HMS Unicorn is a sailing frigate belonging to the successful Leda class that currently survives (HMS Unicorn, 2018). When the building of the Unicorn took place, there was a modification to incorporate the small system of timber and a circular stern. It is in the list of the National Historic Fleet and is currently a museum ship in Scotland in the United Kingdom at Dundee (HMS Unicorn 2018). Due to the increasing competition in the global tourist market, there is a business rivalry that continues and raises the need to make this tourist site attractive for children. Furthermore, there are changing attitudes and needs that many tourists develop, raising the need for the same.
According to research findings by Vujović (2013), most parents prefer to go on vacations with their kids, therefore preferring destinations that are attractive to their young ones. The most effective way to make HMS Unicorn attractive to kids is to reconsider modifying its Guns on the Gundeck, the Lower Deck, the Upper Deck, and other sections of the museum like the Wardroom and Orlop Deck and Hold by introducing souvenirs and mascots, and consider inputting other activities and attractions, including members of the local community, and implementing entertainment options so that children can enjoy visiting the location.
The primary drivers of modern-day international tourism are multifaceted in destinations and nature and must provide consistency in services and products that are appealing so that tourists can attractively perceive them. According to Hamed (2017), specific destinations must consist of cultural, natural, and physical resources. They must also be exceptional, unique, and irreplaceable. Such qualities underlie the attractiveness of a destination to kids. The young ones must consider them as fun, physically appealing, and intellectually stimulating (Hamed, 2017). Kids must have the feeling of maximum satisfaction when they visit such destinations.
It is in this school of thought that the management of HMS Unicorn must consider modifying the Guns and Gundeck, Lower Deck, Upper Deck, and other sections of the museums like the Wardroom and Orlop Deck and Hold by introducing souvenirs and mascots. They should do it by adding attractive colors and a music system that explains the historical location and its significance. The souvenirs and mascots will attract the interests of the children and keep them attentive. The management must consider that children must have fun when they visit the museum and learn at the same time.
Studies by Hamed (2017) and Vujović (2013) indicate that there should be exploratory factors, activities, and attractions that strengthen a destination’s uniqueness for the tourists. Products and services must appeal to the children and act as key motivators for them to choose the museum again and spread it through word of mouth to their friends and relatives. Since the museum is an indoor activity, the management should consider introducing an outdoor activity that makes the destination fun and attractive. It is in this school of thought that the management, in partnership with stakeholders such as the government and the local community, should also input other activities and attractions such as the implementation of entertainment options. When they visit and leave the place, they should have souvenirs to show that they visited it and mascots to enable them have fun. By it, they will want to visit HMS Unicorn and tell their friends and relatives about it.
Entertainment is a broad category of socio-cultural tourism resources. They must create emotional connections and memorable and experiential offerings for the children and their parents. The mascots and souvenirs will achieve this goal. It is a powerful, attractive differentiation in the global tourist market. The involvement of the local community should complement the experiential and natural resources that HMS Unicom offers. The primary idea is to ensure that children, as well as their parents, have feelings of connection and group identity with the locality. For instance, the management of the museum can hire members of the local community to act as tour guides. They should also consider making an entertainment joint and a restaurant near the museum so that children can have fun as they learn about history and have a taste of the local cuisine. By implementing these actions, the management will attract children to the site and enable them to share their experiences with friends and relatives, who will also want to visit the location, expanding the market of HMS Unicorn significantly.
In considering the recommended changes, there should be knowledge of the things that are attractive to children. There should also be knowledge of the fact that in the contemporary global tourism market, people do not take vacations alone. They prefer to go for family vacations and visit sites and destinations that are attractive to their children. Attractive things to kids include beautiful colors, food, outdoor activities, learning new things, and interacting with the local community. If the management of HMS Unicorn puts this in mind, they will make the destination attractive to children, hence attractive to their parents, and increase the number of annual visitors exponentially.
HMS Unicorn is an attractive destination for tourists. However, it is not attractive to children. There is a need to make it so. The most effective way to do it is to reconsider the modification of some of its section including Guns on the Gundeck, the Lower Deck, the Upper Deck, the Wardroom and Orlop Deck and Hold through color, music, souvenirs, and mascots. The management should also consider involving members of the local community to work as tour guides as well as the mascots, and constructing a restaurant and an entertainment joint. The restaurant will enable the kids to have a taste of the local cuisine while the entertainment joint will provide fun outdoor activities for the children and make the museums fun. The mascots and souvenirs will make the visit memorable and make them want to visit again. They will also tell their friends and relatives about it. If the management of the destination does it, it will make HMS Unicorn attractive to children and their parents and expand its international market.