The Tourist Experience ‐‐ A New Introduction

Citation

Higson, L. (1999), "The Tourist Experience ‐‐ A New Introduction", International Journal of Contemporary Hospitality Management, Vol. 11 No. 5, p. 57. https://doi.org/10.1108/ijchm.1999.11.5.57.1

The Tourist Experience is a text that at first presents to the reader an eclectic collection of essays, each of which justifies its place by its thematic linkage to various facets of the experiences of tourists. Chris Ryan, as editor and majority contributor, has delivered a book that begins by asserting that tourist experiences are, in the main, moulded by societal influences. Issues of needs, desires and motives are then explored. Criteria for assessment of satisfaction, or otherwise, with the holiday, along with the influence and importance of the travel agent are considered before the contribution of authors such as Tom Baum, Stephen Page and Keith Hollinsheadíare added to the picture, thereby introducing additional viewpoints.

Tom Baum, drawing on issues raised in earlier chapters, considers the human resource element of the service encounter. Stephen Page′s chapter examines the diversity of urban tourism from a resource perspective. By contrast, Chris Ryan allows the reader to stretch out on the beach, by offering an insight into the role of the coast in a typical holiday. A conceptual analysis of the heritage consumer in a postmodern society is provided by Keith Hollinshead. TheíTourist Experience closes by questioning and analysing holiday time.

References are not given separately at the close of each chapter. Instead, there is a comprehensive reference section towards the end of the book that groups publications relevant to the central theme. This is helpful to the reader as it avoids duplication, and also provides reference resource in an area where so many general tourism articles are available.

The approach throughout is, in many ways, provocative. It challenges the more usual approaches to the development of the tourism product and thus the tourist experience. The inclusion of postmodernist viewpoints such as context, and the influence of textuality influence on human behaviour pose alternative perspectives from which to view the tourist experience and the overall system. Such provocation is extended to the reader, in that the authors′ aims are to stimulate additional research. Indeed, the concluding sentence reads, “If the book does prompt such [further] research, it will be thought to have achieved a task of some value”. The contents are likely to generate such enquiry and debate, which, in itself, is worthwhile.

When considering the target readership, there are a few important points to mention. First, since the book represents contributions from a number of authors, there is an occasional lack of continuity experienced when the chapters are read sequentially. They do, however, stand well alone. Second, in ascertaining suitability and pitch, it is fair to say that the work is rigorous: it is, in parts, quite demanding. This rigour is tempered by diagrams and tables of statistical data which are valuable in illustrating issues presented by the authors. Third, a number of the essays assume prior knowledge and understanding of certain concepts, such as postmodernism and Ñtypologies.

In summary, The Tourist Experience would be most suitable for use on final year undergraduate and postgraduate tourism related degree courses as part of the indicative bibliography. Its use in years one and possibly two would, in many ways, result in the book being used by a readership who would not derive maximum benefit from it. However, its use might not be confined to the academic community. Although not a “quick‐reference” text, its exploration of a range of perspectives makes it desirable to those practitioners who would like to make further forays into the business of tourism from the demand or customer/consumption side.