With November now started, the world begins to think “holidays.”

In the southern hemisphere people are getting ready for their summer holidays and in the northern hemisphere the religious holiday season is a time of celebration, of festivities, of travel and many people begin to think of a winter break, especially where the winters are long and cold. No matter which type of vacation a person is considering in this often violent and pandemic-prone world a question that every potential visitor asks is: Is your location safe and secure?

Although it is rare for a person to choose a destination merely because of issues of tourism surety (where safety and security meet) a lack of good tourism surety may well be the reason that potential clients choose to go elsewhere. In today’s world our clients and customers demand safety and security by well-trained professionals. The hospitality industry’s number one job is to protect its guests.

If it fails in this regard, all else becomes irrelevant. Real security involves training, education, investments in software and the understanding that security is not a simplistic discipline. Tourism security personnel need continual training and must be flexible enough to adjust their procedure to a constantly changing environment.

One of the propositions to note is that as customer service increases, so does tourism security. Security plus service and value for money will become the basis for 21st century tourism success!

Ranking agencies often rank locales by safety and security. The problem is that these rankings are dependent on which components are included and which are left out of the ranking equation.