Tourism Management Assignment: Complexities Faced by Tourism Sector in Cardiff

Question

Task: Cardiff's Tourism Industry
In Wales, the hills that are normally alive with the sound of cyclists, hikers and campers at this time of year lie silent. "Closed due to Covid-19" signs hang at barricaded car parks in national parks and at beauty spots.
Shut, too, are the country pubs, ordinarily packed on the kind of sunny days the country has seen recently. Anyone who comes here risks being fined and turned away. The First Minister’s message has so far been clear and unwavering: don’t visit Wales during the pandemic.

But it is a message that is starting to wear thin for the many businesses that depend on tourism for their livelihoods, with the fear that if they cannot reopen for the peak summer season, they will close for 2020 entirely – and potentially permanently. Many are already bracing themselves for huge redundancies. This week, the Welsh Association of Visitor Attractions (WAVA) issued a second joint statement to First Minister Mark Drakeford calling for “urgent clarity around dates for reopening following the Covid-19 lockdown”.

Signed by 60 of the country’s biggest tourist attractions, including Snowdon Mountain Railway, Zip World, Folly Farm and Dan yrOgof Show Caves, the statement underlined that the industry was on the “brink of collapse”, and that inaction from Welsh Government could lead to “economic disaster” for the country. This statement follows WAVA’s earlier letter to the First Minister on May 27, which remains unanswered. “We are becoming increasingly concerned and frustrated,” Vince Hughes, irector of Snowdon Mountain Railway, told Telegraph Travel. “There is no light at the end of the tunnel as we are no closer to understanding when we are likely to reopen and there's not even an indication. Our concern is that the bookings we have are going elsewhere. It's getting to the point of no return and if we don't open in July our season is over before it has even begun.”

Since lockdown began on March 23, Wales has sat tight and stayed at home. But now, as the peak of the pandemic appears to have passed and a downward trend continues, businesses are eager to reopen.

As the holiday season swiftly approaches, the lack of clarity from the Welsh Government hangs over the tourism industry like a heavy rain cloud. The statement claims that without even an inkling of a roadmap to reopening, such as those published in England, Scotland and Northern Ireland, the government is “causing harm”. “Welsh attractions generate £1.2 billion for the country’s economy annually,” Ashford Price, co-chair of WAVA and chairman of the National Showcaves Centre for Wales, revealed. “It is estimated that up to 4,500 attraction jobs will be lost this autumn due to lost income since last October. Attractions have had to take on huge debts and many fear bankruptcy.

“The virus will be with us for at least a year, according to scientists, so does the First Minister intend to keep everyone in Wales locked in their houses forever, while the economy of Wales collapses?”

The hospitality industry has been massively impacted too, with bookings being made tentatively at best. “The main problem is not knowing what we can do and when, and the restricted movement from England to Wales,” said Amelia Eiriksson, general manager at Michelin-starred Ynyshir Restaurant and Rooms near Machynlleth. “If we’re not careful, the bookings we do have will cancel and go to places like the Lake District and Cornwall instead.”

The First Minister recently announced that some lockdown restrictions would be eased if the number of new cases continues to fall, but he is reticent to make “any promises”.
At the moment, the rules limit travel in Wales to five miles, allowing people from two households to meet outdoors as long as they observe social distancing. Tourism businesses are waiting on tenterhooks for the next announcement on June 19, a day after ministers have reviewed the rules.
According to the statement, the First Minister’s message that “Wales is shut, don't come and don't plan on coming” is “incredibly damaging” given that 80 per cent of the tourism visitors to Wales are UK-based.

The #DontVisitWalesChallenge on Twitter and the Visit Wales strapline “Visit Wales. Later” have reinforced the fact that visitors are currently not welcome, albeit humorously in some cases.

As the UK and wider European population slowly emerge from lockdown and reignite their economies, the Welsh borders are effectively still closed. The lockdown has already made a massive dent in the economy and the worry is that, unless restrictions are lifted soon, the 2020 summer season will be a complete write-off and that Welsh tourism will be left behind – not just now, but for many years to come. Reference: Walker, K. (2020), Welsh tourism industry on ‘brink of collapse’ without road map to recovery. The Telegraph, 11 June (online).Available at: https://www.telegraph.co.uk/travel/destinations/europe/unitedkingdom/wales/articles/welsh-tourism-industry-on-brink-of-collapse/[accessed 11/7/20].

Tourism Management Assignment Question: You are a tourism consultant, who has been asked to write a structured report for Cardiff City Council, which can be used to inform numerous stakeholders about the complexities of the tourism industry in Cardiff.

Answer

Introduction
The current tourism management assignmentanalyses the case of tourism industry of Cardiff that has been very significant for the city as well as for the country. Tourism sector is one of the most prospering sectors in Cardiff. This sector generates employment for a large number of people. Tourism industry in Cardiff employs 14,000 people within the city(Walker, 2020). The sector also brings huge revenue amounting to more than £1.3 billion for the country’s economy. The tourism sector has been supported by its partners, who have made this success achievable for the sector. However, Cardiff which has proved itself as a first-class destination for visitors has suffered huge loss due to the pandemic. The hospitality and tourism sector has been hit hard by the lockdown. The tourism, attractions and hospitality jobs were lost during the lockdown (Joshi, Bhaskarand Gupta, 2020). The reason for unemployment or no employment generation in the tourism sector is the loss of revenue since October 2019. The lockdown which started from March 23, 2020 ceased all economic activities of the tourism sector. In Cardiff, there is a particular tourist season when the industry expects huge revenue earnings. Due to the global pandemic and lockdown thereafter, the entire tourist season was lost. The tourism industry and the companies within the industry incurred huge debts and some even went out of business being bankrupt. The tourism and hospitality sector had a tough time during 2020. They did not have any clear idea when the lockdown would be relaxed and activity could resume. The lockdown had been devastating and irreparably damaging for the tourism industry. The various stakeholders of the tourism sector, including the employees, company owners, shareholders, investors, suppliers, adjoint industries and government, have suffered huge loss due to the pandemic-induced lockdown or recession. The report on tourism management assignmentwill give a clearer picture of complexities faced by the tourism sector in Cardiff. The importance of tourism for Cardiff and Wales will also be presented in the following report.

Importance of Cardiff tourism to its business environment
Cardiff’s tourism sector plays a very important role in the economy of Wales. The sector employs thousands of people. The sector generates new employment opportunities every year. The sector also earns huge revenue which contributes towards the economy of Wales. The leisure and tourism sector of Cardiff is recognised by the government of the nation as a crucial sector is determining the economic state of the nation (Harris, 2017). The government of Wales plans its economic strategies keeping the tourism sector in mind. Cardiff being the capital of Wales, the administrative, shopping, and cultural and tourism centre of the nation contributes greatly towards the economy. The sector is considered to be a major economic driver. The contribution of the Cardiff’s tourism industry on the nation’s economy can be estimated by measuring its environmental and economic impact. The contribution of the tourism industry of Cardiff to its business environment can be estimated from the gross expenditure of the tourists, gross value added and employment generated (Kubanska, 2017). The regional economic performance and the industrial performance of the tourism industry of Cardiff can be monitored and measured using these factors.

The Welsh Economy Research Unit (WERU) has been examining the importance of the tourism sector and the economic contribution the industry has made for the country. WERU developed a Tourism Satellite Account (TSA) to examine and estimate thecontribution of the tourism sector of Cardiff. The TSA not only estimated the economic and social contribution of the tourism industry but also marked the ecological footprints of the tourism events (Li et al, 2019). The tourism industry of Cardiff has contributed positively towards the business environment. The sector not only elevates its economic contribution and performance but also boost other commercial activities. The tourism sector creates growth and demand for many adjoins industries. Travel, tourism, and hospitality are some of the interrelated industries. Tourism in Cardiff has been successfully generating more employment through its regular business activities. The industry has brought about economic development by earning high revenue and led to socio-economic upliftment of the region(Walker, 2020).

Role of main stakeholders of the tourism industry
As per Kim, Parkand Choi (2017), the main stakeholders of the tourism industry include the local companies, the local residents, the media, government, employees, tourists, competitors, activists, business associations and tourism developers. Each of these stakeholders of the tourism industry of Cardiff has a role to play in the industry’s growth. They are equally affected by the downfall or loss of the industry. The stakeholders of tourism industry in Cardiff have an important role to play in the decision-making process of the industry. The involvement of the stakeholders facilitates better and informed decision-making. The reason for involving the stakeholders is that they are the ones directly affecting or being affected by the decisions of the industry.

Tourism enterprises and establishments as stakeholders
In tourism development and reviving the business in the post-lockdown situation, the tourism enterprises and establishments have to assume a leading role. These include the tour operators, tourist information centres, travel agencies, and many more. These agencies haves to work to ensure that the trains, buses and flights are providing proper conveyance to the tourists, the restaurants are providing for food and hotels for accommodation to the tourists. According to Ozdemir-Guzeland Bas (2021), the tourist organisations make tourism easier and smoother for the local as well as international tourists. They also need to ensure that the government regulations in the pandemic situation are followed.

Government as a stakeholder
The local government of Cardiff and the national government of Wales haves a crucial role to play in the development of tourism during and after the pandemic. The activities at the various attractions have to be planned and permitted by the government in the post-lockdown situation. The government also has to plan certain policies specifically designed and implemented for dealing with tourism in the pandemic (Qiu et al, 2020). In the usual situations, the government has the role of maintaining and developing the infrastructure required to support tourism, which are development of roads, railways and sea/ air ports. The government of Wales and Cardiff together has to promote tourism in the current situation as the pandemic is showing a downward trend. The tourism activities need to be promoted to attract local and international tourists. The local government specifically has to provide incentives or subsidies to the adversely affected tourism industry to boost the business.

Local people as stakeholders
The local people are also very important as stakeholders. They can promote tourism or resist tourism development. Thus, it is important to have these local residents involved in the decision-making process. During pandemic, the local people can resist tourist activities on safety grounds. Thus, their concerns, beliefs and needs have to be considered while planning tourism activities.

Tourists as stakeholders
The tourists are the most significant stakeholders of the industry. The visitors of tourist spots as well as business travellers have to ensure that they take the trips by maintaining adequate safety and precautionary measures, like sanitization and social distancing. Once the tourists start travelling and spreading the word of mouth that tourism is safe in the post-lockdown period, the other tourists will be attracted to take trips to Cardiff. The tourists can boost the tourism business by sharing their positive experiences (Shi, Gursoyand Chen, 2019).

Professionals and employees of the tourism industry as stakeholders
The tourism consultants, professionals and employees of the industry play a significant role as stakeholders. The tourism industry of Cardiff could develop and prosper because of these professionals and employees. Their contribution and support help the sector grow. The skills of the people who are directly involved in tourism jobs as well as those employed in hospitality sector impact the business of the tourism industry (Mingotto, MontagutiandTamma, 2020). The employees must be trained to deal with the pandemic situation while offering tourism services.

Other stakeholders of the tourism industry
The other stakeholders include the tour planners, investors and tourism financing agencies. The union of employees, tourism education centres and other tourism specialist establishments also affect the tourism business (Rachmawatiand Fountain, 2020). The tourism planners and ministries need to take into account the role of all these stakeholders while planning tourism development in pandemic situation. However, not all stakeholders have equal power or worth. Communication with stakeholders and informed decision-making is important along with recognition of the role of the stakeholders in the tourism industry.

Economic dimensions of tourism in Cardiff
Cardiff being a popular tourism destination of Wales has a crucial role in the generation of employment for the economy of Wales(Aggarwal et al., 2020). The tourism industry in Cardiff is responsible for generating employment of nearly 14,000 people as well as an annual turnover of 1.3 billion GBP for the country's economy(Walker, 2020). Overall the city of Cardiff has not only proved to be an outstanding tourist spot but also a hub for employment with the help of its tourism industry supported by several partners. With the sudden disruptive situation of the COVID 19 pandemic, organizations belonging to the hospitality, catering, transport as well as event industry suffered a setback as these businesses were completely unaware of this new situation(Aluko et al., 2021). The sector suffered a tremendous loss in revenues especially due to the lockdowns and restrictions imposed by the Welsh Government. This sudden lockdown resulted in the shutdown of nearly all the major tourism organizations of Cardiff along with job cut-offs as well as the bankruptcy of a few of the smaller and emerging organizations.

This situation resulted in low morale among the employees of Cardiff along with deterioration in their physical as well as mental health due to the slow recovery of the economy. Before the pandemic situation, Cardiff's tourism sector acted as an employment generator with a majority of the city's population engaged as seasonal workers in the adventure sports sector, hospitality and hotel services as well as the catering industry. The tourism sector generated billions of revenue for Cardiff annually with major profits made especially during the peak seasons. The stable per capita GDP also led to a prosperous economy. The sector mainly an employment generator for the population of Cardiff belonging to the age group of 25-30 years with an equal amount of opportunities for both the male as well as the female population of the city. This sector also employed several male populations from other parts of Wales(Bigné et al., 2020). The economic dimension of tourism in Cardiff as an economic force played a crucial role in uplifting the Welsh economy as well as an employment generator.

Motivations of Cardiff tourists
After the pandemic situation, a tourist travelling in the post-covid-19 era did not want to engage in mass tourism and instead highly preferred travelling with emphasis on their experience. The covid-19 pandemic greatly shifted the trend of mass tourism which is often characterized by the use of travel agents to become or act as private tourism. The trend has weather shifted to the demand for independent and free travel, luxury travel as well as Health Tourism, the choice of tourist destinations in Cardiff most the covid-19 pandemic is greatly related to the travel motivation of the tourist. Tourist motivation is better dominated by psychological as well as physical motivation(Chiu et al., 2021). Boredom during the period of self-quarantine in the pandemic situation greatly has encouraged the tourist to travel with a particular aim of relaxation but also keeping into consideration their health and safety while visiting places. Cardiff is mainly known for its shopping tourism with extensive designer and independent shops as well as high-end streets. Popular shopping firms such as St. David Shopping Centre has attracted nearly 14 million visitors in the past year which intern has set up a new record for the main shopping area of the city(Tomasi et al., 2020). The travel motivation theory based on Maslow's hierarchy of needs defines the motivation of the tourist as well as categorise them into five different levels which are the needs of relaxation security and safety needs of relationship self-esteem as well as development needs and fulfilment needs(Cranmer et al., 2020). Post the Covid-19 pandemic situation, the major motivating factor that the tourism sector of Cardiff must stress is to focus on the sport and leisure industry to reduce the stress that individuals have went through due to self-quarantine in the pandemic phase. In this context, digital promotions and advertisements must be adopted and focused on by the tourism sector to highlight that the city's adventure sports hubs will provide the ultimate pleasure and relaxation to the tourists visiting the city. This in turn will encourage the tourists to visit Cardiff to seek pleasure and escape from the perceived mundane environment brought up by the Covid-19 pandemic situation. Additive discounts offered by the shopping centres of Cardiff will also act as a motivating factor for the tourists(Dodds et al., 2020). It is also essential for the hospitality sector of the tourism industry in Cardiff to stress the safe and hygienic environment that the hotels will provide with the help of digital advertisements and social media promotion strategy to boost up the low morale of the tourists and ensure them a safe and sound stay(Tiago et al., 2021).

Evolution of demand and growth factors
In the past 5 years, the capital city of Wales, Cardiff has experienced a record number of visitors. The value of the domestic overnight visitors nearly grew by 14% in 2019 and the tourism sector of Cardiff aimed to meet 10% growth target by the year 2020(Stezhko et al., 2020). The tourism industry of Cardiff is mature and has an enormous capacity to grow as well as sustain. The good landscape adventure sports, as well as our culture and shopping hubs of the city, greatly increase the demand of the tourist to visit this place(Gómez Aguilella and Cardiff, 2020). Post covid-19 pandemic situation, trends have completely changed as well as the demand of the tourist to visit this place has also dropped due to restrictions from the Welsh government, concern of the tourist regarding their health and travel, closure of the majority of the shops and herbs that tourist visit within the city(Sharif et al., 2021). However, with the current initiatives of the Welsh government, Cardiff expects to benefit from the five-year plan 2020-2025 for rejuvenating its tourism sector as well as accelerate its growth. The Visit Wales approach of the Welsh government will focus on the main three pillars which are landscape culture and adventure for prioritising development as well as marketing resources. Cardiff has also focused on promoting the three main themes in the investment as well as marketing and continuously seeks opportunities to develop the market-facing bookable adventure products, cultural as well as landscape services for the future and take it to the potential audiences in a detailed manner with collaboration as well as fresh energy. The “Wales Way” approach designed by the Welsh government will also help in revival the demand of the international tourist for visiting Cardiff and ensuring that the tourist can get a memorable experience after visiting the high-quality destinations of Cardiff(Khan et al., 2020). Digital strategies by Cardiff along with the Welsh government will greatly help in growing the capacity of the tourism sector and sustain them in the future. It is also essential for the tourism sector in Cardiff to utilise live data as well as technology tools to determine a real-time picture of the demand of the visitors which will help them to identify the major areas which need focus for managing demand as well as capacity.

Effect of globalization on tourism in the destination in the next 5 years
Globalisation has made the hospitality and tourism industry completely different due to its multicultural nature. The tourism, as well as hospitality industry, can create a mutual relationship between the tourist as a local community in which both of the participants can know as well as exchange new cultures(Kyrylov et al., 2020). The major trends of globalisation such as evolving the visitor demand, sustainable growth of tourism, enabling technologies as well as travel mobility will greatly help the tourism Industry of Cardiff to recover from the loss in revenues as well as employment suffered during the phase of the global pandemic(Reape and Hanrahan, 2021). Within the next five years, the tourism sector of Cardiff is expected to achieve immense growth due to initiatives of the Welsh government as well as the “Visit Wales” approach.

Conclusion
The Corona Virus Control Plan of the Welsh government sets out four levels of alert for easing the restrictions on the Nations. This has also enabled the Welsh government to witness any other effects of the previous relaxations. Therefore to reopen safely it is highly acknowledged that the tourism industry of Cardiff needs of sufficient amount of time to plan by working in close relationship with the stakeholder groups as well as the Welsh government. One of the major recommendations in context to the recovery period post the Covid-19 pandemic situation is that several challenges such as global recession, the changing attitudes of travel among the tourist and long-term impact on the major events need to be critically evaluated by the tourism industry. It's important therefore for the Cardiff tourism business to remain flexible and adapt to the rapidly changing circumstances such that it can maintain its stable operations again.

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