Ebb and Flow Theory in Tourism, Hospitality, and Event Management

Abstract

This study aims to track the events that affected tourism in Jordan and presents the evolution of tourist inflows and outflows linked to these events. Accordingly, the Ebb and Flow Theory in the service industry is created and discussed. Many terminologies were used in the tourism industry to clarify the incoming and outgoing tourism movement, such as “peak period and recession period”, “high–shoulder and low-shoulder”, “high-season and low-season”, and others. This study sheds light on a new insight that accurately and clearly describes what is happening in the tourism, hospitality, and events industry. It describes the period of prosperity and development in the tourism movement as the Flow, and the period of stagnation and confinement in the global tourist movement as the Ebb. Also, the fluctuation between these two periods is called solstice time. Understanding these periods helps organizations develop their strategies, achieve the desired benefit, improve and innovate in providing optimal service.