Submitted by Malcolm Noden
March 25, 2015 1:00 p.m.
Much has been said and written about tourism and its wide ranging effects upon local communities. One important issue concerns the question of how we feel about, and behave towards tourists, and research shows that when it is our home community to which lots of tourists come to visit we display several specific responses towards them. This is important since our individual and collective attitudes and behaviors towards inbound visitors has a profound immediate and delayed impact upon their stay with us. When they feel welcomed, and see and feel the spirit of hospitality at work, they enjoy their stay and, as a result, when they go back to their home towns they speak warmly about their experiences with us to their friends and neighbors.
What then is this thing we know as the spirit of hospitality, and how can we be a part of it? It may be as simple as that moment when we spot tourists downtown waiting to cross Centre Street and we stop our car, and with a gentle wave to them we let them cross in front of us. It may be when we are standing in line at a local store, we see the tourist glancing around looking puzzled and we step up and ask if we may help them. It may be that we meet them at the beach, and they ask for our recommendation for a local lunch spot. In fact, most of our interaction with visitors comes out of a spontaneous willingness on our part to show a friendly face and attitude while seeking to help another human being. In short, as your Grandma used to put it, “There are no strangers here; only friends you haven’t yet met”.
Of course, the other side of this coin is that how visitors speak and behave towards us has a long term effect upon us, and how we react to having many visitors in our midst. If they are friendly and are interested in us and our community it is easy to act accordingly. But, if they are rude and impatient it is hard for us not to respond in kind. If they talk down to us as mere “locals”, it is hard not to get our collective back up, and think, if not say aloud, if they believe that they are better than us, they should go back where they came from.
In short, the wider reputation of our community as a desirable destination may rest upon what we say and do today, and even if we sometimes find it difficult to be pleasant to some visitors, we perhaps should give some thought to moderating our negative attitudes and behaviors, in recognition of what is known as an intelligent self-interest. Translation, we all reap what some of us sow!
Editor’s Note: Malcolm A. Noden, who is the (Retired) Senior Lecturer in Management, Economics, Marketing and Tourism at the School of Hotel Administration, at Cornell University, is a well known expert in the applied economics of hospitality and tourism policy, promotion and development.
During his thirty-two year tenure at the Hotel School at Cornell, Mr. Noden was the Chair of the Academic Integrity Hearing Board, and served as an advisor to several successive Deans on various international education outreach programs. He taught several courses including, Resort & Condominium Management, Airline Management, Franchising, and two Tourism policy and development seminars. Noden’s publications include a series of articles detailing the Federal tax and partnership consequences of the Tax Reform Act of 1986, in the Cornell Hotel & Restaurant Quarterly, in which new forms of ownership and asset based management, were explored.
Previous to his Cornell experience he served for many years in the operational aspects of the travel industry having been both an owner, and a manager of wholesale and retail travel agencies in the United States. He has had managerial experience in large international agencies as Thomas Cook & Sons, Ltd. and American Express Company, Inc.
Noden is also a consultant to several major companies in the private sector
Including, Banco Nacional de Mexico, and several resort hotels, both in the Caribbean and the United States.
It still amazes me the number of people that I encounter that haven’t heard of Amelia Island, much less Fernandina Beach, even those that are living in the Southeast (but probably moved here from somewhere else). Despite the best efforts of the TDC, we are still undiscovered to a lot of folks. Some like it like that as they are afraid that too much dependence on the tourism business will create even more economic troubles during future recession or near recession times. Others are fearful that too much popularity will result in additional development and the atmosphere of FB will be harmed.
But Malcolm is right, no matter what the circumstance, we all should strive to put our best foot forward and greet visitors with strong southern hospitality thanking them for visiting and wishing them farewell with “y’all come back soon you hear!”
Have you ever thought what a tourist wants at their vacation destination? If they are staying at the Ritz they might expect candies on the pillows each night and the toilet paper folded like an exotic bird after each wipe.
Most of us don’t stay at the Ritz. We stay at the local inns and the bed and breakfasts around town. What than do they expect when they visit? The first thing that comes to mind is good food and service. Most in the service industry make a living from giving good service, the better they treat everyone the more money they make. It’s kind of in their self interest to do a good job. We have great food and great service here. Most who come here on vacation want a hassle free experience, whether it is on the beach or downtown. They want easy free access, which they have to the beach, and a clean and civilized beach to go to. This they already have. They come here for golf, they have a wide variety of course’s to choose from. The most important thing I think the average tourist wants is to simply be treated like they aren’t a tourist. They want to feel at home and accepted. Some fear they will stay and overburden the Island. My guess is many who feel this way were at some point tourists themselves. I can only say that when I travel and those who I come in contact with treat me like I belong, the impression is lasting, the trip is enjoyable and I plan to return. It’s really that simple