What is the typical tourist? The typical tourist to the Balearics and therefore to Mallorca? This is not one of those paint-a-picture questions, to which the answer might comprise words such as lager and guzzle, this is one of those market-research age and status sort of questions. "The Bulletin" highlights a report issued by the Spanish National Tourist Board. Bear with me because I need to quote. Here it is: "A typical tourist profile emerged ... as a person aged between 25 and 64 who came to the islands as holidaymakers, staying in hotels or other tourist accommodation." I quote this because I wonder if someone can help. Am I missing something here? Generally speaking, where else do tourists stay other than in hotels or other tourist accommodation? As for the forty-year age range, it is like saying that the typical working person in, for example, the UK is aged between 25 and 64 and lives in a house or other domestic accommodation. In other words, it isn´t typical at all because it applies pretty much to the whole population.
What does typical mean? The Concise Oxford offers one definition as being: "characteristic of or serving to distinguish a type". The report is not distinguishing a type; it is saying, in effect, that a tourist is anyone.
You know something, I wouldn't mind the gig with the National Tourist Board. It is possible they spent months poring over this characterisation. I, or indeed you, could have dreamt it up in 30 seconds and put our feet up for a year or so and fed off the research grant, assuming there was one. The typical tourist - you, me, everyone.
QUIZ
Yesterday - Tears For Fears. Today's title - comes from a huge hit with "one" in its title.
(PLEASE REPLY TO andrew@thealcudiaguide.com AND NOT VIA THE COMMENTS THINGY HERE.)
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
No comments:
Post a Comment