This research aims to evaluate the use of tourism as a tool for poverty reduction in Bulon Island, Satun Province, Thailand. It focuses on local people’s perceptions of poverty and how tourism may be used to improve their livelihoods. It also critically evaluates the barriers to local people to participating in the tourism industry and how these may be overcome. An interpretive paradigm supported by the use of qualitative methods including semi-structured interviews, participant observation and focus groups has been adopted. Thirty-six local people participated in the research and two focus groups were conducted. The collected data was evaluated through thematic analysis to categorise the emergent key themes. The research findings are subsequently presented according to three main themes that emerged from the data. The first is local peoples’ perceptions of poverty focus on their ability to be self-sufficient rather than defining poverty solely as a measure of deficient income. Secondly, it is evident that local people benefit from tourism in terms of employment opportunities, which are important for supplementing work in the seasonal fishing industry. The creation of employment opportunities and an opportunity to earn income especially have direct benefits for local women, making them more independent and empowering them. The final iv thematic finding identifies the barriers to local participation in tourism, which centre upon deficiencies in financial, human and social capital. Recommendations are subsequently made on how to overcome these barriers and enhance the use of tourism for poverty reduction and alleviation in Bulon. Actions include capacity building and the establishment and strengthening of stakeholder partnerships.

Magister Commercii - MCom / The South African government has earmarked the Travel and Tourism industry as a key sector for economic growth as it plays an important role in stimulating the South African economy. Over the last few years the industry has placed greater emphasis on tour packages being offered to tourists, with one key group, Inbound Tour Operators, emerging to fulfil this important role. However, there have been limited studies conducted in the South African context which aim to isolate generalizable key success factors (KSFs) in the Travel and Tourism sector. By focusing on two important research streams, competitive advantage and international entrepreneurship, this study identified nine main KSFs. These KSFs were developed using Thomas and Long's KSF model (Thomas and Long, 2000). The general research approach was a qualitative, multiple-case study whereby six firms were selected from the inbound tour operator sub-sector of the SA tourism industry. The research methodology used in-depth interviews which were conducted with an industry expert and owner-managers of small, mediumand large inbound tour operators, serving and operating in international markets. This helped to gain an understanding of the complex and intricate ways that these firms comprehend KSFs and build their international strategy. As a result of this research approach, it was possible to identify how these KSF variables are influenced through management's decisions and how they essentially affect the overall competitive positions of the various firms in the industry. It also led to novel findings which challenged conventional international entrepreneurship thinking, such as the Uppsala approach, on the basis that firms do not only follow sequential steps when internationalising their businesses. It was found that entrepreneurial firms internationalise their businesses from the outset and extensively leverage off of internet-based technology and utilise export-based activities to engage international markets. The implications of the findings show that existing and new tour operators entering the tourism industry have clear KSFs which they can target in order to achieve success. These factors are variables which management can influence through their decision-making and affect the overall competitive positions of their firm in the industry. Nonetheless, further studies are required to identify KSFs in the other sectors within the tourism industry to provide valuable insights regarding how the international competitiveness of the local tourism industry as a whole may be improved.

Abstract only in Afrikaans. Hoewel daar gedurende die laaste twee dekades 'n groot verskeidenheid literatuur verskyn het oor toerisme as 'n sosiale verskynsel en as 'n selfstandige bedryf in die ekonomie, is daar steeds 'n groot behoefte aan 'n samehangende raamwerk vir die beskrywing, verklaring en beplanning van die bemarking van toerisme. Hierdie verhandeling verteenwoordig 'n poging om die bemarking van toerisme konseptueel te orden aan die hand van die bekende Vier P's-model van die bemarkingsmengsel. Die toerismeproduk, die prysmeganismes daaraan verbonde, die distribusiesisteme van toerismeprodukte en die promosie van toerisme word elkeen volledig omskryf aan die hand van diepgaande analises van bestaande literatuur.<p0> Daar word tot die gevolgtrekking gekom dat dié bemarkingsmengsel wel 'n geldige en bruikbare raamwerk bied vir die ontleding en beplanning van toerismebemarking in meer spesifieke kontekste. / Dissertation (MCom)--University of Pretoria, 2013. / Tourism Management / unrestricted

Yes / This study aims to investigate the role of artificial intelligence (AI) driven facial recognition to enhance a value proposition by influencing different areas of services in the travel and tourism industry. We adopted semi-structured interviews to derive insights from 26 respondents. Thematic analysis reveals the development of four main themes (personalization, data-driven service offering, security and safety, and seamless payments). Further, we mapped the impact of AI- driven facial recognition to enhance value and experience for corporate guests. Findings indicate that AI-based facial recognition can facilitate the travel and tourism industry in understanding travelers’ needs, optimization of service offers, and value-based services, whereas data-driven services can be realized in the form of customized trip planning, email, and calendar integration, and quick bill summarization. This contributes to strengthening the tourism literature through the lens of organizational information processing theory.

At the beginning the thesis deals with the financial crisis 2007 which has lead to the economic recession. It introduces the impact of the economic crisis on the travel and tourim industry in general with the focus on the air transport industry. It mentions the particular measures of the airlines against the economic crisis and characterises the important role of IATA during the economic crisis. At the end of this thesis there is a forecast of the further development of the air transport industry.

The thesis deals with the Croatian tourism, describes its current state mainly focusing on its structure and special features and highlights the effect on the national economy. Special attention is dedicated to the mutual tourism among Croatia and the Czech Republic. One part of the thesis analyses the prerequisites of the Croatian travel and tourism development. It also includes the SWOT analysis as the evaluation of the country's strenghts, weaknesses, opportunities and threats.

Made available in DSpace on 2016-04-29T14:22:52Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 1 Marcos Antonio dos Reis.pdf: 1122754 bytes, checksum: 111315a2f89ea0f7bf53de2dad993fd2 (MD5) Previous issue date: 2011-05-26 / Modern organized society lives in a crescently globalized and informatized world, where competitiveness among companies grows stronger every day. At the same time, potential and effective clients are more demanding and more informed about the products and the corporations. Internet has showed itself as a very important strategic tool in the transformation of the markets and the consumption chain, causing changes and forcing companies to rethink its business models. Electronic commerce is an emerging giant, having moved, throughout the world, US$ 502,1 billion in 2009, with an estimate projection of US$ 963 billion in 2013 - an annual growth rate around 19,5% (source: www.ecommercenew.com.br). Tourism, in the view of the client, is formed by information that is largely available in the internet. Everyday new companies are formed using the internet as a business marketplace in the tourism sector. Some companies offer its products exclusively on the internet, while others still use the traditional means. This research studies some practices of the tourism sector in Brazil, aiming to obtain a more clear perception on the impact and influence of the internet over it. Evidences possible causes and effects of internet's utilization and its non utilization as a marketplace, an important mean of communication and the business models derived from it. Finally, it tries to offer a clear sight of its role together with the e-commerce in the consolidation of the tourism business in Brazil / A sociedade organizada e moderna apresenta-se cada vez mais globalizada e informatizada, na qual a competitividade entre as empresas aumenta significativamente, dia a dia. Clientes e potenciais clientes estão cada vez mais bem informados e exigentes sobre os produtos e as empresas. A Internet mostra-se como ferramenta estratégica muito importante nas transformações de mercados e na cadeia de consumo, causando mudanças e forçando as empresas a repensar seus modelos de negócios. O comércio eletrônico é um gigante que movimentou US$ 502,1 bilhões em 2009, no mundo todo. Para 2013, há uma projeção de US$ 963 bilhões, com taxa anual de crescimento na ordem de 19,5% ao ano (disponível em: www.ecommercenew.com.br, consultado em 01/2011). O turismo, na visão do cliente, compõe-se de informações que podem ser disponibilizadas largamente pela Internet. A cada dia, surgem novas empresas, utilizando-se dessa ferramenta para realizar negócios no mercado de turismo. Algumas empresas apresentam seus produtos somente pela Internet, enquanto outras se utilizam de modelos tradicionais de comercialização. Esta pesquisa estuda alguns comportamentos do setor de turismo no Brasil, buscando abstrair a percepção sobre as influências da utilização da Internet. Evidencia possíveis causas e efeitos em empresas que utilizam ou não a Internet como meio de venda e comunicação, possibilitando obter uma visão do uso da Internet e o do comércio eletrônico na concretização do negócio turismo no Brasil

The mail goal of this diploma paper is to make analysis focused on the products directed to the United States of America offered by travel agencies on the local market.Author aims to realize the current development of demand of Czech travellers for trips and tours organized to the United States of America, especially in reference to recent legislative changes made by the government of the United States of America.The analysis results from detailed characteristics of the destination and trends of Czechs outgoing tourism to the US. There is a confrontantion based on the present findings, offer of the travel agencies is compared to the potentials of the market.

Nowadays, social media are the current trend and more and more companies are implementing social marketing strategies. The thesis discusses the potential, opportunities and advantages of social media. Special focus is on the specifics of marketing in the tourism and travel industry. The goal of this thesis is to analyze and to assess the true potential in order to form recommendations aimed for the involved tourism and travel businesses.

The thesis examines Youth Travel, the new trend and new segment of tourism. Its goal is to analyze this market and recommend the appropriate strategy to the destinations and enterprises in order to attract Youth Travelers. The theoretical part presents the definition of Youth Travel, indicates its benefits and analyses the factors of its development. The analytical part is concerned with the potential of the Czech Republic for the development of Youth Travel and the tendency of Youth Travelers to visit this destination. The contribution of this work can be seen in the new product concept which might be helpful in attracting Youth Travelers to one of the regions of the Czech Republic.