Destination marketing is one of the biggest forces powering the travel industry that we rarely talk about. It’s the Goliath economic influencer hiding in plain sight, using its invisible hand to directly and indirectly guide the way we think about where to travel, how to travel, and what we do once when we get there.
And it’s an industry in tremendous flux: Covid, “revenge travel”, rising interest rates, stimmy checks, overtourism, the ‘work from anywhere’ trend, sustainability, war, Gen Z & the influencer demographic, TikTok and (of course) AI have all had an impact on how destinations position themselves to their various constituencies.
How are destinations managing this revolution in their business? Guests Dr. Richie Karaburun of NYU’s Tisch Center of Hospitality and Rafat Ali, founder of travel trade media outlet Skift, join the pod to talk about the places and institutions leading this next generation of destination marketing, how to address ethical concerns with tourism, and how technology is creating new approaches to influencing where and how we travel.
Follows:
Gilad Berenstein - host
Cara Whitehill - host
Dr. Richie Karaburun - guest
Rafat Ali - guest
Go Deeper:
Destinations International organization
Architects of Destination Advocacy podcast by Destinations International
Skift Tourism Skift’s hub for destination marketing & tourism coverage
Mesa recognized as one of the most accessible destinations by travel booking app AZ Family
NYU SPS Tisch Center of Hospitality, Destinations International collaborate **Hotel Management
Destination organizations: Supporting the tourism industry, sustainable travel, and more HospitalityNet