The arrival count is the wrong number

“Jamaica has never been a place people visit passively. Music brought reggae to the world, and visitors still come specifically to trace it, from Trench Town to the studios where it was recorded.”

“Having had the opportunity to read the first part of THE DEVOTION DIVIDEND, written by Dr. Jens Thraenhart, I can strongly recommend it as compulsory reading for Tourism professionals, both in Governments as well as in the private sector.”

“The Devotion Dividend makes a timely and important contribution to how destinations assess value, impact, and long-term success. Its central argument, that meaningful engagement and committed communities can matter more than volume alone, strongly resonates with our experience at World Masters Sport.”

“Destinations do not need more visitors, they need the right visitors. These are not necessary the luxury travellers, much more important are those who act as unpaid brand ambassadors, coming back year after year and recommending the experience throughout their network.”

“Jens Thraenhart is probably the best tourism 'Marketing Guru' that I have ever met. And I have met a lot in 6 decades of pursuing Travel & Tourism as 'my passion' all over the world.”

“Passion and pride are among the most powerful and enduring assets in tourism; passion that motivates travel and pride that gives destinations their distinct identity. Dr.”

“After years of documenting place branding and destination development stories from around the world, one pattern keeps repeating: the places that create lasting value are those that build genuine connection and advocacy, not simply awareness.”

“None of us in the industry will find the central idea brand new - that destinations do better when they are built around the people who genuinely care, rather than marketed at everyone.”

“A distinguished publication that offers a new vision for modern tourism and deserves to be an important reference for the sector.”

“As world destinations advance in the pedagogy that will allow us to evolve from volume to value, Dr. Thraenhart has the ability to guide us on how to do so.”

“Dr. Thraenhart's book tackles vital issues that many of us in the tourism industry face. With nearly four decades of experience in China, I can confidently say that the questions posed in this book resonate deeply with my own journey.”

“After 37 years promoting Thailand to the world—including as TAT's Deputy Governor for International Marketing—and now helping shape Southeast Asia's travel experience at AirAsia MOVE, I've watched destinations chase scale at the expense of soul.”

“For decades, tourism success has been measured by ever-growing visitor numbers. In this important new book, Jens Thraenhart challenges that assumption with a compelling alternative: creating destinations that are deeply valued by the right visitors rather than merely visited by the greatest number.”

“For three decades, tourism academics and practitioners have argued that visitor quality matters more than visitor quantity. Jens Thraenhart provides the economic proof.”

“In my years advancing Bhutan's High Value Low Volume tourism grounded in Gross National Happiness, I have witnessed firsthand the limitations of volume-driven models and the transformative power of purposeful, high-value travel.”

“As a young travel writer, I specialized in reporting on best practices in sustainable tourism and ecotourism and how these concepts evolved within the industry. That was more than 30 years ago.”

“The Devotion Dividend is an essential resource for tourism leaders. Dr. Jens Thraenhart successfully provides a practical strategy that moves beyond traditional volume metrics toward a model focused on enhancing destination value through passionate, devoted communities.”

“As tourism grapples with the 3 terrible Ts of overtourism: traffic (Venice's crowded streets), trash (Bali's littered beaches), and transients (residents crowded out of apartments in Athens), Dr.”

“Passion tourism takes a variety of forms, including such annual events as Arctic Sweden's Midnattssol to migration in East Africa. Think art in Miami, Hong Kong and, of course, Basel.”

“Passion Tourism" offers a well structured playbook to inspire strategies, that if executed well and are carefully adapted to local sensibilities, can assist communities leverage that positive benefits of the visitor economy while avoiding many of the pitfalls.”

“Spending 40 years building destinations and mix used developments around the globe, I've watched destinations celebrate record arrivals while wondering why local businesses and communities weren't feeling the benefits.”

“Tourism's promise, that travel builds understanding between peoples, has rarely been fulfilled by mass tourism, which moves millions through places without genuine contact.”

“Jens Thraenhart makes an argument every hotel executive has sensed but rarely seen documented: that the guest who chose your property because of what it uniquely offers is worth considerably more than the guest who chose it on price.”

“The tourism industry has spent decades counting the wrong things. Arrivals, occupancy, and marketing reach tell you how many people passed through — not whether the destination, its communities, or its ecosystems are better for it.”

“The tourism industry has developed an impressive ability to talk about sustainability and community while still optimising for cheap volume.”

“Tourism policy has long relied on a narrow set of metrics, mostly centred on volume. They are relatively easy to collect, compare, and communicate to stakeholders.”

“Dr. Thraenhart has effectively structured one of the hardest arguments in tourism: that growth measured in arrivals has been the wrong goal, and that the destinations winning the next decade will be the ones brave enough to serve fewer, more devoted visitors.”

“The Devotion Dividend challenges destination leaders to rethink success, not by chasing the broadest audience, but by cultivating the deepest connections. This compelling book offers a fresh, practical framework for creating places that inspire lasting loyalty, stronger visitor economies and more resilient communities.”

“Quality, not quantity. We have said this in tourism conferences for decades. And while we talked, arrivals counts stayed the number that mattered. This book shows, with documented cases, what happens when a destination builds around visitors who genuinely care about what makes it unique.”

“Seychelles cannot compete on arrival numbers. Our islands compete on what visitors cannot find anywhere else: the unique Coco de Mer, the UNESCO-listed Aldabra Atoll, and a Creole culture rooted in the melting pot we are. When I led Seychelles tourism, we built around those assets, not around chasing numbers.”

“As Minister of Environment and Tourism, I had to make the case internally for decisions that prioritized long-term value over short-term arrivals growth. That is not an easy argument when your ministry's performance is measured in visitor numbers.”

“Sri Lanka has one of the highest leopard densities anywhere, approximately 35 endemic bird species, blue whales off Mirissa, and an Ayurveda tradition that runs centuries deep.”

“My journey building experience-focused travel companies like SpiceRoads and EXO Travel taught me that a loyal, engaged audience is a business's greatest asset.”

“Mongolia does not compete on volume. It competes on experiences visitors cannot find anywhere else: eagle hunting in Bayan-Ulgii, camel trekking across the Gobi, the endless open steppe, and a nomadic culture that has lived in harmony with nature for centuries.”

“For too long, much of tourism has measured success by arrivals rather than by the value it creates. The real opportunity lies in attracting travellers who engage deeply with a destination, support local communities, help conserve culture and the environment, and become lifelong advocates.”

“With The Devotion Dividend, Jens delivers a timely wake-up call for modern brands and destinations. He beautifully articulates how shifting from mere transactions to cultivating genuine, deep-seated passion creates unmatched long-term value.”

“This book brings together Jens' wide international experience and creative way of thinking in an easy-to-read and practical style. It reminds us that successful destinations do not need to appeal to everyone.”

“Tourism has spent a decade drowning in its own success — Barcelona, Venice, Amsterdam — while chasing a metric that guarantees the wrong outcome. In 2019, I named the alternative: regenerative tourism, treating destinations as living systems rather than machines to be optimized for volume.”

“I've long believed that the future of tourism belongs to destinations that create meaning, not just movement.”

“In order to understand the future you need to know what the future could be. You need to be informed. This is where Dr Jens Thraenhart comes in. The Devotion Dividend captures one of the most important shifts shaping the future: the move from a volume economy to a devotion economy.”

“Twenty-five years in Southeast Asia teaches you that the finest travel is never found on a checklist. Our repeat travelers bypass standard landmarks.”

“I ran an airline in Thailand for fifteen years. The route data told me one thing again and again. Passengers flying to Chiang Mai for the lantern festival, to Phuket for dive season, to Buriram for race weekends filled planes that general demand never could.”

“Throughout my career in travel and hospitality, living and working around the world and engaging with the frontlines of travel, I have seen the most successful destinations distinguish themselves not by volume alone, but by the depth, authenticity, and emotional resonance of the experiences they create.”

“The Devotion Dividend: The Passion-Tourism Economy is an easy-to-read, highly practical guide for tourism policymakers, marketers, and investors. Based on his extensive global experience across different continents, Dr.”

“Proactive evolution of tourism strategic planning is long overdue, and Jens sets out some compelling arguments for policymakers to turn slogans and soundbites into positive action.”

“I grew up in a village in Isan with no electricity, in a country earning billions from tourism. Less than 15 percent of that money ever reached communities like mine. That gap is why Local Alike exists.”

“For too long, the industry has overlooked the immense economic power of specialized traveler passions. The Devotion Dividend corrects this, offering a sharp, practitioner-focused framework for capitalizing on passion tourism.”

“Jens raises an important conversation about how destinations define success. The conclusions presented in this book encourages tourism leaders to rethink traditional metrics and consider new approaches to creating long term value for communities, visitors and industry partners.”

“I come from a small destination that punches far above its weight. We cannot compete on scale, only on what makes us distinctive. Divers travel here specifically for our wreck sites and the Blue Hole in Gozo.”

“One of my favourite philosophers, Georg Wilhelm Friedrich Hegel, noted during his university lectures in Berlin that "Nothing great in the world has been accomplished without passion".”

“The Devotion Dividend challenges one of tourism's longest-held assumptions: that bigger is always better.”

“The Maldivian tourism industry was developed on the principle of "Quality vs Quantity". We urgently need to develop a model to measure the result of this principle. This book series is an excellent foundation to develop such a model, not only for Maldives but other similar micro island state relying heavily on tourism.”

“I have known Dr. Jens for many years. He has done tremendous work for the tourism industry and I have seen his dedication to tourism development, especially in emerging destinations.”

“I have marketed the Caribbean to the world for over two decades, and more recently helped build tourism talent for Saudi Arabia's transformation. Both experiences taught me the same lesson: destinations that lead with authentic culture and heritage, rather than generic appeal, are the ones travelers remember and return to.”

“At the Extraordinary Travel Festival, I've watched the themes in The Devotion Dividend play out firsthand: the travelers who fly the furthest to reach the most special, the most singular destinations aren't chasing a checklist, they're chasing unique experiences.”

“This book offers a much-needed and fresh perspective on tourism. It challenges some of the entrenched myths and self-defeating practices that have shaped destination development and positioning, while presenting an inspiring new way forward.”

“As Author-in-Chief of Montenegro's National Tourism Strategy, grounded in practical implementation, I understand the challenge of turning unconventional strategic ideas into actionable models.”

“I first heard Jens speak on stage at a PATA event about China outbound tourism, years before either of us imagined this book. The way he built his case with data stayed with me, and it made me want to learn more about where tourism was heading.”

“The Devotion Dividend offers a timely and transformative perspective on the future of tourism. Divers travel to Sipadan specifically for its pelagic drop-offs and turtle populations, a destination they plan years in advance to experience.”

“As destinations around the world seek more sustainable and inclusive tourism, The Devotion Dividend makes a compelling case for shifting our focus from visitor numbers to visitor devotion.”

“In The Devotion Dividend, Dr. Jens Thraenhart challenges the unsustainable model of mass tourism, advocating meaningful, value-driven travel that creates lasting impact. As a regenerative tourism educator in Nepal, I found his vision deeply relevant.”

“Tourism is the industry of peace, but it fulfils this role only when it creates lasting value for destinations, local communities and travellers alike. The Devotion Dividend makes a compelling case for moving beyond ever-higher arrival numbers and building tourism around purpose, authenticity and devoted communities.”

“Throughout my career in destination strategy and tourism development, I have seen that long term success is not determined by visitor numbers alone, but by the value created for destinations, communities, and travelers.”

“Passion drives everything in life! A tourist is born by their passion and desire to travel and learn by seeing the world, thus creating priceless memories of a lifetime. As a result, individual's passion for tourism drives a multi-trillion dollar global economy.”

“Having spent many years promoting experiential tourism across destinations, hospitality, and travel recognition programs, I have always believed that the most meaningful journeys are those that create authentic connections, memorable moments, and shared emotions.”

“My role is to help Saudi Arabia's destinations become genuinely ready to receive visitors, not just to appear on a map.”

“When we set out to build Saudi Arabia's national visitor experience standard, the idea was simple. A real welcome is specific. It knows why you came and what you're hoping to feel.”

“The Red Sea is capped at one million visitors a year by design, not by limitation. Red Sea Global could have built to accommodate far more, but chose not to. The reason is that the ecosystem and the experience only hold together at that scale.”

“When The White Lotus chose Thailand for its third season, we did not see it as a marketing opportunity alone. We saw it as proof of something we have been building at the Tourism Authority of Thailand for years: travelers who come for one specific thing spend more and stay longer than those who come for Thailand in general.”

“My work is to document what is authentic before it disappears, and to make sure the people who hold that knowledge control how it is shared. Across thirteen Saudi provinces, we found that the dishes travelers remember most are never the ones simplified for a wider audience.”

“Passion tourism offers a timely shift in how destinations define success, not only by how many visitors they attract, but by the depth of connection they create.”

“West Africa has passion niches no one else on earth can offer: the cocoa trail, the mangrove ecosystems, the diaspora heritage routes, textile and drumming traditions passed down for generations.”

“Passion Tourism reframes destination management around a simple truth: devoted travelers build economies far more durable than transient visitors ever will.”

“Sarawak is about offering a different experience to every traveller. Our tourism strategy, built around Culture, Adventure, Nature, Food and Festivals, allows visitors to discover the destination through the experiences that genuinely inspire them.”

“When I started my company in 2012, Kenyan designer Anna Trzebenski told me something I've never forgotten: travelers first come to Africa for the wildlife, they fall in love with the landscape, but they return for the people.”

“People don't travel because a place is convenient — they travel because something about it moved them enough to go. Passion is the whole engine of tourism; everything else is just logistics.”

“I spent almost thirty-five years on the demand side, trying to convince the world to visit Amazing Thailand. Now at DASTA I sit on the supply side, building the communities visitors come to experience.”

“For the best part of my life, travel has been both a profession and a passion, and I've learned that the most memorable journeys rarely begin with a checklist of famous sights.”

“Oromia is not trying to compete with destinations that already dominate global tourism.”

“The success of modern tourism hinges on the ability of the national leadership to inclusively formulate intelligent tourism frameworks, smart destination management strategies, benefit-led connectivity policies, and sustainable tourism products which will generate optimal impact on equitable and sustainable national socio-economic growth.”

“The value of tourism is not measured by how many places a visitor can tick off during one trip. What matters is whether people find experiences that make them want to stay longer, explore more deeply and build a genuine connection with the destination.”

“When destinations shift their focus from visitor volume to devoted communities, certain legal questions move to the centre of destination strategy.”

“In twelve years leading Taj Hotels, I watched the same pattern again and again. Guests who came for a specific palace, a specific view of the Ganges, a specific sense of India that only the Taj could offer, were never the ones comparing us against a rate on a booking site.”

“Across my career, from Atlantis to Yas Island, I have seen that the most powerful destinations don't manufacture passion. They connect with passions people already have. Whether it's an iconic resort, Formula 1, sport, music, entertainment, nature, or the stories and characters people love, passion creates the reason to travel.”

“A brilliant rethinking of the visitor economy. Passion Tourism gives destination marketers a new mindset and shows how prosperity and happiness can be shared by industry, locals, and visitors alike.”

“Getting from mass tourism to passionate tourism is not quick, and it cannot happen without political commitment at the top. Reading this book will make that a whole lot easier.”

“The courage to attract the right visitor begins with the courage to disappoint the wrong one. Being loved by some is not a failure of ambition. It may be the only ambition worth having.”

“We have both the opportunity and the obligation to keep tourism seen as an asset rather than a burden. This book offers a way to be part of that shift, and in doing so, to leave a legacy worth having.”