The other day I did a radio interview, during which I was asked what tourism in Tasmania would look like 10 years after this pandemic. I think I said something vague about wishing I had a crystal ball. But then I got to really thinking about it.
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Now that our visitor economy has ground to halt; what should we present ourselves to the world as? Who should we invite here, and why? How will we host our visitors in a truly Tasmania way? Why is any of this important right now when we are dealing with the dilemma of when to open our borders?
It is important because the world of travel has shifted markedly, because we all need a silver lining during this time, and because the best way to trade yourself out of a recession is to focus on an ideal future state that we can all to strive to achieve.
... because the best way to trade yourself out of a recession is to focus on an ideal future state that we can all to strive to achieve.
Research globally (and in Australia), is unearthing very clear trends in what our "near future" visitors will be looking for.
They will want to; go back to nature; do as locals do; visit major attractions without the crowds; seek out safe businesses and experiences; experience unique things (a by-product of tourism business pivoting during the pandemic perhaps?); explore more slowly (cycling and walking will be more appealing), and they will see travelling with family, or without family, as even stronger motivations.
Brand Tasmania explored what it means to be Tasmanian, as a foundation for the new brand of Tasmania. Without going into the details, the conclusions they came to regarding our values were: "Tasmanians are inventive. They are bold. They are determined. They break the rules. They understand, more than ever, what makes this place different and special and they want to protect it - the wilderness and our towns and cities - from becoming beige and ordinary. They are quietly confident, which is another way of saying humble".
These global travel trends matched with what is means to be Tasmanian is the answer to how we host of visitors into the future. In 10 years time what sort of visitor destination do we want to be and what sort of roadmap should we follow to get there? We all know Tasmania's potential is as yet untapped, and as a community we can direct how we live up to that potential.
Successful contemporary approaches to "pivoting tourism" are presenting themselves around the world, driven by a motivation to reconnect tourism with the host community of a place and the shared custodianship of those places.
Faroe Island (between Iceland and Norway, and yes, I had to check Google maps to find it), follows a strategy called "Join the Preservolution" inviting its community and visitors to "preserve and evolve the nation's distinct nature and culture and to help the tourism industry grow in a responsible and sustainable manner into the next decade."
They see this as a unique opportunity to shape an entire industry, with the needs, desires and lifestyle of the Faroese people as its focal point.
The Netherlands (much easier to find on a map, just saying) follows a 2030 vision and strategy compiled by hundreds of experts from sectors such as tourism, mobility, education and culture, with community constantly involved. They have an ambition to "prioritise the common interests of visitors, tourism and residents. The goal is for every Dutch person to benefit from tourism. Five priorities are central for achieving this ambition: Benefits and burdens are in balance, more benefits from tourism than burdens; All of the Netherlands is attractive: put more cities and regions on the map as attractive destinations; Accessible and achievable: easily accessible cities and regions; Sustainability is a must: a living environment with less waste and pollution; A hospitable sector: the Netherlands as a welcoming destination."
Bay of Plenty, in New Zealand, follows a strategy called Te Ha Tapoi, which translates to "For the Love of Tourism", a strategy based on a concept called regenerative tourism, which states: "most destinations seek growth in terms of visitor numbers with the delivery of social benefits like visitor spend, employment, tax income and foreign exchange. Tourism has become too dependent on the pursuit of growth, seeing its role to simply get bigger, albeit in a more sustainable way. Regeneration is more than just reducing one's footprint and doing less harm; it is about leaving our place better than we have found it."
We know what it means to be Tasmanian, we know what Tasmania means to us and we want to share this with the world. How we choose to do this into the future will define whether Tasmania is world leading in this post-pandemic reality or whether we follow the status quo of protecting the way it used to be.
- Chris Griffin is the chief executive officer of Tourism Northern Tasmania
