Strategic Destination Planning: Analyzing the Future of Tourism

Events and trends affecting the tourism industry are becoming more complex and fast-paced. In response to these radical changes in the external environment, destination managers are striving for new approaches to predict future forces driving change. With this goal in mind, the current study was conducted to determine future forces that are likely to affect the future of tourism in the tristate area of Pennsylvania, New Jersey, and Delaware from 2006 to 2010. The data for the study were gathered using the nominal group technique for scenario thinking, with informants from a variety of tourism businesses in the region. The findings of the study confirm that the tourism industry will be facing major challenges and experiencing swift changes. The global economy, changing market demographics, and emerging technology are forcing destination managers to adopt and implement proactive strategies to survive the competitive tourism environment.