The European debt crisis and the geopolitical blips in North Africa and the Near East have disastrous collateral effects on tourist destinations in the Mediterranean Sunbelt.
They already needed to manage their seasonal operations, which make turning investments to profit more aleatory. Now they must face the negative image portrayed by the daily news covering popular revolts in Greece, riots in Egypt and the chaotic democratic process in North Africa. Tunisian, Moroccan, Egyptian and Greek hoteliers are all subject to this terrible challenge that also serves as a reminder of just how fragile tourism marketing is and how necessary it has become to take action collectively to renew confidence and boost bednights.The different crises have amplified a shift that already pulled Mediterranean tourist economies onto the wrong slope. Driven by a dream to accommodate more profitable clientele from Europe and emerging countries in particular, Mediterranean hoteliers were stung by the trend to shift upmarket. They have progressively moved away from the economic model that corresponded to the buying power of Northern European clients seeking a good quality/price ratio for spots in the sun. Today these properties are losing on both counts, cut off from the circuit of fashionable destinations and rejected by former clients who find the cost of services prohibitive. The climb back up will be long. Traditional destinations on the Mediterranean have a great challenge ahead because, unlike major business centers that are suffering from lack of capacity, there is no shortage of alternative destinations and accommodations for leisure tourism. It is necessary to jointly rebuild the entire chain to bring a destination onto the tourist map: access, services, culture, activities, commercial accommodations that fit the market… today it is a question of survival for these countries whose economies rely in great part on tourism.It is also a lesson for mature countries that are lucky enough to have a more diversified economy and more balanced tourism. This does not mean they do not need to market their destination. Between indifference, the contempt of authorities, and the arrogance of certain cities that consider themselves untouchable, danger grows out of a lack of competitiveness on a global level. Globalization has, of course, swelled the volume of nights, and it has also shrunk the planet, made it more accessible, easier to make comparisons. Getting back to basics is important to avoid being surprised by a new global cycle that will drive the new destinations to the detriment of those that rested on their laurels.It is unthinkable that a single part of the service chain can act alone. The destination is an impalpable and multiform whole that builds its reputation as much on its tourist appeal as on its economic power, its gastronomy and its culture, on its capacity to already imagine the new concepts that will seduce clientele. It has become urgent to launch this common think-tank to redesign destination marketing.Georges Panayotis Publisher
