Page 30 - Tourism The International Business

This book is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 3.0 License

have been done indicate that, if people had more three-day weekends, they would likely take more weekend trips.
However, people typically overestimate what they will do if and when they actually get the time. Studies of people
who have four-day workweek jobs found that they tended to base their leisure time around the home because they

were so tired from working.
Time is increasingly important to people. Unlike money, time cannot be saved. There is an increasing number of
two-family households employed in the workplace. Additionally, a number of states are experimenting with year-
round schooling. It will, therefore, become more difficult to find a time when all members of the family can get
together for a vacation. Thus, there will be an increased demand for time-intensive activities. Such things as
weekend packages and short cruises will appeal to families who have the money but not the time to travel.

Money
The second factor necessary for tourism to occur is money. Even when workers were first given an annual
vacation they were not paid. As a result, few could travel. As paid vacations became the norm in the twentieth
century, people had the time and the means to take a trip.
There are several aspects to the money required for travel. First, the money required is discretionary. That is,

after obligations such as taxes, rent, and food are taken care of, individuals have discretion over how to spend the
remainder of their money.
It might be saved, it might buy a compact disk player, or it might be spent on a getaway weekend. This
illustration helps us realize that the tourism dollar is in competition with other consumer products. Before we can
get the tourists to our destination or facility we must first get them interested in the idea of taking a vacation.

Exhibit 13: Tourists need—and spend
—money. (Courtesy Hong Kong Tourist
Association.)

Tourism the International Business 30 A Global Text