What do camping, leisure and work have in common? The answer is hybrid concepts, for the flow of the tourism sector. Many experts use the term “hybridization” to describe these new tourism practices at the junction of two or more segments.
In this context, it should be said that hybrid offerings are clearly expanding, thus transforming the tourism sector.
The tourism industry was built on the provision of related services. When Thomas Cook proposed his first routes in 1841, he wanted to “use the railroad to fight alcoholism by taking English workers to the countryside.”
He made a proposal for transport and a proposal for visits, while changing the profile of the employee to the profile of the tourist. Then the place of the offer was built next to the tourist activity (travel, accommodation) with motivation (scientific, cultural, gastronomic) or practice (sport, travel, sea).
Thus, for example, a stay with a local combines the daily life of the host with the bed and breakfast of travelers; agritourism combines the daily activities of producers with the discovery of rural lovers; and regenerative tourism contributes to a sustainable vision of cooperation in this sector. In this sense, the proposals intersect and play with positioning to multiply and create a new travel experience.
Combination of procedures or hybridization concepts
And how does tourism actually hybridize? Hybrid concepts that show trends and characterize marginal, amazing or unusual dynamics are constantly appearing.
The most popular is the appearance of Glamping (charm + camping), which rediscovers accommodation with paradoxical comfort in atypical places (caravans, buses, etc.).
For business travelers, this direction is Bleisure, which stands out (business + leisure) due to travel in different directions. The Covid-19 crisis calls into question the interest and real importance of business travel, but also accelerates the emergence of new concepts: so-called workation (work + vacation) or staycation (stay + vacation) to visit local / nearby tourist destinations and destinations.
Thus, the procedures merge, and the hybridization of tourism has become a way to promote new tourism experiences and behaviors that go beyond standard procedures, while remaining in full compliance with the desire for individuality and originality of the modern traveler.
Hybrid proposals in the framework of sector transformation
Tourism hybridization affects most components of the industry. The initiatives presented here, depending on the areas of activity, without hesitation combine proposals for accommodation and leisure, and at the same time are implemented very flexibly and innovatively.
Placing
There are four waves of hybridization in the hotel sector. The first took place in the 1990s, when accommodation facilities (long-term) combined hotel activities (short-term) with hotel services (seminars, rehabilitation, etc.). Then came the lifestyle hotels. Then the blurring of the boundaries between hotels and hostels, and finally the last wave is associated with coliving and coworking. It seems that the hotel sector needs to rethink established models, diversify and move away from a simple accommodation offer.
Transport
Places such as railway stations are gradually being transformed with changes in the labor market, which are moving towards multifunctionality: hotels, art galleries, offices, etc.
For example, a hybrid car is just an assembly of two reciprocating engines, but in reality it cannot be called a hybrid. To become a hybrid, the sector must be transformed on the principle of Hyperloop, with the help of a multifunctional car or by changing transport concepts in order to develop the transport of tomorrow.
Space
Today, the boundaries of physical and virtual spaces intersect. The perception of a destination depends more on its popularity on social networks than on the administrative boundaries that close it. The tourist experience becomes physical (physical + digital) and the tourist space is reconfigured according to the traveler’s vision and its virtual representation.
This is the same idea that seems to be the horizon of the sector of events. Although physical encounters are still necessary to bring players together, digital technology is seen as complementary to activities that involve the development of traditional events.
Management
Tourism management reflects the way of managing the activities of tour destinations / goals. However, it is not only the institutional bodies, but also all parties involved in the process. The sectors are merging (public-private partnership) and the dynamics are growing (incubators, third places, etc.).
This administration is also becoming a hybrid with the development of clusters that seek to strengthen the heritage of tourism by bringing together participants, whether public, private, academic, permanent / temporary, tourism or not.
At the same time, tourism is becoming pervasive, and tourism organizations are disappearing in favor of more attractive agencies globally. In this way, organizations come together and reform to find a better way to present their tourism activities. This search for flexibility in stakeholder relations is still important for contributing to the development of an effective and efficient strategy.
Hybridization to improve supply
To truly create a hybrid community, tour destinations / goals need to be re-evaluated in terms of multi-purpose and appeal to different generations. The Olympic Games clearly show the limits of precise development and the damage done to the environment, the economy and the sustainability of buildings.
Similarly, the example of the greatness of tourism shows how important the involvement of the population in the development of a balanced approach. Thus, the hybridization of tourism will have to combine actions that are really beneficial for residents and tourist destinations. New concepts must be built in a non-standard way, and the tour offer will need to be constantly updated.