Philosophy

HA401 : The Class : Marketing : Leisure : Philosophy

The Leisure Philosophy

One of the most important characteristics of resorts is the leisure atmosphere that they offer. Whether it is a large group meeting for five days or a couple taking a long weekend together, the main reason that they stay at resorts is to relax and enjoy what a resort has to offer. Their leisure expectations can include total relaxation such as sunning on the beach, a day being pampered at the spa, or dining out in new and different restaurant or lounge experiences. Or it could include recreation and activity such as playing golf, playing tennis, snorkeling or scuba diving, or hiking to see natural attractions or historical ruins.

These expectations define the leisure philosophy. It is to get away from the hustle and hassle of everyday life and enjoy the relaxation of a resort destination. It could be making the 2 _ hour drive from Los Angeles to Palm Springs or from Miami to Sanibel or Marco Island for a week end getaway. Or it could be packing up and flying to Hawaii or the Caribbean for a one to two week stay. The point is to enjoy a different climate, culture, and resort destination.

Author Chuck Y. Gee in RESORT DEVELOPMENT AND MARKETING lists some trends and factors that have influenced the growth of the leisure market. These factors have made it possible for more pleasure travelers to enjoy more often the advantages of the resort experience.

Growth of Family Incomes — Since the end of World War II, their has been a constant increase in middle income families as more and more people find better or higher paying jobs. This also include families moving up to the upper middle income and even the higher income brackets. This is primarily due to demographic shifts from rural to urban living, more and better education, and shifting from blue collar to white collar jobs.

Increased Standard of Living— According to Yee, the United States standard of living has doubled from 1950 to 1080 and is expected to continue to increase. The average family is able to buy not only necessary items but also more and more luxury or want items. This includes recreation where "about 80% of Americans travel for pleasure each year, taking an average of two vacation trips."

Greater Availability of Leisure Time— Not only has the average work week shrunk to around 40 hours per week, employees also have more flexibility in their working hours , more three-day weekends, and more paid time off.

Broadening of the Leisure Society Base— Leisure time and leisure activities are no longer restricted to the affluent. Today, a virtually equal distribution of leisure time among all education and income levels is becoming the norm.

Exposure of Participation Sports on TV— Televising active sports such as golf, tennis, and swimming has increased the number of spectators of these sporting events and often highlight resort destinations. The attractiveness of a resort destination is magnified when it hosts a televised sporting event.

Demographic Shifts— The movement of the "baby boomers" is the most influential demographic factor. This large segment of the population progressed from entry level work force to middle income families. As their incomes increased, so did their expenditures for discretionary and non-discretionary items. They showed a greater interest in leisure activities and were a major factor in the growth of leisure travel and the resort industry.

Growth of the 65-and-Over Age Group— "The number of persons in the 65-and-over age group will increase 19% between 1980-1990. With more free time, more discretionary income, and the ability to travel during the off-peak hours, this group is one of the major markets of resorts." They also have better health and a more open mind to leisure activities than the generation that preceded them.

Changing Lifestyles— Two major change in lifestyle trends are fewer children and more women entering the workforce. The combination of dual income households and fewer children result in more discretionary income that is often used for pleasure travel.

These influential trends reflect the social and economic development of the 1970’s and 1980’s. It laid the groundwork for perhaps the biggest affect on leisure travel in the 20^th century and that was the bull market of the 1990’s. This decade of prosperity (steady economic growth, steady unemployment, low inflation, and low interest rates) magnified the influential trends listed above. People in the United States probably benefited more than the rest of the world from this growing prosperity by:

Working for companies that offered profit sharing or 401K plans where the company contributed money to employee accounts.
Greater flexibility in these plans that enable employees to diversify and invest in a range of mutual funds offering different levels of risk and return.
A business trend where companies offered more stock purchase and stock option plans to a greater number of employees, management and hourly.
The growth in productivity and profitability of companies enabling them to make larger contributions to employee savings and retirement plans.
The growth in technology that included the birth and development of new industries and companies.
Returns in both the New York and NASDAQ Stock Exchanges that averaged in the mid to upper teens for most of the decade.

This unprecedented growth and prosperity produced such terms as the "wealth affect" that describes the perception of growing wealth that the stock market produced in people holding stocks. The expectations of continuing double-digit returns produced the term "irrational exuberance" as stock prices continued to set new highs year after year. The visibility and importance of the Federal Reserve’s "interest rate policy" became a common term to investors and was no longer a term for economists and investment bankers. The result was that more people again had the income and time to pursue leisure travel.

The prosperity of the 1990’s also had a major impact on the resort group market. As company profits increased year after year, they increased the number of meetings and conventions held at resort locations. They tended to stay longer, send more people and spend more. This was a way to recognize and reward company achievements.

The increased leisure travel by both pleasure and group market segments resulted in the opening of many more resorts in the decade of the nineties. This was particularly true after the recession of 1990-1991 ended and the foundation of the growing economy and bull market was laid in 1992-1993. The last five years of the decade produced new resorts and expansion to existing resorts to take advantage of the growth in leisure travel.

Once you have completed this module you should:

Go on to Topic 3: Selling Resort Properties
or
Go back to Topic 2: The Leisure Philosophy

E-mail Lloyd Shelton at Lloyd.Shelton@nau.edu
or call (928) 527-7518