Social-ecological resilience and community-based tourism: An approach from Agua Blanca,Ecuador

Socio-ecological resilience (SER), as a theoretical framework, provides an original approach to the study of socio-ecological sustainability, affirming that sustainable development can only be achieved in sufficiently resilient socio-ecosystems. Sustainability is one of the major challenges facing tourism. Therefore, the exploratory application of this theoretical approach to tourist contexts could be particularly apt. Practically all current modes of tourist operation profess a commitment to sustainability, but this is much more significant in experiences of community-based tourism (CBT). This paper presents an ethnographic case study in Agua Blanca, an Ecuadorian community that engages in turismo comunitario, a community-based tourism development strategy. The study explores the expediency of studying socio-ecological resilience in tourist research and attempts to open up new pathways for analytical and methodological development.     

Community-based tourism ventures,benefits and challenges: Khama Rhino Sanctuary Trust,Central District,Botswana

The impact of Community-Based Natural Resource Management (CBNRM) is seen by many as a ‘win-win’ situation with reference to natural resources conservation and the improvement of local communities' livelihoods. However, community engagements in CBNRM and tourism have elicited many views as far as natural resources utilization is concerned. Some affirm the importance of CBNRM; others question it, while others call for its improvement. The premise of this study is to investigate the benefits and challenges of community-based tourism in one community of Botswana. Results show that although some benefits have been identified, there remain many challenges for the Khama Rhino Sanctuary Trust (KRST). It is evident that for community-based tourism to bring more benefits for locals, more interaction is needed between them and the Trust management. Increased local involvement and participation will help to ensure that people are empowered and the conservation of natural resources takes place. This paper asserts that community-based ventures, if properly run and managed, can promote the conservation of natural resources and increase local benefits through participation in tourism activities.     

Trends in tourism planning and development

A number of tourism planning principles is considered and reference is made to the methodology of ekistics (the study of human settlements). Patmos, a Greek island, is taken as a case study, and the results of this tourism project are assessed in relation to the planning principles and methodology outlined.     

An analysis of households' appraisal of their budget constraints for potential participation in tourism

This paper examines the importance of households' budget constraints as a barrier to participation in tourism. For this purpose, a sample of Spanish households drawn from the European Community Household Panel was analysed. This survey gathers data on the economic and socio-demographic situation of all adult household members. More specifically, it includes a question on each household's capacity to afford a week's yearly holiday. The aim of this question is to assess whether households have sufficient financial resources to participate in tourism. The results of the analysis demonstrate that budget constraints on tourist travel are binding for a significant percentage of Spanish households. The results also show that this type of constraint is not only conditioned by the level of income, but by a more complex appraisal that also includes other financial variables, such as households' saving capacity or the unemployment status of its members. Furthermore, non-financial variables, such as the level of education, age, and barriers associated with poor health status, all help to determine the degree of importance with which households perceive their budget constraints.     

The nominal group technique: An approach to consensus policy formulation in tourism

The use of the Nominal Group Technique (NGT) as a tool for consensus planning in tourism is discussed. NGT is described specifically with respect to an initial planning exercise conducted by the Tourism Industry Association of Alberta, Canada (TIAALTA), who had concluded in 1983 that the private sector should play a greater role in developing and managing tourism in Alberta. TIAALTA used NGT to identify priority issues and problems. Other applications of NGT are described, and the method is compared to other qualitative methods. The author recommends increased application of NGT in tourism research, planning and management.     

Partnership perspectives in tourism and recreational property development

Property development partnerships are increasingly being seen in the UK as a means of achieving tourism and recreational projects. This article briefly examines the nature of the relevant property development market; characteristics and attitudes of involved organisations; purposes, benefits and mechanics of partnerhsips (illustrated by two case studies); and future directions for partnerships. The issues and potential approaches identified are, to varying extents, of relevance to project implementation in developed and developing countries.     

Progress in dark tourism and thanatourism research: An uneasy relationship with heritage tourism

This paper reviews academic research into dark tourism and thanatourism over the 1996–2016 period. The aims of this paper are threefold. First, it reviews the evolution of the concepts of dark tourism and thanatourism, highlighting similarities and differences between them. Second it evaluates progress in 6 key themes and debates. These are: issues of the definition and scope of the concepts; ethical issues associated with such forms of tourism; the political and ideological dimensions of dark tourism and thanatourism; the nature of demand for places of death and suffering; the management of such places; and the methods of research used for investigating such tourism. Third, research gaps and issues that demand fuller scrutiny are identified. The paper argues that two decades of research have not convincingly demonstrated that dark tourism and thanatourism are distinct forms of tourism, and in many ways they appear to be little different from heritage tourism.     

An alternative approach to community-based ecotourism: a bottom-up locally initiated non-monetised project in Papua New Guinea

Community-based ecotourism (CBET) is presented as a tool for conservation and sustainable development by conservation practitioners and development agencies, but is reported to have achieved little. Several scholars argue that many problems stem from inadequate power relationships between external actors and local communities, leading to low community participation. This study opens a debate on governance and social enterprise in CBET by examining a bottom-up approach to community-based ecotourism based on a small-scale CBET initiative in an amenity-poor remote indigenous community in Papua New Guinea. This initiative is unique in the following aspects: it was initiated by a community member; external assistance was advisory only; no external financial assistance was given; and it has taken place in a non-monetised economy. Participant observation and in-depth interviews with local key informants were used to identify community-defined positive/negative impacts and community participation processes. Overall, there was substantial support for the project; it contributed to community welfare, generated economic benefit, had positive conservation outcomes and from the viewpoint of the community had no adverse cultural impacts. One of the keys for success was the development of a strong community agency that led to high community participation and individual rather than the community ownership.     

Social learning and sustainable tourism development; local quality conventions in tourism: a Greek case study

This paper presents the trajectory of an innovative organisational scheme, the Local Quality Convention (LQC), concerning sustainable tourism development in the Lake Plastiras area, a less favoured area in Central Greece. It outlines the development issues of the area, the main actors, their views and practices and describes the creation, progress and emerging problems of the LQC scheme. Research reveals contradicting approaches to sustainable tourism development which, in turn, influenced the LQC's evolution. The findings are critically discussed in the light of the Social Learning (SL) approach to social change and sustainable development. According to SL it is only through interactive (participative), concerted action that stakeholders are able to co-construct an issue and its solutions. Given the dominance of “conventional” tourism in Greece as well as the top-down formation and implementation of policies, the importance of the long term facilitation of local stakeholders to achieve sustainable tourism development is demonstrated, along with other related lessons for planners and managers.     

Nexus of tourism,terrorism, and economic growth in Thailand: new evidence from asymmetric ARDL cointegration approach

ABSTRACT

This study investigates the asymmetric (nonlinear) relationship between tourism, terrorism, and economic growth of Thailand. The study employed an annual data set that ranges from 1990 to 2017 by using a novel co-integrating technique known as asymmetric ARDL cointegration approach advanced by Shin, Yu, and Greenwood-Nimmo. The outcome of the present study revealed significant differences in the reaction of the economic growth because of negative and positive changes in tourism and terrorism. The obtained asymmetric results can be helpful for more proficient policymaking and forecasting regarding the economy of Thailand. Ignoring intrinsic asymmetries may misrepresent implication.     

Historical and geographical context in festival tourism development

Festivals have increasingly become a significant tool for economic development through both tourism and the re-imaging and re-branding of cities and regions as modern cultural centers. To understand the issues and challenges of festival tourism events, it is important to know the historical and geographical context in which they occur. Conceptually, the historical context can be viewed through the degree to which an event has a vernacular indigenous origin or is newly created. The geographical context, on the other hand, reflects the degree to which a festival is defined by the place in which it occurs or is more global in its thematic orientation. A contextual framework for festival tourism that takes these two factors into account results in four types of festival events: Local Heritage Festivals, Local Contemporary Festivals, National Heritage Festivals, and Global Contemporary Festivals. These four festival types face issues related to their local identity, uniqueness, liminality, and authenticity. The contextual framework for festival tourism is applied to the current situation of rapid festival development in China, with recommendations that Chinese event managers need to focus more on historically and geographically meaningful themes developed in partnership with local populations if they want to ensure an event's long-term success.     

Sustainable tourism and its use as a development strategy in Cambodia: a systematic literature review

Governments in many developing countries endorse sustainable tourism, despite associated practical limitations and challenges as a development strategy. Using the case of Cambodia, this paper illustrates how sustainable tourism issues in a developing country may be better understood through a systematic review of scattered relevant peer-reviewed and grey literature. This can help in identifying emergent themes and challenges, gaps in knowledge, and opportunities for future research. Analysis of 77 documents on Cambodia's sustainable tourism revealed themes and challenges relating to: (1) an emphasis on nature-based tourism (ecotourism); (2) calls for greater community engagement for sustainable outcomes; (3) stakeholder perceptions and values as drivers of tourism success; (4) cultural heritage as a key tourism attraction; and (5) foreign investment shaping Cambodia's tourism future. Unequal emphasis is given to key government policies for tourism development and there is limited practical guidance on how to realise a vision of sustainable tourism. There is a lack of consideration of how the socio-economic and cultural context affects sustainable tourism. The evidence suggests that sustainable tourism in Cambodia is questionable until fundamental economic, social capacity and policy issues are addressed, along with greater emphasis given to the tourism system's demand side.     

Sustainable Mi'kmaw cultural tourism development in Nova Scotia,Canada: examining cultural tourist and Mi'kmaw perspectives

This study assessed tourists' motivations and satisfaction in participating in authentic Mi'kmaw tourism activities in Nova Scotia, Canada, as well as the ideas, perceptions and components of sustainable cultural tourism development from the Mi'kmaw perspective. To solicit the tourists' perspective, surveys were administered to tourists visiting the existing Mi'kmaw cultural tourism sites in Nova Scotia, while the Mi'kmaw perspective was obtained through key informant interviews. The results of the survey suggest that tourists visiting the Mi'kmaw cultural tourism sites were highly educated and deeply interested in learning about culture and participating in authentic cultural experiences. Tourists were also highly satisfied with their experience and were interested in participating in aboriginal tourism again. Findings regarding the Mi'kmaw perspective indicate a focus on cultural tourism's ability to educate both tourists and the Mi'kmaw people on the Mi'kmaw culture as well as provide economic opportunities for Mi'kmaw communities. Of greater importance to the Mi'kmaw people is the preservation and protection of the Mi'kmaw culture. Conclusions drawn from the research include recommendations for the future success and sustainability of the Mi'kmaw cultural tourism sector. This study's findings may also inform other Canadian aboriginal communities seeking to develop robust and sustainable cultural tourism in their own settings.     

Value orientations toward coral reefs in recreation and tourism settings: a conceptual and measurement approach

This paper examines recreationist and tourist value orientations toward coral reefs (e.g. protection–use, biocentric-anthropocentric), tests a scale for measuring these orientations in recreation and tourism settings, groups individuals based on their orientations and examines demographic and activity differences among groups. Data were obtained from surveys of 2821 users at three coastal and marine sites in Hawai'i. Belief statements about reefs (e.g. “coral reefs have value whether humans are present or not”) were used to measure value orientations. Users agreed with protectionist and disagreed with use-oriented beliefs. Except for one statement (“humans should manage coral reefs so that humans benefit”), the scale provided a reliable and valid measure of value orientations toward reefs. Respondents were grouped into three subgroups (strong protection, moderate protection, mixed protection–use). The largest number of users had strong protectionist orientations toward reefs, and there was no group possessing only use orientations. There were no relationships between value orientations and site, age and residence. Females, snorkelers and sunbathers had stronger protectionist orientations, whereas most scuba divers and anglers had mixed orientations. Given that most respondents had protectionist orientations, efforts to conserve reefs would be supported, whereas activities with deleterious effects on reefs would not be widely supported.     

Farm tourism in England—Planning,funding, promotion and some lessons from Europe

Unlike Europe, England has come to farm tourism quite late. However it is growing in popularity with the tourist public on the search for new holidays and with the farming community in search for new ways to supplement their agricultural income. This article describes the first major research to be undertaken on farm tourism in England. The attitudes of farmers, government policy and promotion are all discussed. A brief survey of the continental European experience indicates the road that English farm tourism could do well to follow in the future.     

Korean and conventional medicine tourism industry trends as indicated in medical tourism advertisement images: qualitative research using data from medical Korea 2015

This study analyzed advertisement images targeting international audiences of South Korean medical facilities (traditional Korean and conventional medicine) participating in Medical Korea 2015 using thematic content analysis. The image categories most often used in conventional medicine were medical procedures, facilities, and staff photos, while those for traditional Korean medicine were medical procedures, staff photos, and images. Conventional medicine consistently presented high SERVQUAL tangibility scores, whereas Korean medicine displayed distinct associations between SERVQUAL categories and image size. Analyses suggested specialty preference by language. These findings may be used to recognize key messages in medical tourism and contribute to its systematic promotion.

Abbreviations: KHIDI: Korea health industry development institute; SERVQUAL: service quality     

Tourism development in Cambodia: An analysis of opportunities and barriers

Cambodia has been perceived as one of the major destinations for development in the southeast Asia region. Information regarding the country and its attractions have been difficult to obtain. This study investigated the opportunities and barriers the Cambodian tourism industry now faces.     

An overview of tourism and planning in the Federal Republic of Germany

German tourism research is an integral part of landuse and economic planning. This has led to the development and implementation of site attractivity and economic efficiency measures. Attractivity models incorporating a site's natural and artificial features are used to provide a comparative ranking of present and proposed tourist developments. Both cross-sectional and time studies indicate that the development of the tourist sector is not an efficient method whereby regional socio-economic disparties can be reduced.     

The responsibility of tourism in traffic congestion and hyper-congestion: A case study from Mallorca, Spain

This paper explores the relationship between tourism and traffic congestion and hyper-congestion using the case study of Mallorca (Spain), one of the most important resort destinations in the Mediterranean. After discussing different proxies to capture the associated problems to road traffic congestion, different time series models are estimated including considering the days of the week, holidays and meteorological determinants jointly with a daily indicator of tourist population pressure. Results show how the tourist pressure variable is an important determinant in explaining the different alternative indicators of traffic congestion and hyper-congestion, for different roads. Hence it is possible to classify the roads in terms of usage by tourists in order to anticipate the levels of traffic intensity, especially during peak periods.     

If you dig it, they will come!: Archaeology heritage sites and tourism development in Belize, Central America

Tapping into a growing global tourism market, in recent years the Government of Belize has been marketing and promoting tourism as its primary economic sector. The latest efforts have included the cruise ship sector and marketing Mayan cultural history for tourism. Three phases of Mayan excavation can be identified: (1) pre-mid-1990s when sites were scientific exercises with tourism following; (2) the 1990s to present with the archaeological digs such as at Caracol fostering tourism development as the project is undertaken; and, (3) future sites yet to be excavated. This paper explores the positive and negative impacts of developing Mayan sites for tourism in Belize. The results are based on a survey of face-to-face interviews conducted with tourists based in San Ignacio, a community in west-central Belize. San Ignacio is adjacent to the Cahal Pech archaeological site and within a short drive of the Xunantunich and Caracol sites. Caracol is only partially excavated with temporary infrastructure providing access to tourists. In fact, the income generated from this access pays for continued excavations. The findings indicate that while there are obvious educational and economic benefits for such development, there are also concerns about how much is too much.