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Events and Tourism Review Vol. 5 No. 1 (2022), 55-62, DOI: 10.18060/26327                                                                                                  

               Copyright © 2022 Nancy Richter 

  This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License. 

 

Events and Tourism Review                                     
 
June 2022                                                                                                                                                 Volume 5 No. 1      

   

 

The Role of Experience and Service Offerings in Tourist Information Centers 

(TICs) in Germany 

 

 
Nancy Richter 
 
 

Schmalkalden University of Applied Sciences 

Correspondence: n.richter@hs-sm.de (N. Richter) 

 

 
 

 

 

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Recommended Citation 

Richter, N. (2022). The Role of Experience and Service Offerings in Tourist Information 

Centers (TICs) in Germany. Events and Tourism Review, 5(1), 55-62. 

 

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Richter, N. (2022) / Events and Tourism Review, 5(1), 55-62. 
56 

Events and Tourism Review Vol. 5 No. 1 (2022), 55-62, DOI: 10.18060/26327                                                                                                  

               Copyright © 2022 Nancy Richter 

This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License. 

 

 

 
 

 

 

Abstract 

 

A central question for the development of tourist information centers is what visitors expect of this 

institution. Does the offer of experiences play a role in the competitiveness of a TIC? A study 

based on qualitative interviews examines the perspectives of the most important stakeholders of 

tourist information centers: visitors, managers, and touristic service providers. The study shows 

that it is worthwhile to distinguish between pure service offers and experience offers and to use 

both in a targeted manner to ensure competitive advantages. 

 

Keywords: Tourist Information Center, Experiences, Services, Qualitative Research 
 

 

 

Introduction 

 

The Tourist Information Center (TIC) is the focal point of the brand promise of a destination 

and should not be neglected by destination managers, even if its relevance is decreasing due to the 

use of digital technologies (Lyu et al., 2015). TICs represent a touchpoint for the most important 

target groups of a region and have a high potential for value creation (Burzinski, 2020). This 

requires on-going adaptation and renewal to serve the visitors' needs. According to a nationally 

representative online survey in Germany, the TIC is the first-place visitors’ search for information 

during a trip. At 43.4%, it ranks ahead of personal advice about accommodation, city maps, Google 

Maps or comparable maps, interviews with locals, weather apps, brochures and flyers, 

recommendations from friends and acquaintances, books, websites, social media channels, various 

apps, messenger services, or local media (Burzinski, 2020). The TIC of the future will be thought of 

holistically and will be an essential source of information for tourists during their trip (Burzinski, 

2020). The TIC provides important information and creates enthusiasm for a destination (Sung, 

2019). This definition already shows the two most important tasks of TICs: service tasks and 

experience offers. Certain services and functionalities are taken for granted by the visitor. 

Experiential offers, on the other hand, offer emotional elements that the visitor remembers (Chen, 

2017). A survey by Burzinski (2020) shows that when it comes to demands on the TIC, visitors 

more often or almost exclusively name functional and service aspects and rate experience-oriented 

offers as less important. If the TIC follows the existing visitor wishes derived from online surveys, 

then the focus should be on fulfilling the above-mentioned free and fee-based service offers. 

However, in recent times the travel industry has become more and more experience-oriented and 

customers seem to expect entertainment. The following research question arises: Do experience 

offers play a role in the competitiveness of a TIC?  

 

Experience Design in the Tourism Industry 

The TIC is a central facility for visitors during a trip (Burzinski, 2020; Sinus Institute, 2018; 

Fesenmaier, 1994). Like the tourism industry as a whole, TICs are changing towards targeted 

experience orientation and design (Wagner et al., 2019). In marketing research, experience is 

defined as the "individual perception, feelings, thoughts and observations during the consumption of 

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Richter, N. (2022) / Events and Tourism Review, 5(1), 55-62. 
57 

Events and Tourism Review Vol. 5 No. 1 (2022), 55-62, DOI: 10.18060/26327                                                                                                  

               Copyright © 2022 Nancy Richter 

This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License. 

 

 

products, services, and activities, as well as the memories of these experiences" (Wagner et. al., 

2019, p. 4). The concept of customer experience also highlights the opposition between services and 

experiences: “customers do not buy service delivery, they buy experiences; they do not buy service 

quality, they buy memories” (Hemmington, 2007, p. 749). Travelling operates as a counter-world to 

everyday life, and experiences and positive memories take on great significance. In recent decades, 

concepts such as the experience society by Schulze (2005) or the experience economy by Pine and 

Gilmore (2011) have found their way into tourism literature. These approaches proclaim a shift 

towards a hedonistic attitude in society (Schulze, 2005) or a call for a transition to an experience-

oriented economy (Pine et al., 2011). In the experience economy, experience has the same status as 

a good, a product, or a service (Pine et al., 2011). An experience is created when producers 

consciously use services and products to produce unforgettable events for people. Disneyland is a 

prime example of an experience production. Early examples can also be found in the leisure and 

media industry: theatre, film, music, theme parks, etc. In the case of the TIC, how experience offers 

are defined is dependent on the destination brand (Burzinski, 2020). Destinations only have meaning 

for visitors if every single brand touchpoint is perceived by the customer as an experience. The 

experience economy tracks the customer experience across all interaction points to draw the right 

conclusions. In tourism, the concept of the experience economy seems to be of particular 

importance. It offers an opportunity to stand out from the competition and to create lasting 

emotional impressions. To evaluate the role of experiences, this research examines different target 

groups’ expectations of a TIC.  

 

Methodology 

Within the framework of purely guideline-based online visitor surveys (e.g., Burzinski, 

2020), visitors of tourist information centers rated functional factors as particularly important. As far 

as the demands on the space are concerned, aspects that are considered self-evident and describe the 

basic functions of a TIC were named above all. Experiential offers such as virtual reality, films on 

screens, children's play corners, interactive touch screens, attractive design/furniture, a café or bar, 

or a shop with souvenirs were rated as less important. The visitor survey thus contrasts with the 

assessment already presented in which experience design is becoming increasingly important in the 

tourism industry. To get to the bottom of this difference, an empirical method is used, in which 

visitors of a TIC are interviewed on-site in the context of their visit to a TIC. The selected 6 TICs 

already have a high experiential character and are equipped with one or more of the above-

mentioned examples of experiential offers. In addition, stakeholders of the TIC such as tourist 

service providers, employees, and the managers of the respective TIC were interviewed and asked 

about the demands on a TIC. The interviews were conducted as semi-structured interviews in the 

context of an explorative qualitative field study (Bortz et al., 2002). The focus of the chosen method 

was not the generation of objective-representative data, but rather to sound out a topic area and, if 

necessary, to form hypotheses. The environmental conditions of the respective persons were also in 

focus. The following table provides an overview of the interviewees. 

 

Table 1: Interview Participants and Locations 

Role Tourist Information Country/City 

Visitor 1 Experience-oriented TI in a large city 

(100,000 inhabitants or more) 

Germany/Erfurt 

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Richter, N. (2022) / Events and Tourism Review, 5(1), 55-62. 
58 

Events and Tourism Review Vol. 5 No. 1 (2022), 55-62, DOI: 10.18060/26327                                                                                                  

               Copyright © 2022 Nancy Richter 

This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License. 

 

 

Visitor 2 Experience-oriented TI in a large city 

(100,000 inhabitants or more) 

Germany/Erfurt 

Visitor 3 Experience-oriented TI in a large city 

(100,000 inhabitants or more) 

Germany/Erfurt 

Employee 

TIC 1 

Experience-oriented TI in a large city 

(100,000 inhabitants or more) 

Germany/Erfurt 

Employee 

TIC 2 

Experience-oriented TI in a large city 

(100,000 inhabitants or more) 

Germany/Erfurt 

Employee 

TIC 3 

Experience-oriented TI in a large city 

(100,000 inhabitants or more) 

Germany/Erfurt 

Manager 

TIC 1 

Experience-oriented TI in a large 

medium-sized city (50,000 inhabitants 

or more) 

Germany/Weimar 

Manager 

TIC 2 

Experience-oriented TI in a large small 

town (10,000 inhabitants or more) 

Germany/Bad Langensalza 

Manager 

TIC 3 

Experience-oriented TI in a rural 

community (under 5,000 inhabitants) 

Germany/Bad Liebenstein 

Tourist 

Service  

Provider 1 

Experience-oriented TI in a small 

medium-sized town (20,000 inhabitants 

or more) 

Germany/Eisenach 

Tourist 

Service 

Provider 2 

Experience-oriented TI in a rural 

community (under 5,000 inhabitants) 

Germany/Oberweißbach 

 

Results 

The distinction between functional factors in the expected service and aspects of experience 

design was evident. Experiences were not expected or mentioned by the visitors. Rather, visitors 

were emotionally surprised, pleased, fascinated and attracted by the environment in which they 

found themselves. They expressed their emotions and feelings, which were positive throughout. 

When asked about their concrete expectations of the TIC, no feelings were expressed, but purely 

functional facts were listed. This indicates that the significance of experiential offers can be 

evaluated within the framework of a field study or in the context of the individual visitor experience. 

 

Table 2: Interviews with Visitors 

Interviews with visitors 

Service/Functional Factors Experience/Emotional Factors 

"Well, first of all, I expect to get all the 

general information about tourist offers in 

the city, i.e., information about museums, 

leisure activities, opening hours and 

entrance fees. That's basically it" (Visitor 1). 

 

"It would be good if you could also 

somehow get information on your own at a 

"I'm here because my godchild told me 

about it and he thought it was so cool with 

the robot here in front and then we said, let's 

take a look at what's going on here and then 

we looked around and we were really 

fascinated" (Visitor 2). 

 

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Events and Tourism Review Vol. 5 No. 1 (2022), 55-62, DOI: 10.18060/26327                                                                                                  

               Copyright © 2022 Nancy Richter 

This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License. 

 

 

computer desk or tablet or something" 

(Visitor 1). 

 

"I expect that they can give me information 

on everything, if I have questions about the 

city in particular and about certain events" 

(Visitor 2).  

 

"We expect information that we don't 

already know" (Visitor 3). 

"Well, this place is really nicely furnished, 

nice seats and comfortable" (Visitor 2). 

 

"I think it's pretty ideal here with the 

beautiful shapes and colours" (Visitor 3).  

 

"I was amazed by this, with the VR glasses. 

Yes, there is a little film that runs and you 

can watch it. Yes, also how faithfully it is 

equipped, no, I think that's really cool. I 

didn't expect that at all" (Visitor 2). 

 

"It is always good when there is seating that 

is comfortable" (Visitor 1). 

 

The survey of the TIC staff shows a similarly clear difference between the requirements for 

services on the one hand and experiences on the other. The emotional reactions of the visitors were 

observed by the employees and evaluated as positive interactions. Similarly, the service aspects 

were seen as a natural part of the job. Service orientation sometimes goes beyond the actual tourism 

business. Experience-oriented offers should facilitate communication, be interactive, and make it 

easier to create individual offers. 

 

Table 3: Interviews with Tourist Information Officers 

Interviewing the staff and managers of a tourist information 

Service/Functional factors Experience/emotional factors 

"Many visitors come and say we have just arrived and 

what have you got? Yes, that's where it starts. Where 

can we go in the evening? Do you have a city map?" 

(Employee TIC 3). 

 

"It is at least assumed that we as a tourist information 

are informed about everything, that we know 

everything. Yes, of course that is not always the case, 

but of course we try our best. That is the actual 

requirement of a tourist information center" 

(Employee TIC 3). 

 

"But there are also visitors who come with questions 

like 'How long does the parking meter run there or 

how much do I have to pay in the car park? Then I say 

ok, that's not really our main business, but of course 

we try to help" (Employee TIC 3). 

 

"There are several motivations to seek out the TICs. 

One is actually the search for information. But also 

"Are you looking for a room for 

us or how do I get from A to B? 

Visitors just know that when they 

arrive at our place. [...] The task is 

simply to be inspiring and to give 

insider tips" (Employee TIC 2). 

 

"Yes, there are these interactive 

monitors here with presentations 

of event spaces, the visitors and I 

enjoy it. When I can show 

something to the visitors and then 

notice that it goes down really 

well, that's sometimes even a real 

aha effect, like 'OK, we wouldn't 

have expected that at all'" 

(Employee TIC 3). 

 

"A very special highlight for us 

are of course the VR glasses and 

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Richter, N. (2022) / Events and Tourism Review, 5(1), 55-62. 
60 

Events and Tourism Review Vol. 5 No. 1 (2022), 55-62, DOI: 10.18060/26327                                                                                                  

               Copyright © 2022 Nancy Richter 

This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License. 

 

 

quite clearly the search for souvenirs or books, for 

example." (Manager TIC 1) 

 

"Yes, exactly, I find that our visitors like to be 

advised. So they like to come and ask what to do, what 

can you offer me? What else can I do this evening?" 

(Manager TIC 2). 

 

"Brochure material is still a big issue. Visitors come to 

take brochures and then, of course, advice about the 

whole region" (Manager TIC 2). 

 

"Digital communication with visitors is becoming 

increasingly important. I have already thought about 

using such chat functions for simple, fast 

communication with the visitor, or? (Employee TIC 

2). 

 

"The landlords are not yet completely digital, we have 

many older landlords or landlords who do this on the 

side. I always try to argue that our landlords come into 

our booking system, that we also make them bookable 

online. But many of them are not interested in being 

bookable online [...] How do we do that? Well, we've 

always done it that way, that we call the landlords for 

the visitors, but a lot of tourist information centers tell 

me no, we don't do that anymore. The effort is too big 

and I would definitely sign that. The effort is huge, on 

some days we spend hours on the phone for visitors, 

especially now when everything is booked out, it's a 

pure catastrophe" (Manager TIC 2). 

 

"Very exciting is the idea of another tourist 

information office near here, which is planning an 

open area in front of the tourist information office, 

where there is a screen that is voice-controlled and can 

give information about available accommodation, 

where intelligent, uh, systems are behind it and where 

you can also search for an accommodation" (Manager 

TIC 2). 

 

the VR glasses films. As far as I 

know, no one else in the area has 

that either" (Employee TIC 1). 

 

"Many people, when they come in 

here, are caught up by the 

atmosphere and say 'Wow, so 

beautiful, so modern, we've never 

seen that before', which is always 

a great way to start a conversation, 

and then of course the classic 'We 

want the city map, we want a tram 

map'" (Employee TIC 2).  

 

"It is also important to create 

digital offers that can actually be 

perceived intuitively, i.e., to lower 

the inhibition thresholds in dealing 

with digital elements as much as 

possible" (Manager TIC 1). 

 

"I see it as an important topic to 

make ticketing available online for 

the visitor, but also to make the 

experience even closer to him and 

to work even more individually 

for the visitor" (Manager TIC 3). 

 

The service providers also formulate their expectations of the TIC as both experience-

oriented and service-oriented. 

 

 

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61 

Events and Tourism Review Vol. 5 No. 1 (2022), 55-62, DOI: 10.18060/26327                                                                                                  

               Copyright © 2022 Nancy Richter 

This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License. 

 

 

Table 4: Interviews with Service Providers of a Destination 

Interviews with service providers of a destination 

Service/Functional factors Experience/emotional factors 

My expectation of the tourist information is the 

service for us. I can't afford to know which restaurants 

are all open, which hotels are all open? Are there any 

new offers? Is there perhaps a new package to which 

we can refer, so I really see this mediator function 

between the tourist partners and the visitors as very, 

very important" (Service Provider 2). 

 

"Then, of course, it should be very modernly equipped 

so that visitors can download opening hours from 

museums, for example, via app or QR code. 

Especially because this information has changed again 

and again during the pandemic. TICs should always be 

equipped with good print media, i.e., city maps with 

identification of the places of interest and also the 

gastronomy. So that all the possibilities for the visitor 

are directly available" (Service Provider 1).  

"Above all, a TIC should present 

the place with pride and also 

promote it beyond the region and 

present it at all kinds of portals 

and trade fairs. [...] I have 

observed that my visitors often 

extend their stay if it is possible 

and say how beautiful it is here" 

(Service Provider 1). 

 

 

Analysis and Summary 

Without specifically asking about experiences or services, all interviewed stakeholders 

expressed the great importance of the experience and service offerings of a TIC. Visitors actively 

perceive experience elements and make positive emotional statements about their impressions. TICs 

should not only be designed to be purely functional and service-oriented but also emotional and 

experience-oriented. In tourism, people are convinced by emotions. Only in this way can a TIC 

stand out from the competition. Experiential offers are not expected or demanded by the visitors but 

are consistently evaluated as positive and memorable as soon as they are available. Those 

responsible for TICs have also recognized the importance of experiences and emotions.  

It became clear that the stakeholders of TICs can only perceive and evaluate experience 

offers if they experience them personally. In comparison, functional service offers can be 

consciously mentioned and evaluated even without personal experience. The individual perception 

and context of visitors of a destination can also lead to different classifications of features. 

Interactive elements or VR films do not inspire enthusiasm and trigger positive emotions for every 

visitor. However, TICs can use the acquired knowledge to specifically integrate experiences into 

their offerings. The precondition is that they know their visitors and the expectations they have of 

the destination.  

 

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Events and Tourism Review Vol. 5 No. 1 (2022), 55-62, DOI: 10.18060/26327                                                                                                  

               Copyright © 2022 Nancy Richter 

This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License. 

 

 

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