Access Tourism NZ TOURISM FOR PEOPLE WITH DISABILITIES, SENIORS, AND AGEING BOOMERS IN NEW ZEALAND AND WORLDWIDE

The European Disability Forum is an independent European non-government organisation which has played a key role in ensuring that all relevant EU policies and initiatives  take disabled people into account.  It reports that the European Commission has just adopted a communication on tourism which proposes to better include people with disabilities.   The latest communication from the Commission points out that tourism plays an important role in Europe’s economy. It comprises 1.8 million enterprises, many of these being small and medium-sized businesses. It also points out that transport and tourism is a basic right for all citizens, including people with disabilities. The right to travel and to access tourist activities is enshrined in Article 9 of the UN Convention on the Rights of People with Disabilities (CRPD).    The UN CRPD has been signed and ratified by New Zealand, so that these rights exist in this country.  However, we have not done a very good job in implementing this (see for example, this post, and this).   

CRPD has been signed and is in the process of ratification by the European communities and its Member States.  Read more……………

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Michael McClelland of The Best of New Zealand Fly Fishing  told New Zealand’s Inside Tourism magazine this week that social media isn’t all it is sexed up to be, at least in some North American markets.  The Best of New Zealand Fly Fishing is a travel agency started by McClelland in 1981, and – as the name suggests – the American company concentrates solely on trips to this country.  And because most of his up-market clients are retired or approaching retirement, they are not users of these social media forums.  He says his clients won’t be enticed to NZ just because they receive a message to do so via Twitter, Facebook or YouTube. So he is appealing to Tourism New Zealand to take a balanced approach when it comes to destination marketing. “I do not want see all the traditional ways forgotten. Most of the social media are great for our kids but they are not the market that is coming to NZ. If they do travel then most will probably fall into the backpacker market.”  He adds: “I have looked at every YouTube clip on fishing in NZ and most of the videos are young people that are fishing on their own. Very few are using a guide and even fewer are staying in fishing lodges.  It is great exposure for New Zealand, but it is not the market that really helps sustains the lodges or spends anywhere near the money that our up-market clients spend” (Inside Tourism Issue 800, 26/8/2010).

It is a well-known fact that populations are ageing.  In the USA for example, the McKinsey Global Institute reports that  50+ plus consumers will control the economy for the first time in history in under 10 years.  By 2015, they will command almost 60% of net US wealth and 40% of spending.  Now New Zealand Trade and Enterprise report that manufacturers need to re-think how they market products to Latin America’s Baby Boomers.  The findings of a Neilson report show that while the trend of lower birth rates combined with longer life expectancies have been well-documented in Europe and the USA, the trend also exists to Latin America.  Analysis shows that people aged 50+ currently made up 19% of the population in Brazil, Chile, Colombia, Mexico and Puerto Rico.  Importantly, these percentages are expected to rise to 26% by 2025 and 38% by 2050, according to Nielsen.  “In the next 10 to 12 years, one of every four consumers will be over age 50, and as in other countries around the world, older Latin Americans are defying the traditional stereotypes. They are more affluent, spend more money and are open to new brands and products,” Mary Paz Roman from Nielsen in Latin America reports.

Per Capita Spending Power
Older households – while being 13% smaller than the average home – have higher levels of per capita spending than other age groups:

• Chile: 17% higher
• Brazil: 15%
• Mexico: 15%
• Colombia:13%
• Puerto Rico: 12%

Tourism New Zealand (TNZ) – the international marketing agency for tourism in NZ – says that Chile, Argentina, and Brazil are firmly in their sights as it evaluated the potential in small but growing markets.  Together, the three countries deliver about 21,000 visitors each year to NZ.  In October 2009, TNZ visited South America and talked to people in the industry.  As a result, TNZ has increased its South American budget to NZ$100,000 and put together a trade development plan for this financial year.  This includes joint venture advertising.  Access Tourism NZ hopes that part of the TNZ strategy in South America will include marketing to the older demographic if we are not to miss out on this large and growing group of potential tourists.

If you haven’t seen much yet about “age friendly” communities, you will. Starting next year, in the USA alone 10,000 Baby Boomers a day will turn 65. The cumulative impact of an aging society has moved — slowly, to be sure — into the mainstream. So writes Philip Moeller in US News. Older residents say that there are a number of things that would make their community more age friendly: housing that better accommodates older occupants and visitors; public and volunteered transportation that provides affordable, physically accessible, safe. and flexible service; downtown areas and, especially in the suburbs, gathering places that are pedestrian friendly and don’t require a car to reach; retailers who “get it” about legible store signage, senior sensitivity in product selections, and accessible store layouts. 

Why bother? According to the World Health Organization:

• In 2000, the global population of people aged 60 and over was 600 million; by 2025 there will be 1.2 billion and, by 2050, almost 2 billion.
• The proportion of the global population aged 60 will double from 11% in 2006 to 22% by 2050.
• Older people play a crucial role in communities – in paid or volunteering work, transmitting experience and knowledge, or helping their families with caring responsibilities. These contributions can only be ensured if older persons enjoy good health and if societies address their needs.
• Making cities age-friendly is one of the most effective policy approaches for responding to demographic ageing.

The WHO has set up an Age-Friendly Environments Programme which is an international effort to address the environmental and social factors that contribute to active and healthy ageing in societies.  Since cities have the economic and social resources to undertake the necessary changes to become more age-friendly and are in the position to lead the way for smaller communities, most of WHO’s initial work in this area has focussed on the urban environment. Cities wishing to become more age-friendly can take part of the WHO Global Network of Age-friendly Cities©.

In addition, the European Commission has recently launched an “Access City Award to highlight the European cities that are taking the most effective and innovative action to improve their accessibility for disabled citizens (read more here).

The median age for viewers at CBS, ABC, NBC, and Fox is now 51. So writes David Bauder of Associated Press. In fact, the broadcasters’ audience has aged at twice the rate of the general population.  It’s a quiet trend with a real impact on the way they do business.  For example, it has an effect on the type of shows which survive.  A generation ago, the networks were quicker to cast off shows in favour of something newer and hipper, but are more reluctant now to get rid of something that is successful. For years, these networks sold advertising based on how many people were watching in the 18-to-49-year-old demographic, but that is changing.  Advertisers are starting to recognize that older viewers are increasing and that they spend money and are receptive to their messages.  Now there are advertising sectors geared to the 50-plus market, and that includes the travel sector. Alan Wurtzel, research chief at NBC warned not to discount people who are in their 50s and 60S. “They buy iPads,” Wurtzel said. “They’re online. The reality is these are the people who have the money.”

Inside Tourism (Issue 799/2) reports that Tourism Industry Association (TIANZ) CEO Tim Cossar outlined at this week’s annual ITOC conference the three things NZ recommends most to our visitors.  One of these recommendations is “thrill seeking activities”.  As pointed out on this website several times before (most recently here), the government’s own data shows that more visitors engage in sedentary activity while in New Zealand and that the largest group of both domestic and international travellers in New Zealand are already 45 years old or older. Not only that, populations in our most important markets (including in NZ) are ageing and will continue to do so for the next several decades.   And it is the older age groups that have the money and the time to spend on tourism, travel, and hospitality.  While “thrill seeking” is a wonderful lure to the smaller and less wealthy younger demographic, it is unlikely that an emphasis on such activities will attract visitors in the older, richer, and more time-wealthy demographic to our shores.  Access Tourism NZ applauds the fact that NZ also emphasizes NZ’s natural beauty and cultural experiences.  In order to build a sustainable tourism industry in NZ, it is this older demographic that we need to be attracting, and nature and culture are amongst the things that are attractive to them.

It is good to see that Prime Minister John Key has recognized the growing importance of older tourists to  New Zealand tourism.  Inside Tourism 798 reports that in a speech to the Motel Association of New Zealand (MANZ) conference recently, Key said that moteliers should not be surprised if their market becomes increasingly retired people. “They will travel around New Zealand as they will have more time on their hands and will want see the West Coast or whatever and you will get more of them as at the moment New Zealand has 535,000 over 65 and in 40 years it will have a million. We are aging fast.”  He said the average New Zealand male dies at 79 and the average female at 82. The average age of death rises 2.5 year ever decade and Mr Key said his son Max, now aged 15, will have the statistical probability of living to be 100. People will have more leisure time and will be fitter.

Given that the government’s own data shows that:

• the largest group of both domestic and international travellers in New Zealand are already 45 years old or older
• more visitors engage in sedentary activity while in New Zealand
• people experience increasing disability with age

then Access Tourism NZ  hopes that our government and industry will begin to take into consideration what the needs of older and more disabled visitors are.  We need to do this in older to make sure our tourism is sustainable and does not continue to lag behind our major competitors who are already tapping into this growing market.

America’s top professionals involved in building for, marketing to and serving people aged 55+ will be speaking at the National Active Retirement Associations (NARA) upcoming conference in October.  Newswire Today reports that included amongst the speakers will be  Simon Hudson, Chair in Tourism Research at the University of South Carolina.  Simon has done extensive research into mature (50+) tourism and will discuss tourism as it leads to retirement in a location.  Other topics will include internet marketing and strategies to attract retirees to invest in communities. Speakers will also offer advice on how to successfully design, build and market 55+ targeted products and services.  Over the last ten years, NARA annual conferences have attracted business professionals and academics from 16 states, Canada and Mexico.

“As America ages, we are faced with enormous challenges and opportunities to serve this burgeoning market segment,” said NARA Director Dan Owens. “Every six seconds, an American turns 50 and professionals need to get attuned to this marketplace to be successful in our changing economy.  With 70 percent of all assets held by people over 50, older folks play a large role in the economy.” According to NARA, the Aging Silver Tsunami – the 78 million Baby Boomers – will start turning 65 next year (2011). “Over the next 20 years, the youth culture in America will certainly decrease as America will become, as a whole, older than Florida is as a state today. Virtually every business will be affected.”

Other speakers at the conference will include:
• Colin Milner, Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada. Founder and CEO of the International Council on Active Aging (ICAA), one of the world’s visionaries on the health and well-being of the older adult.

• John Cromartie, Washington, D.C. A senior demographer at the Economic Research Service, U.S. Department of Agriculture, John has focused on retiree migration to rural areas.

Robert Otterbourg writes in the North Carolina News Observer that retirees are as “good as gold” for the N.C. economy.  The area’s growing retiree population is a major economic engine that fuels a wide range of businesses, nonprofits and more.  Many of the state’s 1.1 million retirees have money and time to spare.  Aaron Nelson, president of the Chapel Hill Chamber of Commerce notes that retirees are “an economic asset.”  In a 2005 survey conducted by the National Active Retirement Association, it was estimated that retirees relocating to North Carolina brought in $348.6 million in income. David Owens, executive director of the Association recognizes that “These transplanted retirees often have more money to spend even though many have lost money in the stock market tumble. They are still better off financially than most younger folks.”   According to Laura Morgan, a local general manager for construction and real estate, “Buyers are scaling back and spending less on homes.  It means that they want to have maximum disposable income to enjoy eating out, attend cultural events and travel.” 

Many local businesses depend on older customers for support, whether it is from retirees buying gifts for family members, furnishings to spruce up their permanent or vacation home, or upscale women’s fashion.   The N.C. Museum of Art finds that retirees and students on school trips dominate the weekday attendance. Similarly, many tour groups consist of retirees, and retirees also boost box office attendance for local theatres. The Durham Bulls organization goes one step further by targeting fans 50 or older with its Silver Bulls package of five daytime games for $35.

Robert K. Otterbourg is the author of “Retire and Thrive” and several other books. He can be reached rkotter@aol.com

U.S. Baby Boomers are the biggest generation in world history and comprise about 76 million people. It is estimated that Boomers control over 80% of personal financial assets and have over half of discretionary spending power in the States. In other words, they control more than half of consumer spending. So writes James Mellgren on the Gourmet Retailer website.   As members of this generation enter their senior years, their lifestyles and buying habits change. For example, many Boomers go out to dine more often when their children leave home because they have more money to spend.   According to the American Culinary Federation (ACF), Boomers are the top spenders in restaurants. Visits by those aged 65 or older to restaurants has increased by 9%, while those aged 50 to 64 are up by 4%.  With US$2 trillion in spending power, a great deal of attention has been paid recently to the needs of this generation, both at foodservice and in retail. Even though the majority of Boomers are still in the work force, they are still getting older and, therefore, sodium levels, reduced portions, easy-to-open packaging, and convenience in general are all important considerations when marketing to this age group. The ACF’s Chef & Child Foundation (CCF) and Clemson University have put together a three-page article called “Culinary Nutrition News: Nutrition and the Baby Boomer Generation” to help those in foodservices cater to this group.

Lilian Müller is currently President of the European Network for Accessible Tourism (ENAT) and Managing Director of Tourism for All Sweden. She has worked in the field of accessible tourism since 1995, and was one of the initiators behind Tourism for All in Sweden.  She has been instrumental in building up services like the Swedish accessibility database EQUALITY, providing accessibility counselling for the tourism sector, produced training material and holding training courses for staff in tourism companies, and training accessibility auditors.  In an interview with the Design For All Foundation, Müller describes how tourism for all is not about designing and creating solutions and products just for people with disabilities, but is about making sure that these products fit the widest possible number of customers.   ENAT, which was established in 2006 with a grant from the European Union, partners and/or supports many projects around Europe such as CETA (Competitiveness for European Tourism for All).  ENAT also established ETCAATS (European Training Certificate – Access for All in the Tourism Sector), an online training course in Tourism for All, and a ‘road map’ for an EU certification system in the area of accessible tourism vocational training.   Müller describes how Access Tourism is becoming better known in Europe as a concept with the potential to increase visitor numbers.  Access Tourists are attractive because many are willing to spend more money in the low season and they are more loyal to destinations than the average tourist.  She points out that with an ageing population likely to experience increasing disability over time, no tourism operation can afford to ignore improving access.

The European Commission’s “Access City Award”, the first European Award for Accessible Cities, has now been launched. This annual award aims to highlight the European cities that are taking the most effective and innovative action to improve their accessibility for disabled citizens.  The European Network for Accessible Tourism (ENAT) reports that the award will celebrate and showcase the most successful initiatives that allow people with disabilities to participate fully in society. Accessibility is not difficult to implement, this is the initiative’s key message.  Approximately 80 million Europeans have disabilities. 16% of them are of working age, whilst almost 70% are over 60. As disability is so closely linked to ageing, it is likely to affect everyone at some point in their life. Accessibility is therefore a key element of the European Union’s disability policy.  The EU regards accessibility for all of its citizens to public buildings, transportation, information and communications to be essential in order to ensure sustainable economic and social benefits in the long term.  In addition, in accordance with the United Nations Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities, accessibility will remain at the core of the new EU Disability Strategy 2010-2020 (ENAT).

Peter Dunne, director of the Cape May Bird Observatory in New Jersey predicts a 15-20 year boom in bird watching driven by Baby Boomers becoming increasingly interested in the hobby.  Dunne runs introductory courses in bird watching and says that to a man or women, their stories are all the same: “I just retired and I – or we -  are looking for something to do, and birding fits the bill.”  He predicts that birding’s popularity is exploding and will continue to explode as Boomers age, and notes that a lot of tourist locations are chasing this fast-growing market.  For tourism marketers, this is a valuable demographic. An estimated 47.7 million birders in the United States spent about $45.7 billion on wildlife-watching in 2006, reports Richard Aiken, a natural resources economist with the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service who studies the economic value of wildlife-related recreation.

CRI English reports that older travellers are the largets group travelling in China in non-peak times.  For example, 70% of travellers in Guangzhou are in older age groups.  According to the China Daily, the market for senior tourists has increased by 30-50% from that of last year. Many are choosing to travel during non-peak times of the year because they are able to receive discounts on vacation packages and avoid large crowds.   Older travellers say they travel now they are retired and children are off their hands. And  seniors are financially well-off and have time to travel.  The favourite overseas destinations of older Chinese?   Japan, Australia and European countries.   To capture these tourists, neighboring countries are launching efforts to increase tourism to their areas from China. For example, The People’s Daily reports that a group made up of 35 government officials and tourists arrived in Pyongyang in April from China, becoming the first of its kind to visit the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea (DPRK).  China granted destination status to its neighbour in February.

According to a new report by Deloitte (Hospitality 2015), there are seven trends which will drive future success in the hospitality industry.  One of these is demographics.  In established markets such as the U.K. and U.S.A, there will be a rise in affluent, time-rich, and travel-hungry Baby Boomers.  For example,  the Boomer population will account for 60% of USA wealth, and 40% of spending.  This age group “will drive growth in hospitality in the leisure sector. The key to attracting boomers is appealing to their ‘forever young’ attitude and desire for experiential travel.”  Between 1995 and 2008, visitors to Britain over 55 years of age increased by 92% and Boomers will “be a source market for the global tourism industry for several decades”, especially after 2024.  According to the report, the Boomer travel market is far from flooded despite the growth of companies targeting this demographic, and the scale of opportunity is large.

In size and purchasing strength, Baby Boomers – those born between 1946 and 1964 – represent the largest group of consumers. And, according to Margo DeAngelo and Phyllis Schiller, recession or recovery, they’re still spending in the USA. In their article, DeAngelo and Schiller quote some facts about American Boomers from a number of authorities.  These include: 

• 78 million American Boomers have an annual purchasing capacity of US$2 trillion despite the current recession; 
• they comprise a quarter of the population and thus the biggest generational segments;
• 14% are already over 65; over the next ten years, the growth of the 50+ age group will be 22%, compared to the growth of 18-to-49-year-olds, which is going to be 3%; 
• 33% have significant financial assets;
• Americans in their fifties, are less interested in “stuff” and more in experiences.

The influence of Boomers in the market place – including in tourism – is not confined to the USA.  According to Audrey Kauffmann (Vancouver Sun), “from Japan to Germany, senior citizens make up a lucrative and fast-growing opportunity in the tourism industry, with deep pockets, disposable income and free time.”   Older travellers have strong purchasing power, and have become common targets for marketers.  For example, travel companies in Germany and Austria are launching new programs to attract Boomers, and one businessman created a “50plus Badge” to help seniors identify ranked hotels across Austria and Germany that are suitable to older folk.  Amenities at these hotels include wider doors that are wheelchair accessible.

Michael Londregan, a California-based travel agent, who oversees Qantas’s holiday arm in the US and Canada, said at the Australian Tourism Exchange trade fair in Adelaide recently that Baby Boomers were the key market returning to international travel (The Australian).   In fact, Australia has for several years now been aware of the increasing importance of ageing Baby Boomers to the market in many sectors.  For example, demographer Bernard Salt, from business advisory firm KPMG, told the Australian Tourism Export Council (ATEC) symposium there would be a soaring popularity in health-based tourism, from spa treatments to cosmetic surgery, as the wealthy and cashed-up Baby Boomers of the western world reached their 60s, 70s and 80s in the next decade and beyond. ATEC also recognizes that Baby Boomers are the growing international drive market and that they have the time and money to spend exploring destinations that are off the traditional tourist track.  They also recognize that growth in the cruise industry is being “fueled by the ageing of many domestic populations and the relative wealth of retiring Baby Boomers”.

Guest post from David Clendon, Member of Parliament and Green Party spokesperson for Tourism.  David attended the seminar on Access Tourism given in May at Auckland University of Technology by New Zealand Tourism Research Institute Senior Research Officer and Director of Access Tourism NZ, Sandra Rhodda.

I took the opportunity at a Commerce Select Committee meeting last week to pose a question to tourism officials about Access Tourism.  I pointed out that while this is a major growth area internationally, we in New Zealand seem to be missing the boat on what is potentially a very valuable market.  Mr Ray Salter, General Manager of the Ministry of Tourism, indicated that the Ministry is aware of the issue, and saw it as “…a difficult one in terms of how much information you can provide”.   He went on to suggest that the Qualmark programme (Qualmark is NZ’s tourism quality rating system – admin) might be one avenue for providing more information to people.  He also noted that the Ministry’s data does reflect that visitors are getting older, so there is the likelihood of greater demand for high quality information and better access availability for visitors.  That all says to me that there is a degree of goodwill at the official level, and some judicious prodding might help to convert that into a strategy and some action to both exploit a valuable market opportunity and to provide for people who might otherwise miss out on exploring our wonderful country.   I’ll be doing what I can at the political level, and I’m sure people using this website will also be taking every chance to raise public and industry awareness.

The Rolling Rains Report (RRR), the world’s leading website about Travel, Disability, and Universal Design, has again picked up a horror story of a New Zealander with a disability refused access to a bus.  This follows on from several other NZ horror stories that have gone viral over the last couple of years on the RRR and on other websites – a woman refused access to a bus,  another woman thrown out of her motel because she had a seeing-eye dog, councils being sued because they failed to comply with accessibility regulations, wheelchair users trapped on the Trans Alpine passenger train for 11 hours, blind hotel guests charged extra for their seeing-eye dog…….these stories are not a good look for New Zealand.  Tourism is our second-most important exchange earner and hugely important to our economy.  While we have no idea in this country how many of our domestic or international visitors are people with disabilities, it is known that about 17% of kiwis have a disability, that about the same percent are disabled in our major markets, that people with disabilities would currently travel more if tourism and travel products were reliably accessible, and that the number of people who will become disabled is set to increase as the large Baby Boomer segment ages, because disability increases with age.  It is also known that Access Tourism is one of the fastest growing tourism segments internationally.  New Zealand will miss out on this increasingly important sector if it does not work to improve its Access Tourism offer and to increase the number of positive instead of negative tourism and travel related stories.

Joe Rice, Arkansas Tourism Director recognizes the importance of the Baby Boomers to tourism in that state.      He told In Arkansas that many Boomers are, or soon will be empty-nesters, and that they have “the time and resources to travel,”.   For Rice, Boomers are “a logical target, not only for tourism, but eventually relocating to Arkansas. When retirees move to the state, they bring their time, talents, and trust funds to Arkansas and immediately contribute to our prosperity.”  Tourism plays a big part in the Arkansan economy.   Last year the state had 22.8 million visitors who spent US$5.4 billion, including over $280 million in state taxes.