National Tourism: Industry or Casino?

Many of us know what tourism's definition is, if not:

http://www.thefreedictionary.com/tourism

tour·ism  (trzm)

n.

1. The practice of traveling for pleasure.

2. The business of providing tours and services for tourists.

In some developed countries, tourism is an tertiary industry, or call it "services", which generate much more benefits than raw materials or manufactures. The government puts a lot of effort so that every city or town has its own tourism information center, it gives credit to entrepreneurs that want to establish hostels, restaurants, sports centers, guided tours, etc... Additionally, transport and flight/tour agencies work the best possible to improve this target business segment. Then we have:

Income (Tourists) --> Process (Tourism) --> Product (Happy tourists + Paid Businesses & Taxed Government)

All of the above is what I have seen in some other countries I have lived in.

But now let's check the national (peruvian) tourism sector:

First! Let's start stating that the Government does a supernatural effort on boosting the tourism sector, just go inside this webpage and you can have a more accurate guide to our country's (Perú) treasures! http://peru.travel/. Of course, it could always improve roads, security in highways and lower some tourism taxes.

It is also interesting to remark that some peruvian media such as "El Comercio" which is one of the most read local newspaper, makes campaigns to select the 7 wonders of Peru!

Why do I say that national tourism in Peru is a Casino?

1) The transport agencies make a high effort to get clients, which is good, but they should also make a high effort in reinvesting surplus in better drivers, better buses and more security!

This is a conversation between two people trying to do local tourism via bus:

- A: Hey! Let's go north this summer? They have great beaches!

- B: I would go, but I saw in the news that yesterday a bus crashed with tourists, I'm afraid, but also the plane is expensive, and sometimes they steal in the highways, plus I don't think there is availability those days.

- A: Hmmm. You are right, we better stay here...

2) Flight/Tour agencies charge a high extra percentage in the concept of commission basis, to help you make a purchase of a flight to any local destination. While if we bought directly via internet, we could find less expensive prices, paying with credit card. Then? People don't trust internet, or doesn't know how to buy via IT, or there is phishing/hacking, etc...

3) Even though the local Government makes a lot of effort to supply this industry, it is not enough. IT IS NEVER ENOUGH! And this is because we yet have not come to understand that in "provinces" (term used locally to refer to every settlement excluding cities) we can find a gold mine, not only for emerging businesses, but also for tourism of every type!

It would be good to note the business men and women, the universities and all the private means to support these efforts to generate mixed marketing (public + private) with looks to the descentralization.

We can do our part to impove, I put the example of the "pentagonito" (General Army Headquarters with a 2.55 mi track) in San Borja (a district in Lima-Peru). Some years ago, it was just a military base that generated a bad aura to the zone, but then, the district's authorities improved the area with gardens, mini-public-gyms, recreation zones, water fountains, etc... which generated more affluence of people for exercise and breathing good aura, so now San Borja passed from "sleeping district" to "Move! San Borja! Move!" (Isnt this internal tourism also, even if it is just in a district level?)

I am of the theory that if people get to know better the "provinces" in our country, we will understand more our culture and the opportunities we have! So... LET'S TRAVEL PERU!

The need for travel

Since I was a child, I've been accustomed to travel, live in different places, even countries, meet new cultures, make new friends, have unique experiences, etc...

If we talk about countries, I've lived in Peru, Bolivia, Puerto Rico, Colombia and Venezuela. All these in Latin America. I've studied in 8 schools in total, graduating at a british one in my birth country (Markham College). My parents always cared to give me the benefit of speaking english as well as spanish, which has served me most so far, and I am infinitely grateful.

I've made friends in all these countries, and by consecuence have a long list of contacts, and now with the Facebook it is easier to keep in touch.

I've studied in 2 universities (because of travel), and I'm thinking on going to live to Australia in about 2 or 3 years, since I went for 50 days in 2007 to see how it was, and I loved it. It's another world, a country where everyone can do ANYTHING inside the limts of law and individual freedom.

Well, the purpose of this article is to highlight a need I would call "The traveller's sindrome" (if there isn't one already).

I'll explain it with my example: I can't stay in one place, doing the same routine for more than 4 months, and I have measured it almost exactly. Past the 4 months I start to feel bored, powerless, desperate, and all of its synonyms. And I think it is because even though we human beings have turned into sedentary, sometime boring, rutinary and monotonous, we still have our nomadic side, that which pushes us into looking for new things, adventures, discoveries. If not... Why would tourism even exist?

I have the belief that people need to travel at least 2 or 3 times a year, even if it is not far. Raise the adventurer spirit, that curiosity that we need so much in today's life to stand out, hability that can be developed via a travel. Another competence to develop is improvisation, because even though it is always better to plan a trip, so when we arrive we are not lost in the air (unless you are a veteran backpacker), usually not all we have planned happens, because as one English friend I met in Australia told me once (her name is Lucy): "Life is what is happening while you are planning your future, so don't plan TOO MUCH, or you'll never life".

I will continue on with this in another post, because this is enough as background information.