It’s not a common subject on this blog, but for a couple of
decades I have been visiting places around the globe. I have now set foot in 58 countries, in all
of the continental groups except Antarctica – while my patterns are more frugal
than most Americans, perhaps more akin to those of Europeans with more vacation
time than money, they are common worldwide.
Travel is not a main source for writing on American employment, but it
is related in that tourism has, during all of our lifetimes, been an
ever-rising source of jobs; visitor appeal greatly controls how many are
working in certain industries, and many more officials would prefer more
outsiders coming in and spending money to fewer. What relatively inexpensive things can
destinations, especially but not exclusively the foreign ones which spurred my
thinking here, do to get more of that?
First, consistently have and maintain street name signs. When asked on an exit form what a small
island country could do to make my experience better, I wrote “street signs” in
capitals, underlined twice, and with three exclamation points. Those of us who like to walk around can otherwise
be blown off course remarkably easily. And
don’t they want them for the locals anyway?
Second, have some sort of competence test for cabdrivers. It’s infuriating, as I did in this same
place, after being pestered constantly by touts of “Taxi?” “Taxi?,” to finally
get in one and find the driver, who seems to know English or the other language
I’m speaking perfectly well, does not know locations of even the most popular
tourist destinations. If there is such
an oversupply of cabs that drivers will often wait an hour or more for
customers to finish their sightseeing so they can get another few dollars
taking them elsewhere, then, say, a written exam on where things are would correct
that as well.
Third, and this time I speak to the most developed places on
the planet, have nothing for visitors requiring mobile phones. I know, we can buy SIM cards, but using such
technology also necessitates having such devices on hand, paying roaming
charges, getting a clear signal, understanding dialing codes, and more. With no country close to 100% cellphone
saturation anyway, a modicum of pay phones, which have reached near or total
nonexistence in some places, could also help travelers more.
Fourth, have more places of any kind to sit down. To make the same points I made in academia
last decade, populations are aging, people often need a few minutes to rest,
and concrete benches can last for 50 years.
While loitering is a reasonable thing to discourage, the value to others
will soon, if it hasn’t already, more than offset that.
Fifth, facilitate low-priced private room lodging. Such offerings are nongovernmental-money
decisions, but public policy, as shown in countries with few even rural options
below maybe US$100 per night, can influence that. And I’m not talking about Airbnb or other
sharing options either, which can seem confusing and offer communication
insufficient to many.
Sixth, accept cash everywhere. Even in the United States, where customer
needs have recently caused restaurants taking only electronic payments to change
that, many erroneously assume that visitors will be as well-equipped as locals,
who pay no credit card transaction fees and have any commonly used
small-change-replacement systems (such as Hong Kong’s Octopus transit cards,
extensively used in convenience stores).
I’m with a horde of people who use ATMs, themselves becoming less common
at some destinations, and then spend as they go, not only getting lower fees but
enjoying seeing the local money. It
would be sad to go to Australia and never see the kangaroos, platypus, echidna,
and other designs on their everyday coins and notes.
Seventh, have free local maps available anywhere tourists
might go. Advertisements from their
sponsors are fine, and are often actually helpful, but please keep them to
scale, show what that scale is, and leave in streets or roads even if judged to
be of no visitor interest. Maps, especially
in conjunction with good street signs, have no real substitute.
Eighth, and this is where our home country is the worst, have
plenty of public toilets. Walking
around without frequent restaurant or museum stops brings this human need to
the forefront. These places need only be
reasonably clean and open at all or almost all times. If they want to, as many do, charge what is
almost always a nominal amount, that is no problem (if they can make change!),
though businesses, who see gains in sales when people can wander around longer,
could pay for them. One of the largest
American portable toilet providers uses the name Comfort House for a reason.
Although some would need to come from changes in laws or
company regulations, none of these improvements would be, in the long term,
time-consuming or expensive. All would
boost tourism jobs and business income more efficiently than public relations
campaigns. Through online as well as
in-person communication, word spreads more than ever before about the merits of
Taiwan versus South Korea, or even, and especially, Fiji against Samoa. Work and money are good things – when it’s
relatively easy, let’s do what we can to get more of both.