Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
distance, there will be a significant carbon footprint (Peeters and Schouten,
2006), even if this footprint is smaller than the corresponding travel by car or
air. Likewise, intercontinental travel normally involves travel over water, these
days mostly conducted by air. This might be replaced by boat travel, but again
there are issues of the carbon footprint (see Chapter 9) and time constraints.
Bearing in mind these considerations, slow travel is likely to suit short- to mid-
haul, rather than long-haul, travel. It is important, therefore, to note that most
international tourism is intra-continental, and there is thus good potential for
use of slow travel modes. For example, Table 4.3 illustrates that most inter-
national arrivals to the UK and resident departures are European. Table 4.3
also highlights the relative inequality in tourism travel, with considerably more
UK resident departures to Asia, Africa, Central and Southern America and the
Caribbean than reciprocated visits.
Another consideration is the distance travelled within the destination area.
Tourists with a car available within a destination area tend to use it for all
trips, and are drawn to attractions beyond their immediate accommodation
location (Dickinson and Robbins, 2007). Analysis in a rural area suggests only
about one-quarter of these car trips could be undertaken by slow travel modes;
however, given many of these trips are unplanned, there is considerable scope
for these to be converted to alternative shorter trips that utilize slow travel
alternatives (Dickinson and Robbins, 2007), with scope for some to offer a
tourist experience in their own right (Rhoden and Lumsdon, 2006). Dickinson
and Robbins (2007) recommended a tourist information strategy to highlight
local day trips. Such a strategy would increase the potential for slow travel and
reduce the distance travelled.
An extension of this spatial discussion is the idea of the 'staycation'
(Germann Molz, 2009; Sharma, 2009). Lacho and Kiefer (2008, p23) define
staycation as 'stay at home and enjoy what the city has to offer', but the term
has been used in various other ways, and staycation can be taken to mean peo-
ple holidaying at home, close to home or, in the UK context, holidaying in the
UK. The term staycation appears to have grown in use during 2008 and 2009,
when more North Americans and Europeans opted to holiday at home as a
response to increasing oil prices and the global recession. To date there has
Table 4.3
UK international arrivals and departures by destination
Origin/destination
International arrivals to the UK
UK resident departures
Number (thousands)
%
Number (thousands)
%
EU
23,666
75
54,424
80
North America
3806
12
4629
7
Australasia
1164
4
680
1
Asia
1159
4
3135
5
Middle East
694
2
1115
2
Africa
587
2
2847
4
Central and Southern America
334
1
659
1
Caribbean
71
0.2
947
1
Source:
Adapted from the Office for National Statistics, 2009
