2011). Tourism use history: Exploring a new framework for understanding residents’ attitudes toward tourism. Journal of Travel Research, 50 (1), 64-77.

Edgell, D. L., Allen, M. D., Smith, G., & Swanson, L. E. (2008). Tourism policy and planning: Yesterday, today and tomorrow . Elsevier Inc.

Gunn, C. A., & Var, T. (2002). Tourism planning: Basics, concepts, cases (4th ed.). Routledge.

Hall, C. M., & Jenkins, J. M. (1995). Tourism and public policy . Routledge.

International Trade Administration. (n.d.). Tourism Policy Council (TPC). https://www.trade.gov/tourism-policy-council

Mason, P. (2003). Tourism impacts, planning and management . Elsevier Butterworth-Heinemann.

Morrison, A. M., Lehto, X. Y., & Day, J. G. (2018). The tourism system (8th ed.). Kendall Hunt.

Rose, E. A. (1984). Philosophy and purpose in planning. In M. J. Bruton (Ed.), The spirit and purpose of planning (2nd ed., pp. 31-65). Hutchinson.

United Nations. (n.d.). Department of Economic and Social Affairs: Sustainable Development. https://sdgs.un.org/goals

U.S. Department of State – Bureau of Counsular Affairs. (n.d.) Visa Waiver Program. https://travel.state.gov/content/travel/en/us-visas/tourism-visit/visa-waiver-program.html

GHL 2365 - Tourism Copyright © 2024 by Jason Draper is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International License , except where otherwise noted.

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Developing a destination management plan or tourism growth plan, introduction.

When a destination is managed effectively and sustainably, its visitor economy reaps countless benefits. New investment and greater innovation alone, for example, can inject fresh talent and jobs to the area.

If you’re looking for successful development, a Destination Management Plan (DMP) or Tourism Growth Plan (TGP) is an essential tool. It establishes a strong foundation and goals for the future, with a clear focus on the needs of residents, businesses and visitors alike.

Read on to learn about DMPs and TGPs, discover how they have benefitted various regions of England, and access our resources for creating your own.

What is a Destination Management Plan or Tourism Growth Plan?

A DMP or TGP is a shared statement of intent to manage a destination over a stated period of time. It articulates the roles of the different stakeholders and identifies clear actions that they will take and the apportionment of resources.

Crucially, destination management includes the planning, development and marketing of a destination, as well as how it is managed physically, financially, operationally and in other ways.

A DMP or TGP should cover all the fundamental aspects of destination management, including:

Tourism performance and impacts.

Working structures and communication.

Overall appeal and appearance, access, infrastructure and visitor services 

Destination image, branding and promotion (marketing).

Product mix – development needs and opportunities.

Typically, a DMP or TGP sets a strategic direction for the destination over a period of up to five years. It contains prioritised actions within an annual rolling programme and identifies stakeholders responsible for their delivery.

Guiding principles for developing a DMP

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For an in-depth explanation of the function and strengths of DMPs, and to explore the process of establishing your own, read our publication Principles for Developing Destination Management Plans. It is relevant to destinations that already have a DMP and want to strengthen or renew it, as well as to those that are yet to start planning.

Essential DMP and TGP resources

Establish your priorities.

Use our Prioritisation guide (PDF, 3.4MB) to identify key actions and objectives. Includes an examination of the benefits and disadvantages of each model.

Video resource

Use our video explanation of destination management in your presentations – for a simple, snappy introduction.

Introductory guidance

Our main presentation for destination managers (PPTX, 2.32MB) covers how a DMP works, and key steps to help you to develop your own.

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Local visitor economy partnership (lvep) programme.

Transforming England’s visitor economy landscape through a robust new structure – sharing priorities, resources and targets.

Rich Kenworthy

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Discover the key recommendations, how they may affect you, and our role in their implementation.

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Expert advice, tools and support for destination management teams.

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Tourism Planning

Tourism Planning: The written account of projected future course of action or scheme aimed at achieving or targeting specific goals or objectives within a specific time period is called a Plan.  A Tourism plan explains in detail what needs to be done, when to be done, how to be done, and by whom to be done. It often includes best case, expected case, and worst case scenarios or situations. 

A plan is usually a map or list of steps with timing and available resources, used to achieve an objective to do something.  It is commonly understood as a temporary set of projected actions through which one believes that the goals or targets would be achieved.  

Plans can be formal or informal:

Structured and formal plans, utilised by numerous people, are more likely to occur in projects, diplomacy, careers, economic development, military campaigns, combat, sports, games, agriculture, technology, tourism, IT, Telecommunication etc. or in the conduct of other businesses. 

In most cases, the absence of a well-laid plan can have high effects: for example, a nonrobust project plan can cost the organization long time and high cost. 

The persons to fulfill their various quests do informal or adhoc planning. But, what most importantly matters is the extensiveness, time interval, and preciousness of the plans. Though, all these planning categories are not self-governing and dependent on each other. 

For example, there is an intimate connection between short-range and long-range plans and tactical (strategic) & functional (operational) planning classifications.

For businesses, sector planning’s (such as IT, telecommunication, services, banking, tourism, agriculture etc.) and military purposes formal plans used to a greater level. They are conceptualized, thought as abstract ideas, are likely to be written down, drawn up or otherwise stored in a form that is accessible to multiple people across time and space. This allows more reliable collaboration in the execution of the plan.

Tourism Planning and the Need for Tourism Planning  

Planning is one of the most important project management and time management techniques or methods. It involves preparing or forming of a sequence of action steps to achieve some specific desired goals.  If you do it effectively and efficiently, you can reduce much of the necessary time and effort used in achieving the goal. 

A plan is like a map or a blueprint which would fetch you results slowly & steady according to a time frame.  Whenever, you are following any plan, you are able to know how much you have neared to your assignment objectives or how much distant you are from your goals. 

Why is planning important?

• To set direction and priorities for the workforce in the organisation:

The strategy is the chief requirement of the organization, in order to achieve the targets.  The strategies give the route and primacies (priorities) for your organization. It describes your organization’s perspective and gives an order to the activities that will make the perspective into reality. 

Read more on World Federation of Tourist Guide Associations (WFTGA)

The plan will assist the team in achieving goals and also give them familiarity about the tasks.  The plainly defined and appropriate strategy will give priority initiatives that will drive  the maximum success.

• To get everyone on the same room or the same box:

An organisation has different departments, but a single goal. That’s, why different departments work in a way that add to the goals of the organization. 

Hence, a strategy is required, so that all actions move in one direction. Then only, the various departments such as marketing, administration, sales, operations etc. can move together to accomplish the anticipated goals of the organisation. Tourism Planning

• To simplify decision-making process within the organisation:

Whenever, there are targets, there are different solutions. The team also may have new philosophies or probable solutions. Therefore, you need a definite plan, so there are no inhibiting factors. 

• To drive alignment:

Many a times, inspite of the best labour, you reach nowhere. The reason is that the efforts or labour is done in areas, which are of no use.  Hence, the effort should coincide with the priorities or primacies.  The plan serves as a vehicle for answering the enquiry, that “How well we can use all the resources such as material, man, machine etc. to upsurge our tactical (strategic) success?

• To communicate the message to everyone:

The countless managers in the top level management know how to make an effective plan/strategy, at which position their organisation is, what they need to do and where they need to be there  Many a time, the strategies are not written down and the various aspects in the plan are not linked systematically. 

Then, only few members of your team can work towards your goals. Therefore, it’s very important that your team, staff, customers, suppliers and other stakeholder’s know your plan of action and strategy base, this will lead to better probability of success and more efforts pouring in. Tourism Planning

Also read Contribution of Tour Guiding in Sustainability

Once, you ascertain your goal, you are in a good position to make a solid proof plan in which role of each team member is defined.  There are very less managers, who have understanding of situations and actually comprehend to make the greatest use of their part in smoothing policy (Eagles, McCool, Haynes, Philips, & United Nations Environment Programme, 2002). 

Techniques of Plan formulation 

It involves a number of steps: 

• Collection of information (data):

The most noteworthy phase of economic planning is the gathering of the economic data.  The data not only contains economic defining variables, but also descriptive variables such as demographical, topographical, and political data.  The economic planning also contains non-quantitative variables.  And surely in order to collect appropriate data the planner should have intra-disciplinary as well as inter-disciplinary knowledge. 

• Deciding the nature and duration of the plan:

After the collection of data in context to the economy.  Now the next step is deciding the nature and period (time duration) of the plan. Now, the planner has to decide the planning levels i.e. micro or macro basis, functional (practical) or structural (operational),centralised (central) or decentralised (distributed), long or medium or short term etc. The medium term plan generally comprises 5 years and is enough time periods to apply its drivers, strategies and approaches.

Also read Goals and objective of sustainable tourism development

• Setting up of the objectives:

The third step after setting the nature and time period of the plan is setting the goals or objectives or aim of the plan.  And, surely these objectives will have to be realized in a fixed time schedule. Generally, most of the objectives related to economy of the country are related to advanced progress rate of GNP, reduction in joblessness, eradication of local discrepancies, removal of illiteracy, growth of farming and manufacturing areas, etc.  

After, the planner has analysed the ground situation and given the objectives.  Now, the planner has to establish these objectives depending on the eminence/Significance to the individuals and the economy in totality.

• Determination of growth rate:

While framing the plan, the planner has to determine the growth rate i.e. at what rate the economy will grow through this time interval. Whatever plan, the planner and policy makers decide at least, it should maintain the per capita income level of the country. The plan should be such that the per capita income do not decreases or affect the progress of the country negatively.

And, such a thing is possible, if the growth rate of GNP or growth rate of the country and growth rate or progress of the population is same. But this growth rate is least recommended.  Rather, the planner will choose for that growth rate which is better than the population rate.  “For example, if India wants to maintain its present per capita income while population is growing at the rate of 8% p.a., then the obligatory GNP growth rate should not be less than 8%.  If we want to grow GNP by 8%, NI should grow @ 16%. 

If the capital output ratio (COR) is 1:3, then we will have to invest 16% of GNP.  While defining the growth rate, the planner must keep in view the growth rate of other adjoining or developing countries like Pakistan, China, Sri Lanka, Indonesia, Bangladesh, etc.” Tourism Planning

• Full utilisation of financial resources of the plan:  

The utilization of resources including the fiscal resources should be in a way that the predetermined objectives are realized. The various resources used in a plan of a country are human resources, natural resources, technology, worthy governance, entrepreneurial skills, financial resources etc. Therefore, from these resources or sources advantages or profits can be achieved.

Read more Local Community Involvement in Tourism Development

Broadly it can be categorized into renewable or renewal resources. Advantages of resource application may be augmented prosperity or needs, appropriate operation of a system, or boosted welfare. With the resource allocation, resource management is also crucial in a plan. The various resources have three basic attributes- “utility, limited availability, and potential for depletion or consumption.”

In order to accomplish the planning requirements, outside (external) resources are also used, when internal (inside) resources fall short. The outside resources generally comprises of foreign relief and support, foreign grants, foreign direct investment, and foreign borrowings from various International Financial Institutions (IFI’s) and rich countries.

The role of government is important and cannot be ignored. They plan and take various roles depending upon the environment of the country. When, a country is developed, their role more becomes as a facilitator, while in case of developing or poor countries, they have to actively participate in it. They have to implement plans as well as pour on their resources. 

Whenever, the plans have been made by the government, they are sent to the necessary departments with goals, necessary steps and outlays. Thereafter, the concerned ministries or departments see the feasibility of the sent projects and give recommendations about the feasibility (viability) of various schemes and projects of the plan. Here, the government organisations are asked of their keeping in mind the sectorial distribution and extent of the plan. There are also some projects where partnership occurs between governmental and private sectors. Here, the government may play role of a catalyst or facilitator and there may be some revenue sharing understandings. 

• Formation of economic policies:

In planning, plans are fine. The role of planners is fine. But, most importantly the plans should be able to give the desired results. The results should have more positive effects than the negative effects. Here, economic programmes, policies or strategies play a substantial role. As, they act as a gasoline to the locomotive of economic development. Also, the plans implemented should be based on ground or current scenario, rather than being picked from other countries, environments or sectors.

• Plan execution:  

The final phase of planning is plan operation. And, for actual implementation of plan, following conditions cannot be ignored: 

• The regime should be steady, truthful, genuine and productive.
• The organisational (administrative) system should be well-organized,
• i.e. free of nepotism, dishonesty, enticement, red tapism.
• Upkeep of law and order inside the nation.
• There should be equivalent level of involvement of both private and public sectors in economic growth.
• Keep a check on convenience and electronic up keep of government records, monetary proclamations and cost statements. Tourism Planning
• The opposition should be Watchful and productive. (Wagner, Frick, & Schupp, 2007)
• Different countries use planning models/techniques dependent upon the nature of the economy. 
• The availability of the data, the volume to use and manage such techniques and models. 

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Tourism Plan: The Key To Success For Any Destination

When well maintained and developed, the tourism sector can elevate any destination, helping it to acquire world-renowned status, attract millions of visitors each year and generate billions of dollars in income. Ralph Nader, CEO of Amber Consulting, shows us what’s behind the ‘vision’

Experts agree that tourism is one of the largest revenue-generating industries worldwide and the fastest growing industry in the world when it comes to safeguarding a sustainable future. Today, tourism accounts for 7 percent of developing countries’ total exports and as much as 45 percent of their commercial services exports.

Winners and others However, research has shown that if not properly managed, tourism can have a broader detrimental effect. So how have some destinations managed to become key players in this industry, while others remain in the shadows, despite their rich assets?

What is a tourism plan? Tourism planning is a tool for destination area development and a means for assessing the needs of a tourist-receiving market, where the primary areas of focus are generating income and employment, and ensuring resource conservation and visitor satisfaction. In order to design a successful development plan, it is necessary to have a clear understanding of the objectives at local, regional and/or national levels.

Getting it right Many countries that were pioneers of this concept realized the importance of setting a clear, targeted and effective tourism plan and implementing strategies with a solid vision for sustainable tourism development. Focus on the fundamentals: develop a tourism strategy that is sustainable and focuses on the destination’s strong fundamental assets and unique products to differentiate it from neighboring countries. In other words, focus on promoting and developing the competitive advantages or the core tourism offerings of a destination, whether for the cultural and heritage, beach/leisure, sports activities, religious and historical sites, or corporate and MICE segments. Targeted strategy: design a strategy for the future that has distinct objectives, accurate target markets and clear positioning for each state. • Clear and measurable objectives: quantitative objectives should be developed to ensure that the success of the tourism strategy is measurable and can be monitored. For example, Dubai’s Tourism Vision for 2020 has a key objective of attracting 20 million visitors per year by 2020. • Accurate target market: identify target segments to prioritize. Also, develop an in-depth understanding of travelers’ behaviors, needs and the latest trends, by pinpointing the following: – The value proposition to promote: why visit the destination? -The type of products to showcase -The distribution channel attributes (for example, tour operator packages) -The key marketing messages and reach (for example, social media) -The required changes to connectivity -The key barriers to address After identifying its top source markets, Singapore tailored and customized YourSingapore campaigns specifically for each country, creating an individual set of taglines , key visuals and messages . • Clear positioning for each state: in order to avoid cannibalism, a smart tourism plan should have a clear and differentiated positioning for each region, based on its specific fundamental assets and strengths.

Enablers and supporting stakeholders Bringing stakeholders on board through involvement and collaboration is another important factor that can help a tourism plan achieve success. These include public bodies, the private sector and land owners, alongside a broad range of other key players. The strategy should be as inclusive as possible, with input from across the professional spectrum in segments such as: • Government agencies • Educational institutions • Human capital • Industry associations • International transportation • Local transportation • Marketing & public relations • Healthcare infrastructure • Telecommunication • Security • Financial infrastructure • Tour operators Action plans relating to the government agencies should include optimizing the public sector tourism structure, improving public-private collaboration and creating a ‘Tourism Observatory’. When it comes to human capital, the areas of focus should encompass improving on-the-job training, extending international educational partnerships, developing state education, improving language skills and regulating informal labor.

A final touch Developing a tourism plan is the first step toward driving your destination onto the international tourism scene. However, plans have little value if they are not effectively implemented. Thus, implementation techniques must be identified, such as organizing a national tourism conference to launch the plan. Such strategies can help to increase networking among key stakeholders, spread knowledge among the community and boost its participation, while also attracting local and foreign investment.

Staying up to date The tourism sector is an ideal platform for developing smart city solutions. With the aim of improving the tourist experience, which is now regarded as an essential element of the overall offering, many countries have recognized the positive impact of developing a smart tourism hub. Collecting data: compiling information on every type of activity that takes place at the destination, collected from all possible sources of data. Analyzing it: by using various intelligent systems to identify tourists’ behaviors, measures can be proposed with a view to improving both the management of the destination and customer satisfaction. Implementing measures: this includes analysis of economic, technical and financial feasibility that will enhance the destination, making it more sustainable and adaptable to the needs of tourists, while allowing them to customize their experiences.

Understanding demand A common error is for destinations to develop a tourism plan, but fail to complete the full process and implement their findings effectively. Achieving a successful tourism plan requires a key step early on in the process, which is assessing, studying and analyzing demand. This should include both the present and latent demand, namely, the segments that are not currently target markets, but could potentially be attracted to the destination in the long run. Therefore, understanding demand and identifying all its characteristics will allow the destination to have a clear vision, a focused approach and the means to optimize a tourism budget.

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How to Develop an Effective Tourism Strategy for your Destination

Written by Chris Seek on September 16, 2019 . Posted in Blog , Strategic Planning .

“Why do we need another plan?”   We hear this question a lot at Solimar when asked to help a tourism destination develop a national, regional, or destination specific sustainable tourism strategy. We know that most of the destinations we work with have a cabinet full of previous studies and plans that were developed but never implemented. So, we understand and empathize with tourism stakeholders that may be reluctant to spend more time in consultation meetings to discuss the challenges and actions needed for the tourism industry.   As a sustainable tourism consulting firm, we believe strongly that every tourism destination needs a tourism strategy, or a long-term tourism plan that unites the industry and the government to puruse a shared vision for sustainable tourism development and management.   But the question is how do you develop a tourism strategy that is implemented and doesn’t just end up on the shelf?

Based upon our tourism planning and implementation experience in more than 500 destinations around the globe, we know that tourism strategies often fail, but rarely because of a lack of good ideas. In our experience, we believe the process is just as important as the end tourism strategy.   We see the keys to successful strategic tourism planning include:  

• Buy-in and consensus, from the wide range of public and private sector stakeholders that will be needed for successful strategy execution. Solimar uses a variety of tools and proven approaches for achieving that buy-in and consensus.
• Detailed action plans that clearly define timelines, responsibilities, and the human and financial resources that will be required for plan implementation. Unlike most tourism planners, Solimar implements most of the tourism development strategies that we develop. That experience gives us valuable perspectives in defining action plans that are time-bound, practical and achievable.  
• A focus on demand-driven solutions. While policy frameworks, training, and infrastructure development are all important components of a comprehensive tourism development plan, increased demand is the primary and ultimately the only sustainable driver of more frequent and affordable airlift, product diversification, and improved service delivery.  

Solimar’s sustainable tourism strategic planning process is centered around helping tourism stakeholders answer 4 main questions:

• Where are we now? –   what is the current situation with our tourism industry?   How is the industry performing? How do we compare to our competition? What are our tourism assets? What tourism services are available for visitors? Who is responsible for tourism policy, management, marketing, investment, etc? How is the industry organized?   But most importantly – what are the main challenges that are preventing our industry from reaching its full potential?   Through a careful review of tourism statistics, previous studies, online research, and interviews and surveys with tourism stakeholders we are able to develop a tourism sector analysis or a tourism situation analysis that sets the foundation for the tourism strategy.
• Where do we want to go? – the vision statement is one of the most important components of a tourism strategy. The objective of the visioning process is to build consensus around a shared vision for the future of the tourism industry in the destination.   Solimar uses a variety of different approaches to create a shared vision but this is mainly achieved through a participatory planning workshop where stakeholders come together and think into the future and describe a tourism industry that they would like to see for their destination.   How has tourism changed from today?   What is improved?   What remains the same?   Asking tourism stakeholders to describe their desired future of the tourism industry shows that while stakeholders have many different opinions about what needs to be done and what should be prioritized, they often share a common vision for what they want tourism to look like in the future for their destination.
• How do we get there? – Once a shared vision is agreed upon , the next question is how the vision will be achieved and how best to organize action plans to be implemented. While every tourism destination is unique and has its own challenges and priorities, most tourism strategies tend to prioritize 5-6 main pillars of the strategy that we call strategic objectives or strategic goals.   These tend to be focused around improving Policy/Coordination, Marketing, Product/Destination Development, Workforce Development, Sustainability and other topics that flow from the participatory planning process.   After defining these main pillars, the next and most important step of the strategic planning process is to define the specific strategies to be implemented to achieve these goals.   Individual s trategies are the main components of the document and what provides the direction for the industry to realize the vision. Through stakeholder interviews and outcomes from the tourism planning workshop these strategies are identified and grouped under the corresponding goals. A description of each strategy is important to help everyone understand what is being proposed and why.   The last and very important step is the creation of detailed action plans.   These action plans are developed through working groups that include the public and private sector, conservation and community organizations, and other stakeholders. The key to action planning is aligning the action plan updating and reporting with the government’s own annual work planning and budgeting.
• How do we know we’ve arrived? – Indicators are an important tool in a strategic plan to define quantifiable targets that can be used to measure the results of the strategy implementation process. Indicators should include not only economic performance, but also sustainability and other policy focused metrics that demonstrate progress towards realizing the vision and communicate progress.

A wise man once said “Without goals, and plans to reach them, you are like a ship that has set sail with no destination”.   Tourism is not the type of industry you want to allow to set sail without a clear direction and someone at the helm. Sustainable tourism planning provides an important tool to bring tourism stakeholders together and define in their own terms how tourism can and should contribute to a desired future for their destination and community.

If you are a tourism manager or someone interested in learning more about Solimar’s strategic planning process, click here for an informational video that discusses our methodology in greater depth.

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Tourism Planning: Importance, Benefits, Types & Levels

Planning is to prepare a Road Map to achieve goals.

In 1987 D.Getz defined tourism planning as “a process, based on research and evaluation, which seeks to optimize the potential contribution of tourism to human welfare and environmental quality”.

Faludi, in 1973, defined tourism planning as “Planning is a very important part of the process by which governments manage tourism at the national, local and organizational levels”.

What is Tourism Planning?

The upkeep and expansion of the tourism sector in a particular area is referred to as tourism planning. Planning for tourism is, of course, a crucial component.

Creating strategies and plans to increase, develop, and stimulate tourism for/in a destination may be summed up as tourism planning. The primary motivation behind establishing and implementing strategies for the tourist industry is to generate money, which will eventually raise the GDP of a nation or region.

What is the need for Tourism Planning?

For the expansion of the sector important to plan tourism activities for the following reasons:

• It is necessary to plan tourism activities on different levels and in various manners to promote tourism and boost the economy.
• To provide quality to both tourists and residents.
• It involves making major decisions which cannot be taken spontaneously.

What are the components of Tourism Planning

• Exploration phase/ Preparatory
• Planning phase/Feasibility/
• Zoning phase/Formal planning
• Design and implementation phase
• Operational phase

Most nations that have successfully planned their tourism can be found online and are regarded as incredible holiday destinations. People go to these nations hoping their travel vlogs will increase their subscriber count on YouTube. That is an indication of success in the modern day.

Benefits of Tourism Planning

Tourism destination planning should be a vital component of every destination’s tourism development plan to get the best outcomes and please all stakeholders. While some places do a great job of maintaining sustainable tourism, others (typically developing countries) need to recognize the significance of comprehensive tourism development planning.

Tourism planning can benefit various parties involved from the industry in the following ways:

• It boosts revenue and employment thanks to tourist spending.
• It safeguards cultural and natural assets so that visitors can enjoy them.
• It broadens the comprehension of cultural diversity
• It constructs new infrastructure, such as sewage systems, roads, etc., for the community.

Impacts of Tourism Planning

The impacts of tourism destination planning can be sorted into seven general categories:

• Environmental
• Social and cultural
• Crowding and congestion
• Community attitude

Formulating an approach to tourism policy and planning:

According to Inskeep, six “golden standards” should be followed when creating a strategy for tourist planning and policy (1991).

1. Goal Oriented:  

Tourism Planning should be oriented to achieve broad national and community goals.

2. Integrative:

 Integrating tourist policy and planning into the economy, land use and infrastructure, conservation, and environmental planning.

3. Market Driven:

 Planning for successful tourism growth in a cutthroat international market.

4. Resource Driven:

 Developing tourism that capitalizes on the location’s inherent advantages while preserving and improving the features and experiences of existing tourism resources.

5. Consultative:  

Considering broader community attitudes, needs, and desires to determine what the population will accept.

6. Systematic:

 utilizing primary or secondary information to support planners conceptually or predictably, incorporating knowledge from other tourist locations

Levels of Tourism Planning

Planning and policy for the tourism industry occur at several levels. This can be done in a top-down approach, with international or national bodies, or a bottom-up approach from a local level.

1. International Tourism Planning:

Tourism planning at the international level typically involves international transportation services, the movement and scheduling of tourist tours between different countries, the development of significant tourist attractions and facilities in neighboring countries, as well as the working strategies and promotional programs of many nations.

2. National Tourism Planning:

 Tourism policy, infrastructural facilities, and a physical structure plan, which includes significant tourist attractions, chosen tourism development regions, international entrance points, facilities, and services, are all addressed at the national level of tourism planning. Additionally, it is concerned with the quantity, types, and quality of lodging and other essential tourist facilities and services; the country’s major travel routes and their regional connections; tourism organization

rights, laws, and investment policies; marketing and promotion strategies for the industry; education and training initiatives; and environmental, economic, and sociocultural analysis.

3. Regional Tourism Planning:  

Regional planning considers factors such as regional policy, regional entrance points, transportation facilities, and services; the types and locations of tourism attractions; the quantity, varieties, and places of lodging and other tourist facilities and services; and the sites of tourist development regions, such as resort areas.

They will also oversee sociocultural, environmental, economic, and impact analyses, regional education and training programmes, marketing strategies, investment policies, organizational structures, legal frameworks, and implementation strategies, including project plans and zoning ordinances.

4. Local Tourism Planning:  

Participants at the local level will think about the analyses, outputs, outcomes, and assessment of tourism planning at the ground level.

Types of Tourism Planning

Before creating a comprehensive plan to market the destination, the following types of tourism planning are taken into account:

Spatial Tourism Planning:

Spatial tourism planning attempts to thoroughly process social, environmental, and economic change to bring about certain ends. Drawing plans, maps or diagrams are put together to decide where socio-spatial activities can occur.

Sectoral Tourism Planning:  

In this kind of planning, the regions are divided into sections, and each section is called a sector. It concentrates on a manageable area and takes into account the specific infrastructure, land use, transportation, and environmental requirements of that region. Depending on the nature of the products or services provided, economic, social, and administrative activities are grouped into sectors.

Complex Tourism Planning:  

When various regions are considered for the purpose of tourism planning, it is known as complex tourism planning. These regions are to be developed comprehensively because of the significant interest shown by international tourists. There is a possibility that these regions are located far away from one another.

Integrated Tourism Planning:  

Integrated tourism refers to making tourism the primary industry in a given area by systematically and comprehensively promoting all available economic, social, and tourism resources.

Sustainable Tourism Planning:  

Sustainable tourism planning involves striking the correct balance between the requirements of people and the environment. It entails stating the community’s mission, vision, and unique selling point or identity in clear terms. With the help of this type of destination planning in our local communities, we are better equipped to plan for the long term, and respond to changing target markets, trends, and emergencies like the Covid-19 outbreak. Additionally, it guarantees that resources are allocated properly while ethically and sustainably establishing local communities. This method of tourism planning benefits people and places in positive ways on all fronts—socially, economically, culturally, and environmentally—puts sustainability at its core.

Centralized Tourism Planning:

Centralized tourism planning is done by a single authority, usually the state or central government.

Decentralized Tourism Planning:

Organizations are interested in developing tourist spots and planning the various activities visitors can enjoy. (Joint Venture).

They take assistance from government. Suggested Read:  Sustainable Tourism

Frequently Asked Questions

Why is tourism planning important.

Destination development plans should include tourism planning since it promotes a destination’s long-term viability and encourages cooperation among important stakeholders..

What are the features of tourism planning?

 Three general principles of planning for tourism can be specified as anticipation, regulation and monitoring.

What are the barriers to tourism planning?

According to earlier research conducted in several nations, a common pattern of issues has emerged. For instance, financial constraints, a lack of knowledge, an insufficient amount of time, and other issues have prevented local governments from incorporating tourism into their development plans.

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What is Tourism Development Plan

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Preparing The Tourism Plan

In step-by-step fashion, this page discusses the elements involved in developing community tourism plans.

Show me information for:

Plan outline.

A tourism plan is described as a written document produced on behalf of a community by a group of people representing a broad cross-section of interests. We propose that the plan provide a framework for businesses, local government and other organizations to analyze tourism resources and concerns, and encourage tourism development and promotion within the community. The plan needs to be monitored and reviewed to allow for appropriate changes.

Tourism Plan Components

A tourism plan should include a clear vision about why the plan is being developed and a thorough assessment of the current state and future potential of tourism in your community. It should chart a course of action for developing your tourism product and attracting your target markets.

The following components are essential:

• A short introduction that answers the following questions:
• What are the plan’s purpose and focus?
• Who developed the plan and under what authority?
• What does the plan hope to accomplish?
• When was the plan prepared? When will it be monitored and reviewed?
• How was the plan developed? How was public input obtained?
• How should the plan be used? Who will use it?
• Why is the plan important to the community?
• The stated tourism policy for the community.
• A summary of the community's tourism markets.
• Lists of the community's tourism assets.
• Lists of the community's tourism concerns.
• The community's tourism goals.
• The community’s tourism objectives.
• The action steps required to accomplish each objective.

Plan Format

A Sample Tourism Plan can be viewed here . It primarily consists of lists and charts. If it is stored electronically in a Microsoft Word document or a PowerPoint presentation, amendments and additions can be easily incorporated and shared amongst committee members and interested parties.

Plan Content

The tourism plan should deal with the five key components of tourism:

• Attractions
• Infrastructure
• Human Resources

Who Prepares the Plan?

The tourism committee, will be responsible for producing a tourism plan and guiding its implementation.

It would be helpful if all members of the tourism committee reviewed this Community Tourism Planning Guide prior to the first committee meeting.

Committee Meetings

Once you have a commitment from representatives of a broad range of interest groups, it is time to call the first meeting. Being well-prepared and organized will start the process off on the right foot. By gathering relevant information, circulating necessary documents ahead of time and drafting a clear and manageable agenda, you will ensure that your meetings are productive and completed in the time allotted. Remember, a successful meeting is measured by what is accomplished, not by how long it lasts. Fatigue will set in and productivity will wane if meetings exceed two-and-a-half hours.

The steps involved in organizing tourism committee meetings are outlined in further detail as you continue to read on.

Establish Meeting Time and Date

The meeting could be set by the municipal council, which might assign a person to notify other committee members of the details. The council may also provide initial leadership to start the process. At this time, it is recommended to secure a suitable meeting space, source required audiovisual equipment and book any required catering

Compile Background Information

For the first meeting, compile as much pertinent background information on tourism in the district as possible. The assigned resource person could make a valuable contribution to the committee by compiling relevant information, which may include the following:

• Municipal information – Official Community Plan (OCP), parks and recreation master plan, economic development strategy
• Tourism statistics – tourist information/visitor services centre statistics, campground occupancy data, highway traffic volumes
• Tourism promotional material – local/regional/provincial/federal promotional pieces, online content and/or video productions Tourism Saskatchewan, various government departments and agencies, as well as your local municipal office can provide some of this information.

Assemble Meeting Materials

For each meeting, the committee should ensure that they have the following resources readily available:

• Copies of the Community Tourism Planning Guide
• Adequate tables, chairs and wall space
• Flip chart(s) with plenty of paper and an easel or method of mounting the chart for easy viewing
• General office supplies – felt markers, push pins, masking tape, pens/pencils, notepads (for each member)
• Background information compiled in the previous step
• Coffee and/or refreshments
• Name tags/cards if members are not acquainted
• Copies of the agenda
• Laptop(s) for presentations and recording minutes
• Audiovisual equipment, including a projector and screen (if required)

Draft Meeting Agenda

An agenda serves to keep the meeting focused and to assist the chair if the group strays off-topic. The agenda for the first meeting should be distributed to committee members in advance of the meeting date and should include:

• Welcome and opening message by the chair
• Personal introductions by each committee member
• Review of the agenda
• Review of the committee’s terms of reference
• Review of the Community Tourism Planning Guide
• Review of the background information
• Tourism policy
• Selection of a chairperson
• Selection of a recorder (if not provided by council)
• Consideration could be given at this time for obtaining the services of a qualified facilitator
• Review of decisions reached and any assignments made, including the date to be completed
• Date and agenda for the next meeting

Role of Chairperson/Recorder

Meeting follow-up.

During the course of this or other meetings, questions may arise that committee members cannot answer. The chairperson, in consultation with the group, can seek answers to these questions by assigning responsibility. Designated committee members can collect pertinent information and report back to the committee within an agreed-upon time frame.

Meeting Documentation

Throughout the meetings, there will be a need to keep track of what has been discussed and approved. Establishing and maintaining a record of committee activities can be done as follows:

• The chairperson or an appointed member can record lists and group statements on a flip chart or whiteboard for all to see. This can be done in point form as the meeting proceeds, and is a good idea, since it helps keep the group focused on the topic under discussion.
• The appointed recorder will keep detailed minutes for subsequent distribution to committee members. The minutes will form a permanent record of what takes place at each meeting and when steps in the process are completed. The date of completion should be recorded. A laptop computer is useful and convenient for recording, amending and distributing minutes.

Tourism Markets

Before addressing the task of listing your markets and describing or profiling them, spend a short period of time in open discussion about your community's tourism policy.

Identify Tourism Markets

Think about what you are trying to achieve through your tourism policy. Your policy may state that you want tourists to increase their length of stay and the amount of money they spend in your community. What kind of information will you need to help meet the objectives of your policy?

Tourism Saskatchewan has assembled market segment profiles for Canadian leisure travellers. You can view them here .

During your general discussion of tourism markets, the committee should consider the following questions about your current visitors:

• Why do people travel to your community? Is it for pleasure, business or both? Is it to visit friends or relatives, attend an event or participate in an activity? Are they coming to your community to learn something? Do you know how many visitors fall into each of these categories?
• When do people travel to your community? (e.g. weekends, holidays, hunting season, winter, summer)
• How do people travel to your area? (e.g. car, motorcoach, recreational vehicle, aircraft)
• From where do your tourists come? Are they from nearby towns, cities, rural areas, other provinces or other countries?
• Do you know other "demographic" information about visitors to your community? For example, can you put them into categories of age, gender, income, education, marital status, or occupation? If this kind of specific data is not available, make your best guess.
• What knowledge do you have concerning tourism markets in other communities?
• What are the trends in travel and what attracts tourists today?

A general discussion of all of the above is worthwhile. Remember to think in terms of your own community and the area in which it is located. Keep in mind that throughout the entire planning process, the tourism plan must take into consideration your community's regional context.

Many of your tourism markets will be similar to those of nearby communities. Although you are developing a tourism plan for your own community, many of the objectives you will eventually develop may entail working and cooperating with other communities.

Dedicate about 30 minutes to a general discussion of tourism markets at this meeting of the committee. In the next step, you will develop your tourism market profiles.

Develop Tourism Market Profiles

To put tourism markets in focus, the committee must develop tourism market profiles, which describe the types of tourists who currently visit or pass through your community. Visitors or tourists can be categorized according to their reasons for travel:

• Attendees of cultural events/performances
• Business travellers
• Road and utility work crews
• Sports teams and spectators
• Delegates of conventions/meetings
• Snowmobilers
• Motorcoach tour travellers
• Visitors of friends and relatives
• Ecotourism or outdoor adventure enthusiasts
• Attendees of agricultural fairs/exhibitions
• People seeking professional services (medical visits, business appointments)

Types of tourists will vary from community to community. Information about the types of tourists visiting or passing through your community should be tabulated, using a chart similar to the Tourism Market Profile Chart which can be found here .

A copy of this should be drawn on a flip chart or whiteboard for use during the meeting. As tourism market profiles are developed, the chairperson or an appointed member should fill out the chart. You could distribute individual blank copies of the Tourism Market Profile Chart to each participant to work through as a group.

Use a pencil when marking individual charts or have additional blank charts available. Changes to the profiles may occur later in the planning process as input is sought from businesses, museum societies and other relevant organizations.

As you proceed with your profiles, the chairperson should ask all committee members for input on what types of tourists visit or pass through your community. The tourist types should be recorded along the left margin of the Tourism Market Profile Chart.

Next, the chairperson should ask the committee if questions beyond those appearing along the top margin of the chart should be included. Additional questions should be recorded in the spaces available.

The committee can now profile tourism markets by simply answering each question about each tourist type and filling in the blanks. If some of the questions are difficult to answer, the committee should make its best guess by consulting the reference material that was gathered for the meeting and making use of committee members’ knowledge about visitors to the area.

Once questions related to each tourist type have been answered, record the information. It will form an important component of your tourism plan. To complete the chart, rank each tourism market in order.

Rank Your Tourism Markets

Ranking your tourism markets is beneficial for several reasons. Through the exercise of ranking, your major markets will become readily apparent. The results of these rankings are valuable later in the planning process when the committee must decide where to concentrate its efforts. Ranking your markets is also important because it stimulates more thought and discussion regarding this very vital element of the tourism plan.

Determine the importance of each of your tourism markets (types of tourists) by exploring the following questions:

• How many of each tourist type come to your community?
• How much time does each tourist type spend in your community?
• How much money does each tourist type spending your community?

You do not need exact figures to apply these criteria. To illustrate, simply determine whether anglers are more or less important to your markets than sports teams and spectators.

Indicators for ranking tourist types appear in spaces along the left-hand side of the Tourism Market Profile Chart.

A grading system can be used if the committee has difficulty determining rank. Committee members individually grade each tourist type on a scale of one to 20. Twenty represents the highest importance, one represents the lowest. Grading is done independently and the results are passed on to the chairperson for tabulation.

Here is an example of how it works:

Eight committee members grade a tourist type as follows:

First member gives a grade of....................8

Second member gives a grade of.............12

Third member gives a grade of ................15

Fourth member gives a grade of................9

Fifth member gives a grade of .................17

Sixth member gives a grade of.................13

Seventh member gives a grade of ..........14

The chairperson gives a grade of.............10

Total..........................................................98

Once the committee grades all tourist types, the highest totals will surface as your top tourism markets.

The market with the highest total is the most significant and should be ranked number one on the Tourism Market Profile Chart. The market with the second highest total should be ranked number two and so on.

In the event of a tie, a simple show of hands should suffice to reach a decision.

Keep in mind, the above procedures for ranking or grading will apply not only to tourism markets, but also to assets, concerns and objectives that will be dealt with later in the planning process.

Once the Tourism Market Profile Chart is complete and your markets have been ranked, you will be ready to check the validity of your work.

Solicit Input from Businesses and Relevant Organizations

Prior to the next committee meeting, the chairperson should assign members of the committee to contact relevant businesses, organizations and individuals such as:

• Hotel and motel operators
• Restaurateurs
• Park and campground operators
• Service station operators
• Tourist information booth operators
• Hunting and fishing guides
• Indigenous councils or local groups
• Saskatchewan Ministry of Highways and Infrastructure
• Saskatchewan Ministry of Environment
• Saskatchewan Ministry of Parks, Culture and Sport
• Saskatchewan Ministry of the Economy
• Tourism Saskatchewan
• Destination area/destination marketing representatives Municipal officials
• Retail businesses
• Service clubs
• Cultural event organizers
• Tourist attraction operators (e.g. museums, cultural centres)
• Sporting event organizers
• Golf course operators
• Community Futures Development Corporations

When these businesses and organizations are reached, committee members should provide them with copies of completed Tourism Market Profile Charts and ask for input. This is also an opportune time to explain the tourism planning process.

Mention that assistance would be appreciated at this stage and suggest that there will be further opportunities for input when a draft tourism plan has been formulated. Ask what tourism promotional activities are currently underway and what is planned for the future.

Additions or changes that result from talks with others in the community should be discussed at a subsequent committee meeting. A record of any approved changes or additions should be made at that time.

The next step is to list your community's tourism assets.

Tourism Assets

This part of the process features a brainstorming session by the tourism committee. The session is aimed at developing five lists that will include all of the tourism assets in and around your community. The lists will correspond to the five components of tourism:

Defining Tourism Assets

Tourism assets should be confined to those community assets that can or do attract and serve tourists.

Your community may have a high school, a new grocery store, a recently expanded library and an RCMP detachment – all of which constitute community assets. However, none of these relate directly to tourism unless the asset is somehow unique. For example, a retail outlet that is housed in an historical building would qualify.

Listing and Ranking Tourism Assets

Mark five flip chart sheets with an asset category corresponding to the five components of tourism.

The chairperson can ask the committee to either brainstorm the community’s tourism assets or offer suggestions, one by one, until all possibilities have been explored.

Keep in mind that assets can be placed under more than one category. This is helpful if the committee has difficulty deciding where an asset fits. Also, tourism assets do not necessarily have to be within your community. For example, tourists travelling through your area may be going to or coming from an attraction, such as a national or provincial park, that is some distance away. In this instance, the park should be recorded on the Tourism Attraction Assets list.

Once you have established a list of assets for each of the five key components of tourism, each list should be ranked.

Your tourism assets should be ranked to highlight the community's tourism strengths. You will want to build on these when it comes time to establish your tourism objectives and tourism action steps. When considering the importance of tourism assets, the committee should ask the following:

• How attractive is the asset to tourists?
• How unique is the asset to your community?
• How easily can the asset be promoted to tourists?
• How effective is the asset in attracting tourists to your community to spend time and money?

The chairperson should lead the group in ranking the tourism assets that have been identified for each of the five components of tourism. The importance of each asset should be designated by assigning it a number. Rank the assets, one-by-one, from most important to the least. For example, consider all of the assets listed under Tourism Attraction Assets and number accordingly, then move on to Tourism Infrastructure Assets and so on.

If difficulty arises during the ranking of any tourism asset, you can use the grading system described above.

Tourism Concerns

The committee is now ready to compile five lists of the community's tourism concerns. Again, one list is needed for each of the five key components of tourism. Before starting your lists, you must understand what is meant by tourism concerns and how they relate to your markets and your assets.

What are Tourism Concerns?

Tourism concerns can include:

• Negative assets – Check your lists of assets, as well as your Tourism Market Profile Chart. Do either your assets or your markets have any negative features?
• Outright liabilities – Perhaps there is a shortage of skilled employees, which are critical to providing the quality tourism experience visitors expect. Committee members should try to list all concerns, even those that seem insurmountable, because someone else may be able to offer a solution. Even if no solution is found, you will have discussed the matter and put it into realistic perspective for the community.
• Undeveloped ideas – They may include great ideas that have not received action. Again, your assets lists and market profiles will likely reveal interesting suggestions about what could or should be done to increase tourism in your community.

It is important to consider both the positive outcomes and the challenges of proposals for increasing tourism. When rephrased negatively, a great idea can become a concern.

• Few clean washrooms at local service stations (tourism businesses)
• No well-maintained and easy to reach parking areas (tourism infrastructure)
• Interesting attractions are not visible from the highway (tourist attractions)
• Some merchants have not recognized the importance of hospitality and customer service (tourism human resources)

Any one of the above could be listed as a concern. If you have difficulty categorizing a particular concern under the five key components of tourism, it probably has not been stated specifically enough.

Remember, the more specific you are in expressing your concerns, the easier it will be to find a solution.Remember, the more specific you are in expressing your concerns, the easier it will be to find a solution.

Listing and Ranking Tourism Concerns

To list and rank tourism concerns, use the same procedures you followed for tourism assets. Create five lists of tourism concerns – one for each of the tourism components. If you have sufficient wall space, keep your tourism assets lists and the Tourism Market Profile Chart posted for easy reference.

Once each list is complete, the concerns should be ranked. By ranking, your biggest concerns will receive the attention that they deserve. When it comes time to seek municipal and public input on your tourism plan, it will become readily apparent if your principal concerns are in line with what others think. As an added benefit, if the committee identifies easily addressed concerns that can lead to highly visible and positive results, they can be used to bolster community support for the committee’s work.

The following criteria apply to determining the importance of tourism concerns:

• Issues that have a negative effect on many or all of your tourism markets should rank higher than those that affect a fewer number.
• Consider how much time, effort and money will be needed to address the identified matter. Obvious concerns that can be more easily addressed should rank higher than those requiring a substantial commitment. Capture the easy “wins” first.

Again, if the committee experiences difficulty when ranking concerns, use the grading system described above.

When this stage of the process is complete, the committee should have lists of valuable information and a reasonably good understanding of the community's tourism markets, assets and concerns, and how they relate to each other.

The recorder should make sure this background information forms part of the committee's minutes.

Your next step is to state your community's tourism goals.

Tourism Goals

Defining tourism goals.

Tourism goals are clear, concise statements that broadly outline what the committee would like to see happen to tourism in the community. All goals must be compatible with the community's tourism policy and should provide direction for more specific objectives to follow.

How to Develop Goals

A simple way to state tourism goals is to insert the words "to improve" in front of each of the five basic components of tourism. Thus, the committee's goals would be:

• To improve tourism attractions;
• To improve tourism businesses;
• To improve tourism infrastructure;
• To improve tourism human resources; and
• To improve tourism promotion.

By stating tourism goals in this fashion, the committee is assured that all the tourism concerns (also stated in relation to the five components) will be considered.

Tourism Objectives

Defining tourism objectives.

Tourism objectives are more specific than goals. They are the stated desires of your committee and represent the ends to which community action should be directed. If acted upon, tourism objectives will help you accomplish your tourism goals. Each tourism goal will likely involve several tourism objectives.

Setting objectives is a difficult, but necessary process. The following guidelines will assist the committee in determining them.

Tourism objectives:

• Do not have to be stated as complete sentences
• Should be clear and concise – Would someone outside of the committee or community understand it?
• Should help accomplish the goal to which they relate
• Should be measurable – In six months, will you be able to determine whether an objective has been fully accomplished, partly accomplished or not accomplished at all?
• Should be realistic – Does the objective relate to an existing or potential market? Do you have or can you acquire the resources needed to accomplish the objective?

How to Develop Objectives

Examples of tourism objectives can be found in the Sample Tourism Plan here . The committee should set aside a few minutes to read over the sample objectives provided. When this brief orientation is complete, you should be ready to develop objectives of your own.

Focus on one goal at a time. As you develop objectives for each of the five tourism components, be sure to have the Tourism Market Profile Chart and the corresponding list of assets and concerns posted for easy reference. For each tourism component, reproduce the Goals and Objectives Worksheet on a separate flip chart sheet.

Each objective is formed by restating one concern as a positive statement that will help to accomplish the tourism goal. It may be possible to have one well-worded objective that will adequately deal with more than one concern.

Avoid wording that is so broad or general that the objective becomes difficult to fulfil or measure.

In determining objectives, examine the relationship between the needs and wants of your tourism markets and the tourism resources of your community. For example, your community may be on a frequently used route for motorcoaches travelling along a major corridor. What are the needs and wants of these travellers? Motorcoach operators often want accommodations that provide quality service, competitive rates and restaurants capable of serving larger groups.

You may have these assets and wish to establish an objective such as “to increase motorcoach stopovers in our community from five this year to 20 stopovers next year.” You might consider the following action steps to achieve that objective:

• Identify special tour services in publications and websites produced by Tourism Saskatchewan and local tourism associations
• Contact appropriate tour companies recommended by marketing consultants at Tourism Saskatchewan

Your community may be an attractive location for shopping, business conferences or outdoor activities. An objective might be: “To increase the number of visitors to our community for shopping, business conferences, etc.” Newspaper ads, highway signs, store or mall displays and many other promotional options are additional actions that could help you achieve your objectives.

You can promote a service or an attraction in a number of ways. You will have to choose the option(s) appropriate to your tourism policy, the specific tourism market(s) you are trying to reach and your community's financial and human resource capabilities.

As you establish objectives, always consider your tourism markets, assets and concerns, and think about how realistically you can satisfy the market needs that you have identified.

The process for developing objectives should unfold as follows:

• Display the necessary flip charts.
• Write your goals in the appropriate column of the Goals and Objectives flip chart sheet. Committee members may follow along on their individual Goals and Objectives Worksheets.
• Take a few minutes to review your Tourism Market Profiles, as well as the tourism assets and concerns lists relating to the goal you are considering.
• Focus on the tourism concerns list and be certain all wording is specific and easily understood, and that all your bases have been covered.
• Make any changes to your tourism concerns list that result from your review.
• Focus on the first concern on the list and determine what should be done to address it.
• Write an objective that addresses this concern (refer to the Sample Tourism Plan for hints on what objectives could look like). Experience has shown that it is often best to write down your first thoughts. Once the committee has something on paper, you can add, delete or amend at will. Do not worry about neatness, this is a time for creative thinking.
• When everyone is satisfied with the wording of the objective, move on to the next concern and develop the next objective.
• When all tourism concerns relating to your first goal have been addressed, display your tourism assets and concerns lists for the next goal and repeat the process.

As you continue, make sure the committee's recorder captures the conversation accurately. When you are satisfied that the concerns have been properly stated and addressed with objectives, you are ready to start ranking the objectives. To avoid fatigue, committee meetings should not exceed two-and-a-half hours. Consequently, you may decide to rank the objectives at your next meeting.

Ranking Objectives

The procedure for ranking objectives differs from the process that you used to rank tourism assets and concerns. Objectives are ranked together regardless of the tourism goal to which they relate.

To rank objectives, make use of the grading system described above. Following this procedure, as you grade each objective you are also determining the rank. To start with, the committee should rank only about 10 objectives in order of priority (one being the most important and 10 being the least).

A priority list of 10 objectives is recommended to provide direction as to what the committee wants to initially achieve. All remaining objectives should be considered of equal importance and may be addressed whenever the committee wishes.

Ranking your objectives is a very worthwhile exercise. For everyone who will review the plan, the process highlights what the committee feels are the community's tourism priorities. When it comes to implementing the plan, the committee will be able to assign responsibility and develop timelines quickly and appropriately.

To begin, display your Goals and Objectives Chart and look at all of the objectives together. The following criteria will help you to assess and prioritize your objectives. Consider how effectively they:

• Attract more visitors
• Encourage visitors to stay longer
• Encourage visitors to spend more money
• Minimize adverse social, economic and/or environmental effects
• Produce highly visible results when accomplished
• Appeal to the community at large
• Support the community at large
• Reflect what the community is capable of achieving

There will be both short-term and long-term objectives. Short-term objectives are identifiable by how easily they can be accomplished and how quickly they will show results. By their nature, long-term objectives will require considerably more time to accomplish.

The committee is now well on its way to completing the first draft of the tourism plan. You have stated all your objectives clearly and are ready to carry on with how you propose to accomplish them.

Tourism Action Steps

Defining tourism action steps.

It is important to outline in a detailed, step-by-step fashion, the various actions needed to achieve individual objectives. In all likelihood, a number of action steps will be required for each. They should be very specific, and should dispel any confusion about what needs to be done and how to accomplish it. While tourism action steps represent the committee’s best guess as to what should be undertaken to accomplish each objective, they may lead to a dead end or indicate the need to develop alternate plans.

For examples of tourism action steps, refer to the Sample Tourism Plan here .

How to Develop Action Steps

Distribute copies of the Actions Steps Worksheet which can be found here . The worksheet summarizes the process of developing action steps that are required to achieve your determined objectives. The top of the worksheet should be completed for each objective before you develop the corresponding action steps. There is also a space to provide background (or justification) for the objective that has been stated. This brief background statement should be developed by the committee and noted as each objective is addressed. It allows the committee to describe why the objective is being proposed, and will help municipal council and others to better understand your thinking.

As you proceed, keep in mind that individual committee members will eventually be responsible for supervising the coordination of each step after the tourism plan has been drafted, submitted to the municipal council for review and approval, and feedback has been received from the public.

Action steps should be listed in the order in which you expect them to be accomplished.

For the moment, there is no need to formally assign responsibility or set specific deadlines for the action steps. This will be done after the committee has received input from municipal council and the public. Input may result in significant changes to the plan. The committee should always strive to be as flexible as possible throughout the process.

Once you have outlined your tourism action steps, you will have everything you need to develop the first draft of the tourism plan. Remember, you can always refer to the Sample Tourism Plan to review the outline and content for your draft plan.

When the draft plan is submitted to municipal council, it is advisable to include a list of businesses, individuals, organizations and other government agencies that the committee feels should have input into the plan. Council may wish to make additions to this list.

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Sustainable development

"Tourism that takes full account of its current and future economic, social and environmental impacts, addressing the needs of visitors, the industry, the environment and host communities"

Sustainable tourism development guidelines and management practices are applicable to all forms of tourism in all types of destinations, including mass tourism and the various niche tourism segments. Sustainability principles refer to the environmental, economic, and socio-cultural aspects of tourism development, and a suitable balance must be established between these three dimensions to guarantee its long-term sustainability.

Thus, sustainable tourism should:

• Make optimal use of environmental resources that constitute a key element in tourism development, maintaining essential ecological processes and helping to conserve natural heritage and biodiversity.
• Respect the socio-cultural authenticity of host communities, conserve their built and living cultural heritage and traditional values, and contribute to inter-cultural understanding and tolerance.
• Ensure viable, long-term economic operations, providing socio-economic benefits to all stakeholders that are fairly distributed, including stable employment and income-earning opportunities and social services to host communities, and contributing to poverty alleviation.

Sustainable tourism development requires the informed participation of all relevant stakeholders, as well as strong political leadership to ensure wide participation and consensus building. Achieving sustainable tourism is a continuous process and it requires constant monitoring of impacts, introducing the necessary preventive and/or corrective measures whenever necessary.

Sustainable tourism should also maintain a high level of tourist satisfaction and ensure a meaningful experience to the tourists, raising their awareness about sustainability issues and promoting sustainable tourism practices amongst them.

COMMITTEE ON TOURISM AND SUSTAINABILITY (CTS)  

Biodiversity

UN Tourism strives to promote tourism development that supports, in equal measure, the conservation of biodiversity, the social welfare and the economic security of the host countries and communities.

Climate Action

Tourism is both highly vulnerable to climate change while at the same time contributing to it. Threats for the sector are diverse, including direct and indirect impacts such as more extreme weather events, increasing insurance costs and safety concerns, water shortages,  biodiversity loss and damage to assets and attractions at destinations, among others.

Global Tourism Plastics Initiative

The problem of plastic pollution in tourism is too big for any single organisation to fix on its own. To match the scale of the problem, changes need to take place across the whole tourism value chain.

Hotel Energy Solutions (HES)

Hotel Energy Solutions (HES) is a UN Tourism -initiated project in collaboration with a team of United Nations and EU leading agencies in Tourism and Energy . 

Observatories (INSTO)

The UN Tourism International Network of Sustainable Tourism Observatories (INSTO) is a network of tourism observatories monitoring the economic, environmental and social impact of tourism at the destination level. 

When responsibly planned and managed, tourism has demonstrated its capacity to support job creation, promote inclusive social integration, protect natural and cultural heritage, conserve biodiversity, generate sustainable livelihoods and improve human wellbeing.  As the sector is experiencing tremendous growth, collective efforts to ensure its long-term sustainability are essential.

Resource Efficiency in Tourism

The report aims to inspire stakeholders and encourage them to advance the implementation of the SDGs through sustainable tourism.

Small Islands Developing States (SIDS)

Small Island Developing States face numerous challenges. For a significant number, their remoteness affects their ability to be part of the global supply chain, increases import costs - especially for energy - and limits their competitiveness in the tourist industry. Many are increasingly vulnerable to the impacts of climate change - from devastating storms to the threat of sea level rise.

Travel facilitation

Travel facilitation of tourist travel is closely interlinked with tourism development and can be a tool to foster increased demand and generate economic development, job creation and international understanding.

UNGA Sustainable Tourism Resolutions

The UN Tourism is regularly preparing reports for the General Assembly of the United Nations providing updates on sustainable tourism policies both from UN Tourism member States and States Members of the United Nations, as well as relevant agencies and programmes of the United Nations system.