The Long Tail of Tourism: Holiday Niches and their Impact on Mainstream Tourism

Prof. Dr. Alexis Papathanassis specialises on Cruise Management and eTourism at the Bremerhaven University of Applied Sciences. He is also the chairman of the Cruise Research Society and Co-Director of the Institute for Maritime Tourism.

Over the last decades, mass-tourism and the emergence of the holiday package have transformed recreational travel from a ‘luxury for the few’ to a ‘commodity for the many’. The ever-increasing demand for individuality, enabled by information technologies and the internet, has given rise to numerous, rapidly-expanding holiday niches and a corresponding explosion of specialists. The resulting ‘long tail’ of holiday offerings implies dramatic shifts in the sector’s concentration levels and its competitive dynamics. In order to examine the applicability and validity of this scenario, a number of key holiday niches are examined in terms of their demand development, supplier landscapes, operational challenges and future potential.