Budapest Post

Cum Deo pro Patria et Libertate
Budapest, Europe and world news

Rich tourists good, budget travellers bad? Why it’s not that simple

Rich tourists good, budget travellers bad? Why it’s not that simple

Spain and New Zealand are among countries saying they want a ‘better class’ of tourist post-pandemic, but low-budget visitors – from backpackers to nomadic families – bring unique benefits.

Young travellers party on a beach in the Indian resort of Goa in pre-pandemic times. Some countries are saying they would rather appeal to a higher class of tourist when normal travel resumes.

The global travel industry and the economies that have come to depend on it have been devastated by the coronavirus pandemic. However, not all tourism authorities are in a rush to go back to how things were.

New Zealand, in particular, sees the pandemic shutdown as an opportunity to appeal to a “better class” of visitor, and it has created the Premium Partnerships Programme to provide sponsorship to tour operators who target individuals worth more than US$1 million. Spain’s tourism minister, Reyes Maroto, echoed the ambitions of other destinations when he told the Financial Times newspaper in May: “We are moving from a model of ‘the more tourists, the better’ to one of higher expenditures, more nights and premium tourists.”

In Asia, Thailand and Sri Lanka have indicated that they will try to appeal to higher-paying visitors, and Viktor Laiskodat, governor of Indonesia’s East Nusa Tenggara province (which includes Flores and Komodo), was reported on news site Tempo in November 2020 as saying: “Those visiting this place must be wealthy. If you’re not classified as such and still negotiate deals, it’s better to go elsewhere, such as Jakarta, Bali or Lombok.”

However, not all destinations can afford to be that choosy. And nor may they wish to be.

“Some will still want to target budget markets as there will certainly be demand for it,” says Denis Tolkach, a senior lecturer in tourism at Australia’s James Cook University who was, until last January, an assistant professor at the Hong Kong Polytechnic University.

“It is improbable that all countries will be successful at developing enough luxury products to focus their national tourism agenda on that market. Some lack financial and human resources as well as policy frameworks, which makes it difficult to match international quality standards.”

Denis Tolkach, a senior lecturer in tourism at Australia’s James Cook University, says budget travel provides jobs and small-business opportunities for many people, especially in Southeast Asia.


During a Radio NZ interview, New Zealand’s tourism minister, Stuart Nash, defined his ideal traveller as one “who flies business or premium economy, hires a helicopter around Franz Josef [glacier] and eats at a top-end restaurant.”

The appeal of such tourists is obvious. “It certainly makes some sense to target high-spending tourists,” Tolkach says. “It helps maintain a good level of revenue from tourists while reducing social and environmental pressures on a destination.”

Those pressures manifest in many forms, from the overcrowding that cities such as Venice and Amsterdam were trying to get to grips with before the pandemic struck, to the rubbish found on many Asian beaches and the alfresco defecation Nash blames on “freedom campers”- mostly young people on working visas who wander across New Zealand.

Backpackers arrive at Bangkok’s Hua Lampong railway station on June 30, 2015. Many foreigners use Thailand’s trains as an inexpensive means of getting around the country.


“If you’re willing to pay for a camper van at least ... dispose of your excrement in a way that meets our sustainability goals, and quite frankly our brand,” he said.

That seems fair enough. But the choice is rarely as simple as wealthy visitors, good; budget visitors, bad. For a start, not all of the latter are cut from the same cloth. The behaviour of visitors in package tour groups differs wildly from that of backpackers, for instance.

“Backpackers get bad press based on the idea that they are tight with their money and spend as little as possible when they travel,” says Nikki Scott, founder of the Backpackers International platforms.

“This is simply not true. While they do travel on a budget, this just means that they choose carefully where to spend their money. While they may eschew five-star hotels and luxury restaurants, they are very willing to spend a couple of hundred dollars on adventure activities such as diving, rock climbing, trekking, boat trips and mountain biking.”

Campers arrive at a camping ground at Ohope Beach in New Zealand. The country has said it sees the pandemic shutdown as an opportunity to appeal to a “better class” of visitor.


As a result, that investment is less likely to be repatriated overseas, to the headquarters of a multinational company.

“That money, when funnelled directly down to a small community, is everything to those families and communities, helping wealth distribution,” says Bruce Poon Tip, the founder of G Adventures, which designs tours for young travellers. “I think it’s hard for tourism organisations to fully understand this.”

Tolkach says that his research in Hong Kong suggests backpackers are more sustainable than mass-market tourists. Backpackers are likely to stay for much longer in a country, so their total spend may well exceed that of a high-paying brief visitor, and they “typically venture out beyond the most common sightseeing spots and shop locally”.

Backpackers, Scott says, are also seen as “being dirty, smelly, drug-taking, alcoholics who just want to party. None of these are true.”

Poon Tip does concede, though, that some travellers go to a destination just to party, and tourism organisations can’t control where or how they do so. However, the terms “backpacker” and “budget traveller” encompass a variety of people, most of whom are not preoccupied with accumulating a drug stash ahead of the next full-moon party.

“They can be nomadic families, backpacking grannies, career-breakers, empty-nesters and digital nomads,” Scott says. “Small businesses have always realised the value of backpacker tourism, and understood that the stereotype of the backpacker as a long-haired hippie with no money is far from the truth.”

Bruce Poon Tip, founder of G Adventures, says budget travellers usually have a considerably less environmental impact on their destinations than wealthy ones do.


Environmental concerns are also of increasing importance, and budget travellers are unlikely to be the ones taking Nash’s helicopter around the Franz Josef glacier.

“It’s never no-impact [with budget travellers], but it’s a heck of a lot lower impact, for sure,” Poon Tip says. “Some of our overland trips use local transportation to get about, and so we’re not hiring private transportation. We stay in very small accommodations, have very small groups, and the impact is much less.”

Scott also notes that high-end tourists are less likely to receive a true impression of the country they visit. “Many ... will be shielded from the worst environmental problems, like plastic pollution and poverty. Many receive a sugar-coated image of a country. The beaches near their five-star hotel will be cleaned and sanitised and many of them won’t venture into the places that backpackers go.

“Backpackers, on the other hand, often come back from travelling with their eyes opened to more of the world’s problems. Some of them spend weeks or months volunteering in a country, or start social and environmental projects of their own.

“Once you’ve backpacked with all of your worldly goods on your back and met people who have nothing but the biggest smile you have ever seen, you tend to realise that material wealth isn’t as important as the Western world makes it out to be.”

Tolkach points out that “intercultural interaction may help mitigate the xenophobic sentiments which appear to be on the rise in some countries” and that backpackers can help labour markets remain flexible. “In countries such as Australia and New Zealand they stay on working holiday visas and are able to work, usually in agriculture or hospitality.”

Furthermore, young budget travellers who have formed a positive bond with a destination may well revisit in later years, when they are the ones with a high net worth.

Lonely Planet founder Tony Wheeler considers himself a lifelong backpacker and budget traveller. “There are lots of places where [my kind] are the largest part of the travel spectrum, plus they’re often the pioneers, the people who open up places first of all,” he says.

Tony Wheeler, founder of The Lonely Planet.


He hopes independent spirited travellers will help reboot tourism following the Covid-19 lockdowns. “Perhaps they’ll be the first back on the scene when it comes to reopening places.”

And then what?

“There is a lot of pent-up demand for travel,” Tolkach says. “So yes, there is a concern that, post-Covid, business as usual will return and the masses of tourists will go on the same routes, visiting the same cities and same attractions they were visiting prior to Covid.”

Bali may prove an interesting bellwether, he says. “Tourism growth has greatly contributed to the island’s waste-management problems, to the detriment of the natural environment and sociocultural issues related to tourist behaviours. On the one hand, Bali wants to change how it develops tourism after the pandemic to increase focus on sustainability and yield per tourist. On the other hand, there is a lack of economic opportunities on the island, and many people are desperate for tourists to return so that they can again have a steady income.

“This sense of desperation and urgency may also push other destinations to enact policies that will stimulate the return of visitors [on any kind of budget].”

A pent-up need to travel after the pandemic could see many popular destinations, like Amsterdam, revert to their overcrowded selves.


Ultimately though, it is important for a destination to have a good mix of products and markets, Tolkach says. “As the saying goes: ‘Don’t put all eggs into one basket.’ Luxury travel is great from a revenue-generating perspective. But budget travel also provides jobs and small-business opportunities for many people – especially in Southeast Asia – who cannot afford formal education or the large capital investment required for an upscale tourism business.”

Wheeler says that for destinations that are in a position to choose, the question they will have to ask themselves is whether they want tourism to be “restricted to people who just fly in, hang around for a few days in the international resorts, and then fly out again”.

“Isn’t there a lot to be said for visitors who stay longer, potentially spend more over that longer period, and who spend their money closer to ground level, where it’s more likely to benefit the everyday population, not just the big operators?”

AI Disclaimer: An advanced artificial intelligence (AI) system generated the content of this page on its own. This innovative technology conducts extensive research from a variety of reliable sources, performs rigorous fact-checking and verification, cleans up and balances biased or manipulated content, and presents a minimal factual summary that is just enough yet essential for you to function as an informed and educated citizen. Please keep in mind, however, that this system is an evolving technology, and as a result, the article may contain accidental inaccuracies or errors. We urge you to help us improve our site by reporting any inaccuracies you find using the "Contact Us" link at the bottom of this page. Your helpful feedback helps us improve our system and deliver more precise content. When you find an article of interest here, please look for the full and extensive coverage of this topic in traditional news sources, as they are written by professional journalists that we try to support, not replace. We appreciate your understanding and assistance.
Newsletter

Related Articles

0:00
0:00
Close
Emails Leaked: How Passenger Luggage Became a Side Income for Airport Workers
Polish MEP: “Dear Leftists - China is laughing at you, Russia is laughing, India is laughing”
Western Europe Records Hottest June on Record
BRICS Expands Membership with Indonesia and Ten New Partner Countries
Elon Musk Founds a Party Following a Poll on X: "You Wanted It – You Got It!"
China’s Central Bank Consults European Peers on Low-Rate Strategies
France Requests Airlines to Cut Flights at Paris Airports Amid Planned Air Traffic Controller Strike
Poland Implements Border Checks Amid Growing Migration Tensions
Emirates Airline Expands Market Share with New $20 Million Campaign
Amazon Reaches Milestone with Deployment of One Millionth Robot
Yulia Putintseva Calls for Spectator Ejection at Wimbledon Over Safety Concerns
House Oversight Committee Subpoenas Former Jill Biden Aide Amid Investigation into Alleged Concealment of President Biden's Cognitive Health
Amazon Reaches Major Automation Milestone with Over One Million Robots
Extreme Heat Wave Sweeps Across Europe, Hitting Record Temperatures
Meta Announces Formation of Ambitious AI Unit, Meta Superintelligence Labs
Robots Compete in Football Tournament in China Amid Injuries
China Unveils Miniature Insect-Like Surveillance Drone
Marc Marquez Claims Victory at Dutch Grand Prix Amidst Family Misfortune
Germany Votes to Suspend Family Reunification for Asylum Seekers
Budapest Pride Parade Draws 200,000 Participants Amid Government Ban
Southern Europe Experiences Extreme Heat
Xiaomi's YU7 SUV Launch Garners Record Pre-Orders Amid Market Challenges
Jeff Bezos and Lauren Sanchez's Lavish Wedding in Venice
Russia Launches Largest Air Assault on Ukraine Since Invasion
Massive Anti-Government Protests Erupt in Belgrade
Iran Executes Alleged Israeli Spies and Arrests Hundreds Amid Post-War Crackdown
Hungary's Prime Minister Criticizes NATO's Role in Ukraine
EU TO HUNGARY: LET THEM PRIDE OR PREP FOR SHADE. ORBÁN TO EU: STAY IN YOUR LANE AND FIX YOUR OWN MESS.
Hungarian Scientist to Conduct 30 Research Experiments on the International Space Station
NATO Members Agree to 5% Defense Spending Target by 2035
NATO Leaders Endorse Plan for Increased Defence Spending
U.S. Crude Oil Prices Drop Below $65 Amid Market Volatility
International Astronaut Team Launched to Space Station
Macron and Merz: Europe must arm itself in an unstable world
Germany and Italy Under Pressure to Repatriate $245bn of Gold from US Vaults
Iran Intensifies Crackdown on Alleged Mossad Operatives After Sabotage Claims
Trump Praises Iran’s ‘Very Weak’ Response After U.S. Strikes and Presses Israel to Pursue Peace
Oil Prices Set to Surge After US Strikes Iran
BA and Singapore Airlines Cancel Dubai Flights Amid Middle East Tensions
Trump Faces Backlash from MAGA Base Over Iran Strikes
Meta Bets $14 B on Alexandr Wang to Drive AI Ambitions
FedEx Founder Fred Smith, ‘Heart and Soul’ of the Company, Dies at 80
Chinese Factories Shift Away from U.S. Amid Trump‑Era Tariffs
Pimco Seizes Opportunity in Japan’s Dislocated Bond Market
Labubu Doll Drives Pop Mart to Status as China’s Most Valuable Toy Maker
Global Coal Demand Defies Paris Accord Goals
United States Conducts Precision Strikes on Iran’s Nuclear Sites
US strikes Iran nuclear sites, Trump says
Telegram Founder: I Will Leave My Fortune to Over 100 of My Children
16 Billion Login Credentials Leaked in Unprecedented Cybersecurity Breach
×