My Windsor investigation

Tourism is the business of going on holiday and making services at the same time. This is more people being provided with jobs.

There has been an increase in tourism, because people have more money nowadays to spend on holidays. There are many reasons for this. Some are paid holidays, cheaper flights, and more leisure time. All of these factors make it possible for a person to be able to go on holiday. Also, some parts of the government occasionally promote tourist areas which they support in making successful.

There are quite a variety of tourist destinations. There are adventure holidays, such as Disney Land, beach holidays, such as Spain, which is most commonly associated with sunny weather and attractive beaches. Many also like to go on ski resorts, such as Switzerland and historical sites are as popular type of tourist destination. Windsor is a historical destination, because of its famous Windsor Castle.

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Tourism is important to Britain, as, creates employment opportunities, in turn improving Britain's economic status. Tourism in popular places, such as Windsor builds a better reputation for Britain across other countries. In addition, the money tourists spend helps Britain economically. Tourism provides potential for future visits and business, and is a good way of creating cultural exchange, and allowing others to learn about the country and traditions within. Tourism offers the opportunity to diversify local economy and helps the conservation of famous sites around many different countries.

A good tourist centre requires mainly exciting attractions. Most tourists would want tour guides to take them around places. Transport would be essential for being able to move from place to place properly. Most tourists like to shop for souvenirs so shops would be seen as something important for tourists if they wanted a reminder of their visit. Good accommodation such as hotels and places to eat, e.g. a fast food restaurant is what tourists would also need. Friendly people and a good, safe environment would also be something required by many tourists.

A good place to live would require, first of all, houses to live in, good, clean, quiet environment. Families would want satisfactory schools for their children. Residents would want local superstores or shops, to buy food and luxuries etc. Hospitals and any other sort of medical aid is an essential for every resident living in a certain area, e.g. doctors, dentists. People would want places of entertainment to attend. These can be cinemas, pubs, and clubs or anywhere where a person may want to socialise.

A resident would need some extent of safety and security to ensure that they are living in a safe environment in case anything should happen, so police would have to be in hand to help secure the area. Local job vacancies would be probably more convenient than essential for residents, and would be preferred by people living in Windsor. Car parking availability should be provided as well.

Tourism affects Windsor in many ways; both in negative and positive ways. It can cause crowded streets, inflated prices, and traffic, parking difficulties, litter and pollution. Particular activities that tourists take part in contribute towards environmental damage. Purchasing of goods by tourists in Windsor cause inflated prices, which makes it difficult for most residents in Windsor to afford many of the things sold in stores. Litter and pollution make it increasingly difficult in Windsor to maintain cleanliness in the environment.

Parking difficulties can cause conflict between residents and tourists, and make it tricky for either residents or tourists (or both) to actually travel anywhere or find a decent parking space which is convenient for them. However, on the other hang, tourism in Windsor encourages employment, raises status for Britain, improves facilities and it also helps to preserve historic sites such as its famous Windsor Castle. Tourism also brings more income to the country enhancing the state's economic wealth.

Windsor

Windsor is on the west side of London, near Heathrow airport, in Berkshire. The attractions that Windsor has got are the Windsor Castle, Guildhall (where Prince Charles and Camilla Bowles got married), Lego land, and Curfew Tower. People visit these attractions, mainly for its historic content. Whereas many others visit it for the adventure of Lego Land.

METHOD

At the beginning of the project, our class had to learn about Windsor. We learnt many basic facts about Windsor, and the fact that it is a tourist destination. We did class work, engaged in discussions about Windsor, and had to research facts about Windsor as homework, as part of our own independent research. We also learnt about tourism itself, and its effects. The sources we used to gain this information were secondary sources. This was the internet, textbooks, the library etc. We then drew up an introduction to our project based on our knowledge about Windsor and tourism. Once learning about Windsor and tourism, we then practised the questions on each other in class in order to prepare us for the real thing.

After using secondary research, we then moved on to using primary research. This was carrying out our surveys in Windsor. We went to Windsor on 3rd May. We travelled by coach for roughly one hour, and we arrived at a coach park. One of the first things we, as a group noticed was the large amount of other coaches that were there and lots of tourists that were coming out of the coaches. The first thing we did was had a tour around the area. There were signposts displaying greetings in many different languages. Some of which were French, German, and Japanese. We passed many tourist shops and many high street shops, which also exist in London, and were obviously aimed at the residents.

We then took a visit to the River Thames, which was a lot narrower in Windsor, than in London and we saw many swans. We visited Peascod Street and the Guildhall. We also visited the crooked house near the extremely small Queens Charlotte Street. Nearby, was Nell Gwynne's House, where Shakespeare wrote one of his famous plays "Merry Wives of Windsor". We witnessed the changing of the guards, and visited the outside of the castle. It was very big, with guards standing at the entrance, with lots of tourists coming in and out, mostly looking at their maps for directions. We also saw the "long walk".

We then all gathered around the castle, from where we were distributed into small groups of mostly four. We had to go around asking our questions to the people who looked like residents and people who looked liked tourists. We had to do this to five of each. This was easy for me and my group. We approached the people in a polite way and asked the questions in the survey thoroughly. The residents were very polite and enthusiastic. However, although it was very easy to interview the residents, the tourists were more difficult to obtain our results from.

The reason we felt for this was because many of them were foreign and had difficulties speaking English. However, in the end, we received our results, and our (me and my group's) research was successful. This was because we managed to obtain a balanced sample of people to interview. We tried to make sure we interviewed people of different ages and genders. This is important, as a balanced opinion is needed to give fair results, and a better insight into the people's views about the topic.

When we finished our surveys, we were allowed to have some free time to eat and rest. We then met up at an agreed time back outside the castle, from where we took off and left to come back to school.

MY RESULTS

This graph shows us how the tourists rated the facilities in Windsor. This shows me that the residents think that the best things in Windsor are the signposting, the historical interest, the cleanliness and the friendliness. The fact that the tourists find the residents friendly possibly shows that the residents do not mind the tourists being there and that there isn't a conflict of interest between tourists and residents in Windsor. The things that the residents rated the lowest were the value for money and the amenities. This means that the prices are expensive in Windsor and the tourists see this as a problem.

This graph tells me what the tourists I surveyed thought that needed improvement in Windsor. This graph tells me that the tourists think that the shops and pedestrian areas need least improvement in Windsor, but parking and availability of toilets is limited and a problem for the tourists in Windsor. This shows that there could be a conflict of interest between the tourists and residents, as it appears to be a battle of who can get parking spaces etc.

This graph shows us what attractions the tourists prefer to go to. This graph tells us that most of the tourists do not like Lego Land as an attraction to visit in Windsor nor do they like the tours around the area. I think this is, because all of the tourists surveyed were adults and were without children so were not expected to go to Lego Land. The most popular tourist attractions in Windsor are the river and the shops. The shops in Windsor were very good, as they had all of the things a tourist would look for, e.g. souvenirs.

This pie chart shows me how many tourists were willing to visit Windsor again. This graph shows me that 16 (80%) out of 20 tourists are willing to visit Windsor again, and 4 (20%) aren't. This statistic could be used to conclude that Windsor is in fact a successful and satisfying tourist centre and that there isn't a conflict of interest between the tourists and the residents in Windsor.

This graph shows me if the tourists were willing to recommend visiting Windsor to their friends or family. 19/20 said yes, they would. That is 95%. Only one person said they wouldn't recommend Windsor to friends and family. This shows me that the tourists enjoyed their visit to Windsor.

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This graph shows us what problems the tourists cause in Windsor. From my results, I can judge that the biggest problems tourists in Windsor cause are parking difficulties and crowded streets. This could be a cause for conflict between the tourists and residents. The least problems caused by tourists, according to my graph, shows inflated prices and too many shops aimed at tourists. These results are surprising, as a successful tourist centre like Windsor would be expected to have high prices, which would affect residents living in the area.

This graph illustrates whether the residents avoid shopping in certain areas because of the tourists. I can see from my results that most of the residents do not avoid shopping in any parts of the town, because of the tourists. This could be because the tourists and residents go to different kinds of shops, i.e. tourists would be expected to go to shops which sell things for tourists, e.g. souvenirs etc., whereas residents are more likely to go to a superstore. The other argument could be that the residents and tourists get along well with each other, and have no problem with going to the same shops, which would prove that there is no conflict of interest.

This graph shows us what benefits the tourists bring to Windsor. This graph tells me that the biggest benefits that tourists in Windsor bring to the town are employment, income, and preservation of historic sites. All of these things show the most obvious benefits which tourism would bring to an area. The least benefits they bring to the town are status. This result is particularly surprising, as I expected people to say Windsor's status has been affected by tourism, especially as Windsor is popular as a tourist destination, and this is widely known.

This graph shows us how the residents rate the facilities in Windsor. This graph shows me that the residents think that the historical interest, the pedestrian areas, and the food in cafes and restaurants are the best things in Windsor. The tourists in Windsor agreed that the historical interest in Windsor is good as well as the food. However, they think that parking and amenities aren't very good in Windsor. I think that this is because of the tourists being in Windsor. Parking availability would probably be a lot better if there were no tourists visiting Windsor, as well as amenities provided there.

This graph shows us what the residents think would improve Windsor. This graph shows me that the residents would want the biggest changes made to supermarkets, toilets and parking spaces. The toilets and parking spaces could be a cause of the tourists and the residents wanting to improve these things could mean that they have a problem or problems with the tourists' visits. The things that the residents think need the least improvement are the shops aimed at tourists, the amount of tours, and the opening times of the castle.

This graph shows us who the residents think the council favours more. From these results, I can see that the changes introduced by the council have mostly got the balance right between the tourists and residents. This means that Windsor is not only good as a tourist centre, but as a residential area too, which means that the residents in Windsor are satisfied with where they live. This is true, as there were no residents who thought the council favoured the tourists more, but a minority said the residents were favoured more.

This graph tells us if there is a conflict of interest between the tourists and residents. Most of my residents said 'no'. This shows me that generally, the residents do not think there is a conflict of interest between the residents and the tourists.

RESULTS

Tourists Results:

There were many streets/areas which seemed to be aimed at the tourists. Some of these were:

1 Thames Street

2 Station Parade

3 Castle Hill

4 Eton

All of which have particular things to attract the tourists, which stands out from the rest of the areas in Windsor.

Most of the tourist sample came from the UK, with 11/20, however a similar amount of tourists came from abroad with 9/11. This shows no correlation between Windsor and the tourists who visit it.

Most of the tourists i surveyed travelled to Windsor by car, which were 8/20. This shows me possibly that most of the tourists were independent visitors. The least used transport to Windsor by the tourists was a bus.

The most popular of attractions for the tourists was the river, the Guildhall, and the shops. 50% of the tourists said they would be visiting the river, and 30% of the tourists said they would be visiting the Guildhall, which is still quite a low score. But, with the highest score, 60% of the tourists said that they would be shopping in Windsor on that day.

The tourists rated all of the facilities in Windsor over four, with the exception of only a few. These were:

1 Value for money

2 Amenities (such as toilets)

3 And information on things to do.

These however, still scored a rating of over three, which is still a high score, which shows that Windsor is good as a tourist centre, as it provides all of the needs for tourists.

The most popular facilities were:

1 Signposting

2 historical interest

3 cleanliness

4 and friendliness

These are all very important elements needed for a site to be particularly successful for tourism. Signposting is needed for guidance around the area, and since they were written in many different languages, this is extremely helpful for foreigners. A clean environment is needed for not only a tourist, but residents too. Tourists want a place to feel safe from insanitary when they are visiting somewhere to enjoy themselves. Friendliness also is a very important factor in being successful as a tourist site. Tourists want to feel welcome, and wanted there. If there wasn't any friendliness in Windsor, the tourists would probably be put off, and not want to visit Windsor again.

80% of the tourists said they would visit Windsor again, and 20% said they wouldn't, which shows Windsor is a big preference for the tourists, and they were impressed by the visit.

95% of the tourists said they would recommend visiting Windsor to a friend or member of family.

Residents Results:

There were many streets/areas which seemed to be aimed at the residents. Some of them are:

1. Peascod Street

2. Kind Edward's Court

3. High Street/Thames Street

4. Around the station

From my residents' sample, I found out that every one that i surveyed lived in Windsor for at least 6 months. A few which I interviewed had been living in Windsor for: 19 years, 28 years, 50 years, 65 years, 40 years, 66 years, etc. So a lot of the residents i surveyed had been living in Windsor most of their lives.

All of my residents said they visited the town centre at least once every two weeks. The majority visited the town centre daily, which shows that Windsor is a good place to live in; otherwise my residents wouldn't have said this.

The results from my residents chart shows me that on average, the residents think tourists do not

Bring that many problems to the town. However, the problems they did bring were:

* Crowded streets

* And parking

These could cause a conflict of interest between the tourists and residents, as this would mean residents/tourists cannot go to certain places, as they have to worry about parking their car, or be worried about crowded areas.

The least problems they caused were:

* Inflated prices

* Traffic

* And shops aimed at tourists.

Although the tourists think that there is a problem with crowds, they do not think there is much traffic to the extent of being a problem. This can be expected, as the tourists spend their time walking around more in groups, than using means of transport.

The residents all rated the facilities in Windsor over 2.5, which is slightly less that what the tourists rated the facilities. This (although vague) shows that the tourists prefer Windsor to the residents. The lowest scored facilities were the parking and amenities. The tourists share this same problem, as they rated amenities as one of their lowest. This suggests that the council in Windsor should put this as one of their main priorities for improving Windsor for the residents and tourists. The highest rated facilities by the residents were: historical interest, pedestrian areas, and cafes/restaurants. The tourists also rated the historical content of Windsor highly as well.

The biggest changes residents thought would improve Windsor for the better were:

* Toilets (80%)

* Supermarkets (70%)

* And parking (85%)

The tourists share the same view about toilets and parking. However, compared to the residents, a lot less suggested improvement for these things. 25% of my tourists suggested improvement to toilets and 25% of tourists suggested improvement to parking.

The least changes suggested by the residents were for:

* Shops (70%)

* Amount of tours (70%)

* Opening times of the castle (70%)

The tourists also agreed that shops didn't need improvement, (90% said this).

Overall, tourists appear to be more content with Windsor than the residents. The most changes needed are for parking and amenities (toilets). This means that the council needs to take this into consideration in order to improve Windsor for tourists and residents.

EVALUATION OF RESULTS

I can conclude, from everything I have found out, using my graphs/results that Windsor is a successful tourist centre. I have collected sufficient information in backing up this point, which gives me full confidence in stating this. In asking my tourists to rate particular things in Windsor, all were rated over 3 out of 5 for a score, and 8/14 being scored 4 or over. This showed me that as a whole, tourists are satisfied with the content of Windsor and the different services it provides as a tourist destination. Most of the tourists didn't feel that Windsor needed any improvement, and 80% of my tourists agreed that they would be coming to visit Windsor again in the future.

There is some evidence according to my results to suggest that there is a conflict of interest between the tourists and residents in Windsor. A lot of the residents i surveyed claimed they had problems with the crowds and lack of parking availability which was caused by the tourists. This is/would be seen by the residents as inconvenient to a large extent i.e. Windsor is their home and having to live there whilst having no parking space for their car would be very hard to deal with, especially when having to go to work or travel for other needs essential to the residents. Another thing a lot of the residents I interviewed were displeased with was the lack of amenities served in the area such as toilets. This could be because of tourists constantly using them during their visit to Windsor, which a resident could find to be annoying especially if they are out all day, and cannot go home.

However besides these facts, I found the residents to be overall fine with the tourists' visits to the popular town, and felt that there was a friendly atmosphere between the residents and tourists. A considerable amount of residents said that there were no places in the town they avoided shopping in because of the tourists. Also, most of my residents agreed that tourists did bring employment, income and were the cause of conservation of historic locations such as the Castle.

The residents rated most of the facilities in Windsor over half, which shows approval of Windsor, including tourism. 16/18 of the residents believed that the council favoured both the residents and the tourists, making sure the balance was right and that neither was losing out. Finally, from the results I have assembled, I can see that the majority of residents I surveyed throughout my trip to Windsor said that there was no conflict of interest between the residents and tourists.

The council, however has managed to try resolve the little bit of conflict between the tourists and residents by making sure to fulfil the residents' needs, by providing them with advantages as citizens in Windsor. One way they have successfully managed to do this, is by providing the residents in Windsor with Advantage Cards. These cards allow residents in Windsor to attend attractions such as The Castle with discounts. Special offers are also given on tour guides around the area's best attractions. Supplementary litter bins have been made for enhanced hygiene for the residents. Finally, further parking spaces have been set up to the residents' advantages to ensure no parking difficulties occur, which don't allow residents to park their cars whilst the tourists are visiting.

EVALUATION OF METHOD

On our visit to Windsor, the day went generally well. Firstly, the atmosphere was very good. There was a huge mixture of people from different backgrounds and areas, so it was very multicultural. It was a clean, tidy area, with hardly any litter lying around, which showed it was well maintained.

I liked the attractions in the area, the shops, and just generally the things in the area. It was a good looking place, mostly because of its cleanliness, and quiet streets. The good weather added to the scenery.

The interviews went considerably well. The people in the area were very polite, and welcoming. Most of the people cooperated, in helping me and my group fill in our survey. They seemed very enthusiastic. I was able to get an adequate amount of residents and tourists to fill out my survey, which obviously helped me a lot for my coursework, in creating my graphs and evaluating my results. All of the people I interviewed appeared to understand the meaning and the context of the questions which I asked them, and easily answered them, which was convenient and time-saving for my group.

On our day to Windsor, I encountered minor problems. One of these was when I was looking for tourists to interview for my survey. A lot of the tourists at first kept refusing to do the interviews when requested. Some couldn't speak English which appeared to be the reason. It took a long time to find five tourists who were willing to cooperate, but eventually we did, however it was really time-consuming.

I had a few problems when doing my Windsor coursework. One problem was being able to follow up on work inside and outside of school. I also had problems with attendance, which caused me to fall behind slightly at first with my coursework. Occasional difficulties with understanding parts of the project drew me back slightly, but help from my teacher and peers helped me overcome these drawbacks.

I managed to get a balanced sample of people to interview. I tried to obtain fair results by interviewing as many men as I could women, and tried to interview people from different age categories. I managed to do this, by referring to my survey and seeing who I had to interview. It is important to have a balanced sample, so that the results I receive are accurate and reliable.

CONCLUSION

From the start of my Windsor project, my aim has been to successfully answer three questions about Windsor:

1. Is Windsor a successful tourist centre?

2. Is there a conflict of interest between residents and tourists?

3. What has been done to try to solve any conflict of interest

In trying to accomplish these questions, I can finally conclude that from all of the information I collected in the duration of this project I have found Windsor to be a very successful tourist centre. The tourists I surveyed agreed that among many other positives in Windsor, the popular destination has good historical content and attractions and is full of friendly people. The tourists were willing to visit the town again in the future and even recommend it to friends and family. Windsor provides the tourists with wide varieties of ways to enjoy themselves and makes sure they have a good visit. The attractions such as Eton, the Guildhall and others play a big part in this as well.

I have concluded in confidence as well that there is generally no conflict of interest between the residents and the tourists. The residents seemed happy to be accompanied by the tourists and this was shown through the survey I carried out, where the residents thought the tourists brought benefits to the town such as employment, status, preservation, income. My residents also said there was no conflict of interest between the residents and tourists in Windsor.

Any minor conflicts in Windsor between the tourists and residents have been dealt with by the council. The council has introduced Advantage Cards which give residents in Windsor special advantages to visiting attractions, and allowing them discounts and offers on tours. Additional litter bins and parking spaces were also produced so that the residents and tourists have an equal balance in being provided with needs and wants.

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