The United States national parks celebrate an impressive 100th anniversary year in 2016 and what a privilege it was to re-visit some of the national parks over the summer. Living on an island that would easily fit into some of the American national parks, I had forgotten about the space, big skies, sheer spectacle, that if you don’t have a … Continue reading United Selfies of America
On a recent visit to Belgium, I was both challenged and surprised with what I experienced; a restored heritage village whose retail offer was just a bread vending machine, enjoyed gourmet food, drank Leffe abbey beer, visited a castle haunted by a KKK look-alike ghost, had breakfast with pensioners visiting the many scenes from the famous … Continue reading The great Brexit debate
It’s time to look beyond the membership fee for new opportunities in the travel and leisure industry. It's time for tourism businesses to really engage and start promoting their destination first, their product second. Why then, should DMO’s now support the businesses who supply into their destination offer? We are all so inter-connected these days … Continue reading Isn’t it time small #tourism businesses looked beyond the DMO membership fee?
A landscape defines a destination. Too many destinations are churning out the same old ‘me too’ messages that fail to excite or intrigue potential visitors because so often it's the detail that is overlooked in the quest to instantly capture the bigger, more visually obvious picture. It’s only when you stop racing through the landscape and look closely, … Continue reading Talking Landscapes
“Is this place only full of old people?” is what I hear from younger family members who dig deep to drum up enthusiasm for yet more hunt-the-horses, or count-the-crests whilst we visit another National Trust (NT) property. “Don’t go anywhere, near anything, or see if you can fit into that wardrobe, just in case, god … Continue reading Do Small Children Like to Wear Lavender?
It has always puzzled me how marketeers can be so arrogant to think their brand can appeal to everyone, all of the time. Do they think they will miss some customers with this “catch all’ approach? Now that we can theoretically reach all of the citizens in all of the world, without I suspect, really … Continue reading Is Yours a “Something for Everyone” Destination?
Customers don’t like surprises and telling them that they must pay extra for the consumption of additional services whilst your guest, is an unusual approach. On a recent trip to Cape Town to spend a week as guest of Cape Town Tourism (CCT), exploring the ‘Unexpected Cape Town’ Mary Tebje spent time with a number … Continue reading Customers Don’t Like Surprises
Mary Tebje 