The CEO of the Malta International Airport, Alan Borg, has an innovative idea which would help raise standards in the tourism sector.

Borg recently called for the introduction of more industry-wide benchmarking initiatives modelled on the Michelin Guide. Asked to elaborate by this newsroom during an interview which appeared in The Malta Independent on Sunday, he said that given its small size, Malta could look into measuring the different points of interaction tourists have with the local operators,  measuring their positive impacts and understanding the areas for improvement." This could then be used to give the different tourism sectors targets, and recognition for operators when they meet those targets, he said.

"I feel that this would provide positive feedback and create a sense of inclusion for operators as being part of the wider tourism industry," Borg said, and he is right

Monitoring tourist satisfaction and concerns across the different aspects of Malta's tourism sector could help identify areas where improvement is needed, and setting targets and introducing new forms of recognition for operators who succeed in attaining certain levels could help the sector improve as a whole.

If Malta intends to aim for higher quality tourists who spend more, then the sector as a whole needs to be involved. Improving standards helps improve quality.

There is very little doubt that during the summer months tourism numbers are high, sometimes too high. Beaches are overly packed, so is public transport, and some of the kind of tourists being attracted have caused problems. Becoming known as a party destination would not attract the best kind of tourists for the islands.

Malta is a sun and sea destination, yes, but shifting focus to higher spending tourists and reducing numbers would help in terms of keeping Malta attractive. High spenders, for instance, would not be enticed by seeing photos of beaches packed from one side to the other, nor would they be enticed by photos of what Blue Lagoon looks like during the summer months. To successfully introduce a shift, the sector as a whole must be involved and enticed to help out.

Focusing on the shoulder months would also help. In this regard, it was good to hear Borg say that MIA's route development strategy in Europe is aimed at pushing the shoulder months with increased frequency from markets it feels there is more value in. To this end, he said that the Scandinavian market is one such focus.

In terms of higher-spending tourists, the upcoming Malta-New York flights opens up the North American market, who are known to be higher spending when on holiday.

When it comes to advertising Malta, perhaps a stronger focus on historical tourism and pushing more what Malta has to offer in the winter and shoulder months could also be beneficial. Spreading out tourism is one way to avoid the islands feeling too cramped at certain times of the year.

Malta's tourism sector has been a great success story, but tourist numbers cannot just continue to rise. This is why those in the sector must work together to shift focus to higher spending tourists rather than a focus on numbers.