Destinations Concede Their Food Tourism Marketing Efforts Fall Short
Photo Credit: Pictured are travelers at a food truck festival in Charlotte, North Carolina. Flickr / James Willamor
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Most tourism boards understand that travelers need to eat well if they want them to be happy and return. One challenge with that is determining what food trend to focus on -- and whether it will fizzle out or stick around -- before throwing marketing dollars at promoting food.
While food is one of the leading hooks in why many people travel to a particular destination, many tourism boards and travel companies feel they're not doing enough to market their food and beverage offerings, according to a recent survey.
Only 10 percent of tourism boards and companies surveyed believe food and beverage offerings have been adequately promoted in their destinations, a United Nations World Tourism Organization (UNWTO) survey found. Some 65.5 percent of respondents said that food tourism marketing is ongoing but isn't sufficient.
Fewer than half (46.5 percent) of respondents said they have a food tourism strategy although all respondents indicated they have hosted activities to promote food and beverage offerings and experiences.
The UNWTO surveyed 77 destination marketing organizations, educational institutions, marketing and consultancy firms, hotels, meeting planners and food and beverage providers from 29 countries from June to September 2016. About 41 pe
