Development of Tourism Industry in the UK Essay

Development of Tourism Industry in the UK - Essay Example This essay provides a concise overview of the tourism and travel industry performance in the UK during last decade. The economic state of tourism sector of the UK is deemed healthy with perspective of a steady growth. The income from the industry is incomparable. The joblessness rate has greatly declined with many people absorbed in the industry Since the Second World War, there have been a lot of developments in this industry. Application of the computerized reservation systems led to increase of tourists, visiting the UK Prior to the technology, a lot of travelers mainly depended on pen and paper to transact business deals. However, in early 1990s, attitudes changed. Technological advancements captured the attention of the world market. Few people could access facilities and enjoy them to their satisfaction. The data released by the government via the Global Distribution Systems have showed significant growth in the industry. In 1989, the country had recorded 5 million tourists per annum as compared to 29.6 million in 2010. The development of the jet engine was invented after the Second World War. The advancement brought dramatic changes; although in 1958, the number of travelers per flight was restricted. In early 1970s, jets started ferrying more passengers thus making flight charges low and increasing the profits. This enhanced the growth of the industry significantly during this period. For the last twenty years, the tour operators have developed new packages to accommodate the needs of the new travelers . When compared to early 1950s, tourism has evolved significantly (Holland, 2011). The industry has fully adopted modernization and its structures to enhance its growth. Natural calamities Most countries depend on tourism to earn foreign exchange into the country. However, natural calamities like prolonged drought, tsunamis, earthquakes, floods and hurricanes may gradually change the face of tourism industry. Tourism acts as a source of employment to many people. Some are employed as rangers, tour guides and others in the hospitality sectors. If the number of tourists decline due to natural disasters, people will be affected, and in turn the country becomes broke. Therefore, if tourists don’t come, a lot of pressure will be put on the economy (Smith & ?Ann, 2007). Normally, tourists want to avoid risk places and enjoy themselves in peaceful sites. In general, natural disasters have the following effects: i. Reduced number of tourists visiting the country ii. Low business set u ps due to lack of enough money generated in tourism. This will result in closure of business and loss of jobs iii. Increase in rate of unemployment especially in disaster affected areas iv. Increase in government expenditure due to insufficient money generated through taxations. From the above effects, it is clear that natural calamities affect the country’s economic development. Although it is not possible to eliminate them fully, their severity can be reduced. If nothing is done, the growth of the industry may stagnate if not decline in future. This means a lot in the economic trend. Fall in sales volumes Most of the tourist firms in the UK have of late experienced low sales volumes. For instance, Tui Travel, which is one of the companies that provides tourism services, recorded a 35% decline in its sales for the first quarter of the previous financial year (Smith, 2010). This was mainly due to cut in number of tourists traversing the country. Most of the people are more in terdependent so they book online which saves them money. Furthermore, most of the people have no plan of spending their holidays far from their homes. This reduces the volume of sales of tourist industries. Fall in sales volumes reflects low income in the affected industry, hence affecting its employees. This also means that the government will not get enough revenue from the same industry. High Cost of vacations Tourists traverse all over the world enjoying their beautiful sceneries and wildlife. In their tour, they spend their time in hotels and other special vacations. Accommodations