29SAYI-DERGI

Köşe Yazısı / Column
are the possible sanctions and will they be deterrent enough.
Let’s end this outdated and obese tourism understanding.
Priority of Turkish tourism is visionary perspective, strategical
planning and clarifying the occupational principals. If we don’t
update the regulations and ethical rules with the law, it won’t do
any good. Each law has its priorities, the government focuses on
the rights of end-users! We should also focus on a consumption
style which is nature-conscious, environmentalist and aware, we
should be common sense of the industry. Turkish tourism needs
an immediate mental transformation, most of us are aware of
this negative process and is ready to do everything they can to
create a difference. If we are talking about a potential like this,
then let’s change our tourism style when we have the chance.
Let’s focus on the alternative tourism and end this outdated and
obese tourism understanding which has hotels in the same concept
with tourists isolated from the nature.
We should put minimalist vacation
understanding and alternatives in our agenda.
Let’s think simply, minimalism has been becoming very popular
in the past years. There are a lot of articles on the subject in
newspapers and on internet, even Netflix has a documentary on
minimalism. So, why don’t we put minimalist vacation styles
and alternatives in our agenda?
We should shift our focus and work on the vacation alternatives
which create unique memories and experiences rather than
luxurious and limitless consumption. Why don’t we have any
interest on camping tourism or vacation farms? If we can’t add
continuous and sustainable criteria which will increase the life
of tourism in the revised law, if we are not going to take any responsibility
in adding sanctions to reserving environment for air
and land vehicles, if we are not going to inspect whether touristic
facilities are environmentalist or not, you don’t have to get our
opinions, the lawyers will deal with the rest.
A friend of mine asked me a question the other day: “Can service
industry survive without any humans?” Of course it will because
the life is going in that direction already. Traditional tourism is
dying and everything is digitalized while we are stuck with our
analog mentalities. Internet is a must of everything, smart machines
and systems are rising with the contribution of artificial
intelligence and self-learning systems are spreading rapidly all
over the world. Tourism industry will soon provide services without
humans… In a short time, computers will be smarter than us
and take our jobs. Can’t you see? Industry 4.0, the technological
revolution, has the goal of machine production with the network
connections without any humans. Even industrial world have
up on humans, why should tourism industry stay back?
The parasite which prevents the work of
smart systems: “Human”
We are focused on our mobile phones and aren’t even capable
of having real-time communication with our friends. Machines,
which are always connected to each other, learning constantly
and produce work at all times, may start to perceive humans as
“parasites which prevent work” soon…
Of course there are people who design, produce and develop
these machine and systems, and they are too smart and capable
to become market leaders in a very short time even though they
don’t have much knowledge and capital. These people started
to focus on tourism industry too. They don’t know much about
tourism but all of them are smart, educated and uploaded all of
our necessities to the digital world. Some of them rent cars and
some of them uploaded various residential places on the internet
and marketing them. Some are about to start space tours with
the rockets they produced. Even the shepherd in the mountains
is their potential customer and anywhere which has internet is
their shop…
The first victim will be the agencies: when you have Siri, why will
you need an agency? You just say where you’re going to go and
it will deal with your tickets, transfers, hotel and dinner reservations
and gives you museum information… I have a question
for you: is competing with new generation opponents should include
banning them?
Regular agency understanding is dying. The era of personalized
vacation designers and influencing agents is beginning. The only
thing you will do is to allow access and integration to the clothes
you’re wearing. Smart programs will use the data they receive
from your wearable technology clothes and guide you to the
most proper vacation sites according to your mood and body.
Welcome to the Artificial Travel Production
Agency
Is everything for the rich people? No, for the ones who don’t have
the time or the money to go to a vacation, “Artificial Travel Production
Agencies” will serve. Your private vacation consultor
will design and produce artificial reality travel scenarios and the
only thing you will do is to put on your cap, lie on the sofa and
explore the world. Maybe you will travel in time and experience
the life in a completely different time period, and maybe you will
explore the worlds which don’t exist.
If you’re thinking to start a business, the first thing you should
ask yourself is “Will there be a business like this in the future?”
In a few years, there won’t be a business which doesn’t include
mobile applications. People who use smart phones for only social
media and photographs won’t even have a chance to live in this
society in the future, let alone being successful. It is the era of applications,
so let’s ask this question: is there going to be an article
on the inspection of applications in the new revised law no 1618?
Briefly, the new law must solve current problems while focusing
on the tourism understanding of the future and digital competition.
Government and the ministry must not see TÜRSAB only
as an occupational association; they should give TÜRSAB the responsibility
of being the inspector of environment and ethics of
the tourism industry.
Am I exaggerating?
I don’t think so. Let me tell you this “In China, a 6 floor office building
was produced with a 3D printer and two tourism companies
are operating within the building” and you think about the rest…
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