Young people are great believers in the 'work hard, party hard' attitude towards life. Settling with low paid and unsatisfying jobs, many live for the weekends, or in this case.. their summer holiday. But this isn't just any old summer holiday - I know the 30+ category will be dreaming of white sands, clear waters, cultural old towns, eye-opening excursions, diverse new foods and music, peace and tranquility.. - This is a club 18-30 holiday. Cheap booze, tacky English pubs (for those who have visited these destinations, they will know these so-called pubs are just over-used gazebos with garden chairs and tables selling sausages and mash), scantily clad girls, late night clubbing, condom covered beaches, irritating promoters, water sports (if a banana boat counts), the list goes on...
Although youngsters do not always book to 'eat, sleep, rave and repeat' via this Thomas Cook run company, it is a great example of the types of holiday this age group seek. The towns listed below being the most visited towns by this age group between the months of May and September.
San Antonio (Ibiza):
Malia (Crete):
Sunny Beach (Bulgaria):
Laganas (Zante):
Kavos (Corfu):
Magaluf (Mallorca):
Ayia Napa (Cyprus):
Is it just me or do these photo's look like a scene from Human Traffic?
Fuelled by drugs and alcohol, holiday goers have ruined the reputation and landscape of many small villages and towns in Europe. Families and couples, for instance, will go out of their way to avoid such places - however, the 18-30 holiday industry is still booming, attracting millions every year. Some may argue that despite the disregard to the areas, it has provided a huge economic boost for locals; many relying on this summer tourism to get them by.
I want to discover what is the pulling factor behind this tasteless tourism - do trade fairs, such as the TNT Travel Show, help pull customers in with their group deals and bargains? What incentives or influencing factors persuade young people to travel to these destinations? How do competitors differentiate themselves from each other? And what are the positive and negative impacts upon these places? Should travel agents/promoters/reps be publicising a contrary image?
Let's do this!
I couldn't agree more with your descriptions of these holiday destinations however I believe that it is the absolute certainty of being able to relax, party, and go wild for a week that draws young people to want to visit away from their ever day lifes where 18-30 antics are completly unacceptable. My view is that having these type of destinations is very benefical to the local economy by bringing in so much tourism therefore it can only be a positive. If people are aware that these resorts are of this nature and would prefer a more 'white sands, clear waters' holiday then there are thousands of other destinations they can opt for. I look forward to reading about your findings about this topic.
ReplyDeleteI agree too, I worry that if this continues it will carry on giving these destinations a negative name and a bad reputation. They will turn into run down areas, similar to seaside resorts in the UK. Majority of people don't like to go to areas with a bad reputation, even if they are dirt cheap - and will start opting to go elsewhere, this will then create a vicious cycle as the countries like Kavos, Malia, Maguluf etc. that are now booming during summer season, will start to decline and the areas will turn into ghost towns.
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