By Dr. Talal Almaghrabi
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Ahlan Wasahlan Version
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Abstract
For any destination to operate as a solid, sustainable tourism economy the fundamentals of good business practice must be in place. Critical is consistency of supply and demand. In the case of tourism sector this requires creating a 360 degrees destination proposition which offers a year-round experience, thereby creating year-round visitation.
Evidence from the National Brand Index show that preference for a country and its people, politics, culture, and products tends to increase as a result of any personal experience of at least one visit of that country, even if the holiday experience is not positive. Creating niche tourism to bring visitors to the country through academic conferences, workshops, expedition, etc is a great opportunity for Saudi to be a leading tourist destination as well as it can create a measurable improvement in the country’s overall international image.
يبقى السؤال الأهم والأصعب هو: لماذا أقوم بزيارة تلك المدينة أو الدولة؟ ما المميزات والعوامل التي تجذبني؟ هنا تكمن صعوبة إيجاد خواص ومميزات وبرامج تجذب السياح للدولة أو للمدينة طوال العام، لوجود متغيرات بيئية ومناخية وسياسية وأمنية وغيرها.
في منظومة السياحة توجد ثلاث نقاط استراتيجية يجب التعامل معها لإحداث التوازن السياحي: وهي
Push Effect, Pull Effect, Derived Effect