The REFITOUR was a pilot project with the intention to test a new vision for the fishery, the educational and the tourism sectors. Therefore, this section will try to present a summary of these categories of peoples' impressions for each of these categories for the tours offered during Summer 1997. Further, their recommendations, or an analysis of their possible recommendations, is relevant for the evaluation of the REFITOUR vision and its future potentials. In a pilot project, the coordinators naturally have the most comprehensive impression of the tests included in the project, the results of the implementation of the vision. A summary of these impressions and the project’s potentials can be read in Chapter 6 and in the non-specialist summary, written by Kurt Bertelsen Christensen.

5.a Tourists' impressions

The tourists that used the opportunity to sail with "Anton" on one of the tours offered where given a simple questionnaire. The questions they were asked, were:

Age?

Nationality?

If they went in a group or alone?

Where they had learned about the tours?

What had been most interesting: the fishery, the biology, or the entire experience?

If the tour had lived up to their expectations?

What was best about the tour?

What was worst?

Was the price too high, appropriate, or could it be higher?

95 completed questionnaires were collected and on the majority of them more than one person was represented. Of nationalities represented, the questionnaires included:

70 German

6 Norwegian

21 Danish

1 Italian

1 Australian

1 American

11 Dutch

According to the questionnaires, 70% of the participants responded that the tour had lived up to the their expectations. The rest of the questionnaires expressed a satisfaction greater than the expectation. As an appetiser, the following quotations can illustrate the general tourist impressions of sailing with the crew and guides on "Anton": "that you learn a little about the everyday work of the fishermen - very natural", "the friendly crew that were able to explain so much", "the pulling in of the nets", "to take of the fish", "the fresh fish", "the weather", "too few soft drinks and too little fish", "I was sea sick, but apart from that, nothing was bad".

It is possible to conclude that the tourists were interested in following the fish from the sea to the fisherman's nets and further on through the trade to the consumers' tables. They enjoyed the entertainment of experiencing a rare way of life that is otherwise hard to be invited to attend, and that delivers some of the food that ordinary people eat. Most tourists need tours where they can bring their children and have a pleasant experience together with them. On the other hand, the educational tour, a sea of life (see 3.c above) did not attract people. Was it too long lasting, did it seem unappropriate to children, would it attract another kind of customer, or was it all just a summer-1997 coincidence?

5.b Guides' impressions

All the guides involved agree that a fishing vessel's deck is a perfect place to learn about the sea, and the ways we humans use it, and what we know about life in the deep. The combined experience of a fishing vessel with technological equipment and fish tackle; the sea and the marks that other people have put on it; and the depths where a complex system of diverse life is going on, is completed with the necessity of moving your body to get out of the way of the fishermens' working routes.

The guides were all involved in the project as a part of their education, so they kept their senses open to future recommendations concerning a close cooperation between fishery and tourism. They recommended that:

- provided there is a general positive attitude in the harbour about tourists going out with fishermen, tourists could sail with fishermen that are about to end their professional fishing, either because of age or economy. The guides emphasised that when aiming at active fishermen it would be difficult for the tourists to compete with the fishing in terms of economic return. For example, during Summer 1997 the fishing for plaice was so good that the tourists could not compete.

- it is preferable to use a small vessel where people will have to move about themselves, and where they will be able to see and hear everything going on.

- the planning of the tours be made as flexible as possible, making it possible to sail when the weather allows it and when tourists and fishermen are ready - and on the kinds of tours that they wish for.

5.c Fishermens' impression

The vessel involved in REFITOUR was sailed by two skippers. The following is based on an interview with one of them. His first thought, when questioned as to his attitude towards REFITOUR, was that the economy needs to be secure. Sailing with tourists, the fishermen have to neglect their fishing, and mainly service the visitors. If they are at the same time worrying about their economy, their payments, their rent etc. then it is hard for them to concentrate on the tourists. If they were to make a living from fishing then the tourists would be nuisance more than an asset.

His impression was that tourists mainly sailed with the vessel to experience the fishing and to establish their own impressions of the fishery. The dragging of the nets was the prime experience and compared to that, most other events and information vanished. The different themes did not really seem necessary to him, since every tour held some biology, some fishery, some coastline information etc. But as a fisherman, he was happy that the trips were pre-arranged, otherwise that would have been another worry for him. As it was he did not have to worry about the economy, nor about the content of the trips; but he did worry about the security of the tourists.

The primary function for a third person would be as interpreter, knowing the technicals in the tourists language. He believed that the fisherman's knowledge, observations and experience would be sufficient to give first timers an impression of the ecology of the sea. The ecology of the sea seemed secondary to the impressions of the fishery.

If he was to sail with tourists for longer periods he might begin to be bored, but on the other hand every group of tourists posed new questions to him, and he liked the chance to explain his profession to them.