1. Fluctuations in Tourism
Why has tourism become a global
phenomenon?

2. By the end of this lesson
You should be able to:
1. Explain why tourism is subject to
regional fluctuations using authentic
examples
2. Examples
includes
disasters,
recessions, politics, diseases

3. News flash!
Singapore has been hit by 4 major crisis! Reporters
from 307 will update what the crisis is about, and
how it has affected our tourism industry.
•
•
•
•
Disaster: Tsunamis hits East Coast Park
Diseases: SARS outbreak in Gleneagles hospital
Politics: Riot attacks in Little India
Recessions: Stock market crash in ST holdings
3

4. Based on the figure, has tourism increased
constantly over the years?
International Tourist Arrivals
Source: STB, 2011

5. Questions to Ponder…
• Are factors (both demand and destination)
affecting tourism a never changing
statistic?
• What would halt the growth of tourism?

6. Can you compare the tourism figures
across the years 2010 and 2011? How
has tourism fluctuated?

7. What can you infer from this line-graph
on tourist arrivals? What has been
affected?
Demand
or
destination
factors?

8. Do you know what this event is?

9. The aftermath of the 2011 Tohoku
Tsunami

10. Is Japan trying to
promote the increase
of
demand
or
destination factors by
offering free flights to
save
the
tourism
industry?

11. Can you think of any other
events that will affect demand or
destination factors?

12. Hong Kong (2003) SARS Epidemic
299 Dead
Widespread Hysteria

13. Hong Kong (2003) SARS Epidemic
• Tourist arrivals fell 63% (850,000) from
March to April 2003
• Outbound bookings for the Easter
holiday period fell by 80%.

14. Iceland (2010) Eyjafjallajökull eruption
Halted air travel in Europe and Trans-Atlantic
for a week
Affected tourism during the Easter holiday

15. Iceland (2010) Eyjafjallajökull eruption
• 107,000 flights cancelled during 8 day
period- 48% of total air traffic (10 million
passengers)
• Airlines collectively losing £130m per day in
lost revenues
• Tourism industry will lose money from
tourists unable to make the trip

16. Global Financial Crisis(2007-2008)
• Caused by the bubble burst in the
property market of the US
• Banks and financial institutions declared
bankrupt due to massive debts

17. Global Financial Crisis(2007-2008)
• Consumer spending lowered due to rising
unemployment (5.4 million jobs lost in USA
in 2008)
• Assets have lowered due to the collapse of
the stock and property markets
• There is less disposable income that can
be used to finance holidays

18. Tourist arrivals in 2008/2009 could be the
consequence of the financial crisis
International Tourist Arrivals
Source: STB, 2011

19. Thailand (2008) Political Crisis
Began with coup d'état in 2006 which ousted
then PM Thaksin Shinawatra
Two factions: United Front for Democracy
Against Dictatorship (Pro-Thaksin) and
People's Alliance for Democracy
(AntiThaksin)

20. Thailand (2008) Political Crisis
Series of political incidents which have affected
tourism:
30 August -PAD Supporters laid siege to
airports in Phuket, Krabi and Hatyai (15,000
visitors trapped)
2 September- Violent clashes leaving 1 dead
and 43 injured, state of emergency is declared
in Bangkok until 14 September.

21. Thailand (2008) Political Crisis
6 October- Violent clashes day-long leave 2
dead and over 300 injured, including 20
policemen
25 November- PAD blocks Suvarnabhumi
International Airports, leaving thousands of
tourists stranded and cutting off most of
Thailand's international air connections. Several
explosions and clashes occur in the following
day.

22. Thailand (2008) Political Crisis

24. Factors affecting
tourism are
constantly changing
due to these
unforeseen events!

25. Learning Points
• The tourism industry is not stable and
regional/international events may affect its
growth
• Tourism is fuelled by a combination of
demand and destination factors, that
fluctuates across space, time and scale

26. Homework text page 51 question
1a, 1c, and 4
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