Socio-cultural transformations through tourism: a comparison of residents' perspectives at two destinations in Kerala,India

Kerala, a state in Southwestern India, evolved into a prominent international tourism destination primarily by linking tourism experiences with nature. Although sufficient significance has been accorded to tourism as a development strategy in Kerala, tourism's contributions to the development processes and the sustainability of tourism activities remain unexplored. Though tourism impacts have been extensively studied, researchers have rarely compared socio-cultural transformations in destinations with and without a planned intervention in tourism. This paper compares residents' perceptions on socio-cultural impacts of tourism at Kumily and Kumarakom in Kerala. The article explores whether tourism activities in Kumily, with its planned intervention, are more sustainable than in Kumarakom, without any interventions. The conversion of ex-poachers into forest protectors and the involvement of the marginalized people in community-based ecotourism are a few among the many transformations that have occurred at Kumily while haphazard tourism development at Kumarakom gave rise to several socio-cultural challenges. Primary data were collected through residents' survey, and the findings indicate that Kumily with its planned intervention has a more sustainable tourism development pattern than Kumarakom.     

Sustainable Tourism or Sustainable Development? Financial Crisis,Ecotourism, and the 'Amazing Thailand' Campaign

Although the issues of sustainable tourism and sustainable development are receiving increasing attention from tourists, government planners and scholars, few studies have examined their overlap, tensions and complex linkages in practice. In southern Thailand, the sustainability of tourism, defined as the ongoing growth and survival of the tourism industry, has compromised the ecological sustainability of key tourism destinations sites. The recent financial crisis has forced the Thai government to sacrifice long-term sustainability for the sake of quick, and desperately needed foreign exchange. The 'Amazing Thailand' promotional campaign, which aims to attract 17 million tourists over 1998 and 1999, promises to exacerbate further the environmental degradation of tourism destinations in southern Thailand by pushing for enhanced tourist numbers. Ironically, by changing the composition of tourist arrivals (and in particular, attracting more European and North American tourists) the currency devaluations associated with the Asian financial crisis may simultaneously boost demand for nature-based tourist activities in southern Thailand while also adding stress to ecologically deteriorating destinations.     

Sustainability of Small-Scale Ecotourism: The Case of Niue,South Pacific

This paper examines whether small-scale ecotourism is sustainable. For the purpose of the paper the term 'ecotourism' has been refined, and evaluation criteria compiled for small-scale community ecotourism comprising of three concepts: environmental sensitivity, socio-cultural appropriateness, and economic viability. The case study of Niue was chosen because it met the initial evaluation criteria, and was used to determine whether small-scale community ecotourism was sustainable. Niue's tourism industry was assessed in the areas of environmental, socio-cultural and economic viability and all three must exist in symbiosis to achieve sustainability. The results of the research show that Niue's tourism industry is sustainable only in environmental and socio-cultural aspects, however, due to insufficient visitor arrivals it is not economically viable. Niue is isolated, reliant on aid and is the most expensive destination in the South Pacific due primarily to the cost and frequency of the air service. Niue can increase its visitor numbers to achieve economic viability, or attract higher spending visitors to the island. Care must be taken not to exceed the island's carrying capacity, which would cause negative environmental and socio-cultural impacts. A balance needs to be made between the three concepts to achieve sustainability, with careful planning and monitoring.     

Social media as a destination marketing tool: its use by national tourism organisations

India's protected areas (PAs), especially those designated tiger reserves, are popular tourist destinations, experiencing considerable and growing visitor numbers, but the principles of ecotourism are not well implemented. This paper analyses tourism practice in a sample of popular tiger reserves in India according to four principles of responsible ecotourism: minimisation of environmental impacts, generation of funds for conservation, benefits to local communities, and education of visitors. Evidence demonstrates that few criteria of ecotourism are met in most PAs: tourism imposes significant detrimental impacts, little of the generated revenue is captured, local communities get mostly menial jobs, and visitor education is virtually non-existent with tourism geared mainly towards thrill-seeking. The Indian Forest Service, which manages the PAs, is on the whole unprepared and ill-equipped to plan and implement proper ecotourism practices and faces constant pressure from other actors to increase tourism revenue. Periyar National Park stands out as an exception where innovative approaches involving local communities have brought about a significant positive change. Policy recommendations are offered based on limited, low-impact activities with high participation of local communities which is essential to build local support for conservation that has been historically lacking.     

Defining culturally sensitive ecotourism: a Delphi consensus

Since sustainable development was introduced, culture has been submersed by more pressing tourism priorities such as the economy and the environment. To avoid putting at risk the resources upon which ecotourism depends and the desired sustainable outcomes it purports to deliver, research and praxis must be equally sensitive to all the pillars of sustainability – social, cultural, economical, and environmental. As a first step, this study employs the Delphi technique in order to assess the import of culture for ecotourism, to develop a definition for culturally sensitive ecotourism, and to identify the barriers and opportunities associated with its implementation. Over 100 ecotourism experts from 39 countries were consulted over a six month period.     

Tourism as a Tool for Poverty Alleviation: A Critical Analysis of ‘Pro-Poor Tourism’ and Implications for Sustainability

Forecasts of high tourism growth in developing nations, where widespread poverty exists, has led to considerable interest in tourism as a tool for poverty alleviation. Powerful bureaucratic and business alliances have been forged to expand this programme. International development agencies are also turning to tourism as a way of alleviating poverty. This is sometimes termed ‘pro-poor tourism’ (PPT). Distinguished from other forms of ‘alternative tourisms’ such as ecotourism and community-based tourism, the stakeholders involved in this enterprise are no less divided. Ideological divisions manifest themselves in the political struggle over how tourism in developing countries should unfold. This paper identifies the different sustainability positions of prominent pro-poor tourism stakeholders and considers the implications for meeting pro-poor and sustainability objectives. Generally, tourism is too often regarded a panacea without an attendant recognition that, like any other industrial activity, tourism is highly political. As a global industry, tourism operates within a neo-liberal market economy which presents severe challenges to meeting pro-poor and sustainable development objectives. This paper therefore recommends a fundamental re-evaluation of tourism's pro-poor potential in the absence of significant commitment to directly address structural inequities which exacerbate poverty and constrain pro-poor attempts.     

Sustainable Ecotourism in Amazonia: Evaluation of Six Sites in Southeastern Peru

It is widely assumed that ecotourism offers sustainable development opportunities in under‐developed countries, but little is known about the variables contributing to differential sustainability of multiple ecotourism ventures within a geographic region. This investigation compared differences among rainforest ecotourism sites in Tambopata, Amazonian Peru. These rainforest lodges act as stewards of the surrounding habitat. Different histories and philosophies regarding tourism resulted in varied levels of economic, social and ecological sustainability. This study quantitatively examines the differential sustainability of multiple ecotourism sites in a small geographic region. Tourism in Tambopata has a potential for sustainability of local communities and natural resources. Copyright © 2011 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Community-Based Ecotourism Development on the Periphery of Belize

In addition to ecological interests, the sustainability debate among scholars is concerned with grassroots tourism development in terms of participatory planning and the spreading of economic benefits between more sectors of society. This paper examines these issues in the context of community-based ecotourism development on the southern periphery of Belize. The Toledo Ecotourism Association and its activities are described within the context of peripheral development and sustainability. It is argued that sustainable tourism initiatives in developing countries can be conceptualised and operationalised at a very smallscale, improve the lives of residents, provide enjoyment for tourists, and protect the natural and cultural environments. The paper also argues that peripheral locations and their characteristics can be instrumental in promoting local control of small-scale tourism.     

Strategic Planning and Community Involvement as Contributors to Sustainable Tourism Development

This paper is concerned with the role of stakeholder driven strategic planning as a contributor to the ultimate sustainability of tourism development. An initial literature review describes the evolution of theory related to three specific issues in the study of tourism – sustainability of tourism development as a desirable goal, stakeholder participation as a contributor to sustainability, and strategic planning as an appropriate framework within which stakeholder driven development activity can occur. The review concludes that these concepts are well supported in the literature, with little empirical evidence available on which to base any meaningful level of support. It is therefore argued that the value of these propositions may exist more strongly in theory than in practice. After discussing a number of factors which may negatively impact upon the practical implementation of these theoretical constructs, the paper proposes a quantitative instrument by which a specific tourism development planning process can be assessed for its conformity with desirable principles of sustainability in tourism development. Closing paragraphs indicate an intention to test this instrument across a variety of regional settings.     

Sustainability in Chinese development tourism policies

Following the ‘Open Door’ policy of 1978 that accepted tourism as an appropriate sector for development in China for the first time since 1949, national and local governments have issued policies to promote tourism. Over the past two decades, the continuing development of tourism has occurred as China has started to move towards sustainability in its national policies. Although sustainability is often stated as the purpose of development, and tourism development strategies are regarded as more environmentally oriented than other industries, little guidance is provided to make sure that sustainability principles are followed. To examine this situation, sustainability components in the two types of tourism policies are examined, including 56 tourism development policies by the state councils and 31 provinces since the 1980s. These indicate a mixed result. While sustainability is an important component in some of these policies, the meaning of sustainability in the tourism sector is confusing and pro-business tourism development still plays a dominant role. It is suggested a pro-active sustainability approach should be integrated with environmental concerns in the future to allow tourism to participate constructively in the national transformation to a sustainable society.     

Interorganisational Relations in the Protected Area – Tourism Policy Domain: The Influence of Macro-economic Policy

A considerable body of work suggests that sustainable tourism development may only be achieved when sectoral fragmentation is overcome and collaborative planning achieved. This paper describes the findings from research that identifies obstacles to and opportunities for collaboration between two key stakeholders in a tourism policy domain. Specifically, the paper focuses on the influence of government macroeconomic policy on interorganisational relations between two government agencies. Generally, economic policy and practice provides not only the context, but also the rationale and legitimation of certain activities, and therefore shapes the nature of interorganisational relations, particularly when those organisations are reliant on state funding. Using an interorganisational relations framework, two federal government organisations in Canada involved in the 'national park – tourism' policy domain were studied to identify the influence of fiscal policy operating through a range of facilitating and inhibiting factors, on the formation and maintenance of relations between the organisations. The material for this paper has been drawn from a larger study that considers relations between a wider group of stakeholders in the Canadian 'national park-tourism' domain.     

Ecotourism from a conceptual perspective,an extended definition of a unique tourism form

The aim of this article is to develop and present an extended definition of the concept of ecotourism, which has been used and misused in many ways. Ecotourism is not farm tourism, nature tourism or adventure tourism, but a unique tourism form that has become very popular due to the greening of markets, increasing knowledge of the fragility of the environment, better informed managers, and the recognition that there is a close relationship between good ecology and good economy. Ecotourism has been defined in many different ways in the literature, but one of the most central dimensions, co‐operation, has not been included. Ecotourism must be sustainable and four central groups of actors have to co‐operate, the local people, the authorities, tourists and companies involved in tourism. The understanding of what ecotourism is and stands for is very diverse and the discussion found in Finland is used as an illustrative case in this article. The general view in Finland is that sustainable tourism should be used instead of the concept of ecotourism. A position, which can cause large problems for the development of ecotourism in Finland. Copyright © 2000 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

The Sky and Sustainable Tourism Development: A Case Study of a Dark Sky Reserve Implementation in Alqueva

This paper shows the development of a tourism product in a destination that uses the night sky as its main source of attraction. Using this innovative product has helped to create a distinctive image, which is likely to attract a more diverse range of visitors and has assisted in improving economic, social and environmental sustainability. First, we present an overview about sustainable tourism and the sky as a tourism resource followed by a case study, in Portugal, that illustrates the potential of Dark Sky activities for tourism development in rural regions. Copyright © 2014 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Institutional Factors Influencing the Size and Structure of Tourism: Comparing Dalarna (Sweden) and Maine (USA)

This paper explains why neither Maine, USA's comparatively laissez faire economic and land use institutions, nor Dalarna, Sweden's more heavily regulated economy, seems well designed to make tourism a powerful economic development engine. The paper focuses on three clusters of institutions that have a major influence on tourism's scale, economic structure, and long-term sustainability. Labour laws and labour market institutions are important determinants of tourism employment, job quality, product mix, production methods, and regional competitiveness. Land ownership and property rights influence both the incentives facing landowners, tourists, and tourism businesses and stresses on ecosystem carrying capacity. Commodity taxes affect the absolute and relative prices of various tourist services and, via feedback effects on demand, influence tourism's aggregate scale, activity mix and transportation/location patterns. The paper employs institutional contrasts between Dalarna and Maine to frame hypotheses that will guide a larger comparative study of sustainable tourism in forest regions. Perhaps most controversially, we hypothesise that Sweden's venerable right of common access (allemansrätten), as currently implemented, impedes sustainable tourism development. An appendix sketches the current state of tourism in the two regions.     

The role of Government in the development of tourism in Kenya

This study uses the case study of Kenya to analyse the role of government in the development of tourism in the Third World. Usually, government involvement in the development of tourism reflects on the uniqueness and peculiarity of the tourism industry. By its nature, the development and provision of tourism product involves diverse stakeholders and activities. In the diverse socio‐economic situation, it is usually the government that has the required social and political capacity and legitimacy to bring together and co‐ordinate the activities of diverse and different interest groups which are involved in the development of tourism and, also, establish the required level playing field. In this regard, as probably is the case in most less developed countries where tourism is a major socio‐economic activity, the Kenya Government has, over the years, played a crucial role in the development of the country's tourism industry. Particularly, during the exploratory stage of tourism development in Kenya, it was government involvement that helped lay the required groundwork and, as a consequence, jump‐started the rapid development of the country's tourism industry. However, in recent years, particularly in the 1990s, Kenya's tourism industry is confronted with serious problems including declining international visitor arrivals and decreasing tourism revenues. Ironically, the same government that played a crucial role, especially in the initial development of the country's tourism industry, is currently being blamed as being responsible for the industry's current poor performance. Thus, this study will also examine the underlying factors responsible for the current downturns in Kenya's tourism industry and how they relate to the role of government in the development of tourism. Copyright © 2002 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Orientation to sustainability and strategic positioning of destinations: an analysis of international tourism websites

The communication that Destination Management Organizations (DMOs) address to destination stakeholders plays a central role in attracting attention and resources for sustainable destination development and disclosing the efforts made to be a sustainable territory. There has been extensive analysis on the role of official tourism websites that addresses both DMO's internal and external stakeholders. However, less exploration is available on the relationship between the contents disclosed through tourism websites and the strategic positioning of the destination. This study empirically examines that link with a focus on ‘green/sustainable/responsible' travel. Results show a positive association between the orientation to sustainability in online communication and both sustainable regulation of the tourism sector and tourism development. In contrast, there is no significant association with destination size, tourism maturity and pricing policies.     

Towards Integration of Sustainability into Tourism Planning in Developing Countries: Egypt as a Case Study

This article argues that planning and thus implementation of sustainable tourism development would differ not only between the developed and less developed countries’ (LDCs) tourist destinations but also from one destination to another in developing countries. Although sustainability has been introduced to the global world as an avenue for the protection of the resources in the developing world that the intrageneration equity is one of its objectives, developing countries still lack the effective planning techniques and tools for implementation. Nevertheless, developed countries have got better opportunities for the implementation of such principles, ranging from appropriate funds and expertise needed for the planning tasks, to more stable economic and environmental conditions. As the capabilities of developing countries’ tourist destinations for adopting the principles of sustainability would differ, each of those destinations should be treated separately while assessing such abilities to implement sustainable tourism development. For this purpose, this article approaches the evaluation of the Egyptian tourist planning mechanism from a sustainable point of view. In order to achieve the research objectives, a benchmark technique has been employed by using sustainability indicators as criteria to judge the appropriateness of the tourist planning system against the principles of sustainable tourism development.     

Sustainability of Tourism Development in Macao,China

To maximize the benefits to stakeholders in Macao, the sustainability of Macao tourism was examined by assessing the economic, socio‐cultural and environmental impacts of tourism, visitor satisfaction and the level of community involvement in local tourism planning from 2002 to 2009, through the use of primary and secondary data. The results revealed that tourism did bring both positive and negative impacts to the community. Visitor satisfaction was found to be moderate. Channels for community participation in local tourism development were also lacking. The paper suggests that for sustainable tourism development, Macao needs to diversify away from its casino industry, to speed up the construction of the public transport system and to keep monitoring the environmental conditions, the students' drop‐out and crime rate and the locals' quality of life. More importantly, a master plan for its tourism development integrating all the key stakeholders' interests is urgently required. Copyright © 2011 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Serious tourists: a proposition for sustainable indigenous tourism

This article proposes serious tourist as an approach that has the potential to assist in the development of sustainable indigenous tourism. Many indigenous places have reformed their economies by introducing tourism with ethnic culture as the core attraction. However, many have experienced adverse consequences, resulting in threats to the sustainability of indigenous communities. The main debates over sustainable indigenous tourism involve tensions and disputes regarding culturally appropriate development and economic gains. A serious tourist approach can contribute to the achievement of these dual goals of sustainable development. Visitors with a serious approach towards indigenous tourism will more likely express economic support for indigenous culture by spending on culture-related products and services. Likewise, serious travellers will reveal their respect and support for indigenous culture by seeking authentic experiences and donating to cultural conservation. These propositions regarding serious travellers are assessed and confirmed in the context of an indigenous destination in Taiwan.     

Local stakeholders,role and tourism development

Building sustainable communities, as well as sustainable forms of livelihood, including tourism, has been a key objective among many government agencies and community stakeholders. Against this background, and through the lens of role theory, the present study investigates the potential for sustainable tourism to be developed in a rural community. Data were gathered among business owners and residents of Bridgetown, Western Australia. Four key groups of participants emerged, each emphasizing participants' role as community, and therefore, as tourism stakeholders. Alignment with various perspectives of role theory, including functional, “symbolic interactionist”, structural and cognitive was noticed; similarly, consensus, conformity and role taking were identified as key concepts. Whether currently involved in tourism or not, participants' pro-active role suggesting practical ways to enhance the sustainability of local tourism could be a powerful tool in this and other communities seeking to build their destination image.