“As people travel more, they also become more aware of the culture and environment of the places they travel to, eand they reflect more on their own experience and lifestyle. As tourism develops, so there seems to be a shift away from purely external travel determinants (such as demography and climate), toward  internal determinants, such as the desire for self-development and creative expression. As travel experiences become richter….. people are looking for deeper experiences within the communities they visit.

The more people travel, the more cultural respect, tolerance and understanding of cultural differences there should be.”

I can only say Hallelujah! This is the change we’ve seen coming too. A proof of this change in travel attitude can also be seen in the huge success of the Couchsurfing project, a community that helps you meet locals in countries you visit as a tourist.

Their vision, and the trend that the ETC sees, fit perfectly with our vision: Experiencing a city the local way is good for intercultural understanding, and good for the world!

I think it could be helpful to share this information on our blog, because there’s so little research to be found .  I’ll try to keep this article up to date,  when I find some more information.

I’ll kick this article off with a lists of facts I found:

• City tourism in Europe from 1997 to 2003 for example grew twice as fast as nation-wide tourism (18.7% versus 9.9%) (source: ETC European Tourism Insights 2005)
• From 2000 to 2004, city tourism grew by as much as 108% in terms of trip volume. It now accounts for some 38% of all outbound trips (source: ETC European Tourism Insights 2005).
• IPK International’s European Travel Monitor points to a 20% rise in city trips in 2005 – five times higher than the European market’s overall growth. The vast majority of these city trips would have been for European destinations (source: ETC European Tourism Insights 2005, p. 19)
• The share of “city-breaks” in “types of holiday” increased from 17% in 1997 to 32% in 2001 among tourists questioned by ATLAS (City Tourism and Culture 2005, World Tourism Organization, p. 23).
  NB: Full report here
• City trips have been the fastest growth sector of European outbound travel in recent years, doubling in volume from 2000 to 2004, and now accounting for a 38% share of total European outbound trip volume. More than two-thirds of city trips (68%) are holidays, 18% for VFR and 14% for business (World Travel Market report 2005, p11).
  NB: Full report here
  

Notes:

• Take the ETC figures with a grain of salt… Read the the full ETC European Tourism insights 2005 report, for more info on the (not so very) representativeness of these figures.
• There are also “European Tourism Insights” reports for 2006 and 2007 available, but they include fewer general data on city tourism than the 2005 version.

Check out the article, and what people think about us (”Top” or “Flop”?)

Good promotion for us, Including a short personal article. Thank you “TDI Widow”!

Thanks a lot!

http://twitter.com/FacingTheStreet/

http://twitter.com/beebah/

http://twitter.com/askibinski/