A Travel Balance Approach for Examining Tourism Area Life Cycles: The Case of Singapore

Abstract

This article reviews the product life cycle and its extension to the tourist area life cycle (TALC) concept and its operationalization, proposes an alternative travel balance approach (TBA) based on changes in net travel balances, and then calibrates the TALC and TBA models with tourism statistics from Singapore. Using the TBA as a preferred alternative to the TALC, the proposed model suggests that Singapore is about to enter the decline stage, based on computations of income and price elasticities of demand, as well as the level of economic development. The authors then outline the advantages of the TBA model over the TALC and conclude with the hope that their model will be empirically validated with tourism statistics from other countries.

Life satisfaction and support for tourism development

“…Such models as the Irridex Model, Tourism Area Lifecycle Model, Attitudinal Model, and Adjustment Model (e.g., Douglas, 1997;Doxey, 1976;Gartner, 1996;Uysal et al, 2012) are all used as responses to structural changes to destinations. Although we assume that depending on the level of destination development phases, responses from residents or different stakeholders would show variation, not many studies have empirically controlled development levels with the exception of a few limited studies to date (e.g., Kim et al, 2012;Toh, Khan, & Koh, 2001). In most cases, studies have attempted to generate data from places and then, based on the characteristics of tourism development stage (e.g., Haywood, 1986;Kim et al, 2012;Plog, 2001;Toh et al, 2001), the researchers assessed the level of tourism development stages such as infancy phase, introductory phase, growth phase, maturity or decline phase.…”

Consumer Insights and the Importance of Competitiveness Factors for Mature and Developing Destinations

“…An extensive analysis of tourism strategic plans, local government policies, industry focus groups and workshops, national tourism data sets, current marketing activities, and market perceptions associated with each destination, provided initial indications that the two destinations were at differing stages of development. Whilst Butler's (1980) TDLC intended to show the development of a destination in terms of the series of life stages defined principally by infrastructures and number of visitors (Toh, Khan & Koh 2001), for this study, a combination of statistics and data sources (including population growth rates, employment structures, the type of tourism development etc) in addition to visitors statistics were utilised in an analysis of TDLC indicators (see Tables 2 and 3 respectively), as they relate to both the Great Lakes tourism region (developing destination) and the Coffs Coast (mature destination).…”

Ciclo de vida turístico de Bacalar, Pueblo Mágico, Quintana Roo

“…Las modificaciones al modelo del cvt y la aparición de otros derivados, como los de Oglethorpe (1984), Debbage (1990), Ioannides (1992), Järviluoma (1992), Smith (1992), Kermath y Thomas (1992), Williams (1993), Prideaux (2000), Weaver (2000), Agarwal (2002) y Papatheodorou (2004), o alternativos, como los de Keller (1987), Priestley y Mundet (1998), Haywood (1986) y Toh, Kahn y Koh (2001, se deben a las desviaciones o desfases encontrados en algunas de sus aplicaciones, al intento de cubrir lagunas teóricas que este no explica o considera, como el desarrollo y cambio en los destinos. Sin embargo, como menciona Weaver (2000), aun después de todas las investigaciones en torno al modelo, nadie lo ha aceptado o rechazado categóricamente.…”