security in the main streets, 5) their
sense of safety and security in the
alleys, 6) their sense of safety and
security when approaching locals,
7) their sense of safety and security
when walking through a crowd and
8) their sense of safety and security
with their possessions.
Most variables showed that tourists,
with or without prior knowledge,
felt safe and secure, which means
that businesses would be positively
affected (Mambre, 2016). However,
cruise tourists who knew about
Curaçao before being on the island
were the majority that went beyond
the main shopping area in Punda
and that went into alleys. These
were the factors that were partially
associated with the cruise tourists’
sense of safety and security. This
had a positive effect on business,
taking into account the suggestion
of George (2010), that if cruise tourists with prior knowledge of Curaçao
were already comfortable enough
to walk beyond Punda and walk
through the alleys, they would be
able to contribute to our economy.
(George, 2010)
Secondly, based on Mambre’s study,
racial heritage was another factor
that had a partial relationship with
the cruise tourists’ sense of safety
and security (Mambre, 2016). Most
of the variables, however, showed
that the racial heritage of the cruise
tourist did not matter because he
or she felt safe, however the variable that made a difference was
the places that the cruise tourists
ventured out to, and whether or
not they went into the alleys. Of all
the three different racial groupings
(African, European and American),
the cruise tourists of African descent
were the ones that did not go beyond Punda and were the majority
that did not go into the alleys. This
could be based on several factors
maybe they did not feel comfortable
20
Marketing For The Future
to do so or maybe they had had bad
experiences. Thus, cruise tourists of
African descent might be hesitant to
spend in our economy.
Thirdly, age was mentioned as a
factor that had a partial relationship.
The age category 56> comprised the
majority that went beyond Punda
and into the alleys, so these were
ABLE
TO
TAKE
RISK
the only variables that dictated the
partial relationship. This behavior
showed that they were able to take
risks and that they might hold different perceptions of crime. Following
George’s logic, they would be able
to contribute more to our tourism.
(George, 2010). Again, here most of
the variables showed that no matter
the age of the cruise tourist, he or
she felt safe.
Furthermore, the area of residence
also had a relationship. Cruise
tourists living in a big city were the
majority that went into Punda’s
main shopping area and into the
alleys (Mambre, 2016). The fact that
they were the majority in the main
shopping area of Punda demonstrated that they most probably
spent money in our economy.
Lastly, the travel experience of cruise
tourists also had a partial relation-
ship with their sense of safety and
security. Mambre demonstrated
that cruise tourists who were in the
category of “more experienced”
were the majority that went in to
Punda’s main shopping area and
that went into the alleys (Mambre,
2016). Besides these variables, the
category of “most experienced”
was the majority that felt safe while
walking in downtown. Thus there
were three variables that showed a
positive correlation with business:
the majority of more experienced
travelers were in the main shopping
area and the most experienced ones
felt safe walking in the downtown
area, which was positive for tourism
demand.
According to Mambre’s study, there
was no relationship between most
of the variables in relation to each
of the factors (Mambre, 2016). For
instance, the age, area of residence,
travel experience or whether the
cruise tourist had or did not have
prior knowledge of the island upon
arrival did not matter because they
felt safe and secure anyway. Only
the factor of racial heritage played a
significant role, since cruise tourists
of African heritage did not go into
the alleys or beyond Punda, and
they would be cautious in terms of
their expenditures.
Mambre suggested that in the
downtown area of Punda, more
police surveillance was necessary, in
the form of police officers on bikes,
or “Politur” patrolling the downtown
area. Additionally, the Government could make the abandoned
buildings found in the area more
appealing, through restoration, to
give tourists a heightened sense
of safety. And finally, the Curaçao
Tourism Board should include and
involve more stakeholders in order
to improve Curaçao as a tourist
destination (Mambre, 2016).