Last chance tourism and the Great Barrier Reef

The publically documented decline in health of the Great Barrier Reef (GBR) has led to its labelling, in media and academic literature, as a last chance tourism destination. That is, a place tourists travel to experience before it is gone. While the GBR has been labelled as such, no empirical evidence has identified that this is actually occurring. This article explores if tourists are motivated to visit the GBR to see it before it's gone, and examines the level of concern tourists have about the range of issues that are threatening the GBR. Drawing on 235 questionnaires with on-site tourists, the results indicate that tourists are seeking travel to the GBR in a bid to see the reef before it's too late. These tourists – identified as “seeking a last chance experience” – were also found to be more environmentally conscious, and have a higher level of concern about the overall health of the GBR. In terms of threats to the GBR, respondents indicated that they were mainly concerned about coral bleaching/disease and climate change, with tourism only considered as a moderate to low concern. The implications of this are discussed.     

The significance of environmental values for destination competitiveness and sustainable tourism strategy making: insights from Australia's Great Barrier Reef World Heritage Area

Sustainable destinations must deliver products that perform better than their competitors and at the same time protect key environmental drawcards. This research explores the environmental–economic interface of a major destination, both as a case study in how to approach this complex relationship and as a contribution to the methodology of tackling the need for understanding competitive pressures as part of sustainable tourism strategy creation. Using the Great Barrier Reef World Heritage Area (GBRWHA) as an example, the paper assesses 21 key environmental values, including Indigenous culture, against market-based factors, in terms of their importance for visitors as regional drawcards, satisfaction with them and the way in which changes in them might affect trip numbers and duration across different regions. While the natural values of the GBRWHA are found to be the most important drawcards, satisfaction scores were significantly lower than importance scores for a number of these values. Visitors responded more negatively to the prospect of environmental degradation than to the prospect of a 20% increase in local prices: the detailed impact depends, however, on location and visitor mix. Clear ocean, healthy coral reefs, healthy reef fish, and lack of rubbish were the top four most important values.     

Getting closer to whales—passenger expectations and experiences, and the management of swim with dwarf minke whale interactions in the Great Barrier Reef

Whale-watching tourism is a growth industry worldwide. In Australia, with whale-watchers approaching one million per annum there has been considerable effort to develop management regimes that protect the whales while enabling the development of a sustainable ecotourism industry. A mixture of National and State laws and regulations have governed the industry (Tourism based on free-ranging marine wildlife: opportunities and responsibilities, Wildlife Tourism Research Report No. 11, Status Assessment of Wildlife Tourism in Australia Series, CRC for Sustainable Tourism, Gold Coast, Queensland) but these have been mainly derived from experiences with humpback (Megaptera novaeangliae) whale watching from vessels at sea. In this article we describe the development and nature of new and rapidly growing swim-with-whales operations based on the dwarf minke whales (Balaenoptera acutorostrata) in the Great Barrier Reef of northern Queensland. The distinctly different quality of these operations raise interesting questions for long-term management (Towards sustainable management of the developing dwarf minke whale tourism industry in northern Queensland, CRC Reef Research Technical Report 27, James Cook University of North Queensland, 30pp (emended version of SC/50/WW1)).In the 1999–2000 seasons, 453 passengers (88.1% of respondents) swam with minke whales. Only 25% of visitors came specifically for the whale interactions and 43% learned of the whales on board the vessel. Passengers thus had low expectations about whales and encounters. A variety of factors, including the diving experience, particular dive sites, a range of wildlife species and socializing contributed to visitor satisfaction. Nonetheless, there was a significant correlation between visitor satisfaction and closeness of approaches by the whales, total number of whales seen and total time spent with whales. We discuss the key issues associated with swim-with-whales programs in the light of our findings. The cooperative engagement of tourism operators, researchers and government management agencies is a feature of this new industry.     

Environmental Interpretation in the Great Barrier Reef Marine Park: An Assessment of Programme Effectiveness

This study sought to determine how visitor environmental interpretation programmes in the Great Barrier Reef Marine Park could be assessed to determine their effectiveness in educating visitors about the reef environment and conservation issues. A self-administered visitor questionnaire was designed to identify changes in visitor knowledge and understanding of the reef's basic ecology, human impacts, health and tourism. The study used an independent sample design in which visitors aboard a large reef-trip vessel were surveyed over one week before exposure to the operation's interpretive programme. A second set of visitors was then surveyed following completion of the interpretive programme. The survey identified significant changes in visitors' self-reported knowledge of the reef environment as a result of the trip. Additionally, visitors' self-reported knowledge and understanding of basic reef ecology and human impacts on the reef environment differed significantly in relation to the number of interpretive activities in which they participated. These findings suggest that (1) reef-based visitor interpretation programmes can effectively change visitor understanding of key reef topics and issues, and (2) methods of evaluating reef-based interpretive programmes can be undertaken through self-administered questionnaires.     

The Influence of Place Change on Place Bonding: A Longitudinal Panel Study of Renovated Park Users

People-place relationship has received increasing attention in recent decades. However, the effect of place change on bonding has rarely been discussed in recreation studies, especially with the use of a longitudinal approach. This study tracked the changes of park users’ place bonding and behaviors in three different phases of park renovation (original, closed and reopened). Results indicated that place bonding is subject to change when a place is unavailable, and the magnitude of the bonding change is related to users’ initial place bonding. While the higher bonding respondents exhibited decreasing bonding after park renovation, the bonding of the lower group increased after renovation. Besides, the positive effect of evaluation on the bonding changes, and the association between level of bonding and decision to return were also confirmed.     

Problems in Place: Using Discursive Social Psychology to Investigate the Meanings of Seasonal Homes

Researchers continue to explore the nature of place meanings and especially how these meanings are created, disseminated and contested. This paper uses the conceptual framework of discursive social psychology to identify varying interpretive frames homeowners use to characterize the meaning and significance of their seasonal homes as vacation and recreation residences. Among the frames are refuge from modern life, the importance or centrality of seasonal homes in people's lives, obligations and burdens entailed by maintaining dual residences and interactions within a community. The paper advocates for an approach to place meaning that acknowledges the social basis of meaning yet recognizes and focuses on how individuals appropriate and use interpretive frames to explain their relationships to place.     

“文革”时期颜色词的意义变异及原因

该文运用历时和共时兼顾、定性和定量相结合的方法,以调查和数据为基础,通过自建的近200万字语料库和北京语言大学1996年建立的"现代汉语研究语料库"的词频对比分析,以及《汉语新语词词典》等5部词典有关颜色词条目的归类统计分析,力求较客观地描写"文革"中颜色词的使用情况,并探讨和分析颜色词的意义变异及其原因。     

"兴奋点"和"消费点":旅游产品设计的两个重点--以澳大利亚摩尔礁"一日游"产品为例

旅游产品设计中需要考虑许多方面因素,既要面向市场,对旅游消费者有足够吸引力,又要满足投资者和经营者的要求.在这些因素中设计人员怎样抓住重点?本文提出了"兴奋点"和"消费点"的概念,认为该两点是旅游产品设计的两个重点,并以澳大利亚摩尔礁"一日游"为例,讨论了构建"兴奋点"和"消费点"对于设计旅游产品的重要意义.     

Cultural Heritage Assets in China as Sustainable Tourism Products: Case Studies of the Hutongs and the Huanghua Section of the Great Wall

Due to its rich stock of heritage assets, extraordinary pace of market liberalisation, and its political administration, the People’s Republic of China is at a crossroads in terms of the management of its heritage assets. In order to better understand the threats and opportunities that market liberalisation may pose for cultural heritage assets as future tourism products, this study examines two examples in the Beijing municipality; the Hutongs and the section of the Great Wall at Huanghua. These case studies are used to investigate the coordination of policy to balance modernisation and conservation of heritage assets in Beijing, and place it against a general model of stakeholder roles that can drive the sustainable use of heritage assets. Teasing out the nature of these roles has identified where tourism development aids or detracts from existing heritage conservation policies. Without better coordination of roles in policy implementation, the sustainability of many heritage assets as future tourism products is in question.     

旅游区经济影响域界定研究——以八达岭长城旅游区为例

文章提出了旅游区经济影响域的概念和关键指标、界定模型,并选取八达岭旅游区作为典型案例区,旅游区周围的6个村落为样本点,进行现场问卷调查和深入访谈,从而获取了旅游经济指标的实测值以及样本空间坐标。然后运用旅游区经济影响指数模型和旅游区经济影响域域值模型对样本数据进行总体趋势和范围的分析。结果发现,基于户均旅游直接就业和收入标准化值的八达岭旅游区旅游经济影响域域值为2.84千米,该值代表了八达岭旅游区经济辐射范围核心部分。在此基础上,刻画出旅游经济影响域的空间结构,并探讨了空间分异的原因。     

Success in Place Branding: The Case of the Tourism Victoria Jigsaw Campaign

This article addresses issues of complexity in place branding by presenting a perspective of this concept from a theoretical as well as a practical perspective. The discussion addresses a gap in the literature in terms of studying long-term, successful place branding cases within a well-defined academic theoretical framework. The aim of this study is to develop the understanding of how a successful destination operates by applying S.K. Rainisto’s model as a framework from which to understand place branding through the use of an exemplary case study, namely the Tourism Victoria Jigsaw Campaign.     

Motivations to engage in last chance tourism in the Churchill Wildlife Management Area and Wapusk National Park: the role of place identity and nature relatedness

The threat that climate change impacts pose to rare and vulnerable destinations has given rise to a phenomenon known as last chance tourism. This travel behaviour involves tourists increasingly travelling to destinations they perceive to be critically threatened, while contributing to greenhouse gas emissions and climate change impacts in these very places. For last chance destinations to be managed effectively in the face of climate change, a clearer understanding of what drives this travel behaviour is needed. Drawing on the importance of place and nature to identity construction, this research uses a structural equation modelling approach to examine last chance tourism motivations in Churchill, Canada. Results provide evidence of a motivation to engage in a last chance experience. They also indicate that this motivation is related to a desire to share a connection to nature with similar individuals, and to become part of the local story. Beyond this, results show that visitors' sense of place identity and nature relatedness contribute significantly to their motivation to engage in last chance tourism. Findings from this research are important to the management of last chance destinations, including protected areas that are legislated to preserve significant natural and cultural features.     

The Moderating Role of Water Park Service Quality,Environment, Image,and Food Quality on Perceived Value and Customer Loyalty: A South Korean Case Study

This study empirically examined not only the relationship between perceived value and customer loyalty, but also the moderating role of service quality, environment, image, and food quality at a water park, a segment of the tourism industry. In particular, the current study, using hierarchical regression analyses, examined the direct effects of perceived value on customer loyalties—loyalty and behavioral loyalty—as well as the moderating effect of four elements. As anticipated, this study showed that perceived value has significant and positive effect on both types of loyalty. In addition, the result of the interaction effects showed that service quality and food quality acted as moderators on the relationship between perceived value and attitudinal loyalty; however, water park image acted as a moderator on the relationship between perceived value and behavioral loyalty only. Finally, these results indicated that three elements—service quality, water park image, and food quality—have significant interaction on the relationship between perceived value and attitudinal/behavioral loyalty. These findings may provide water park operators with useful and detailed guidelines for satisfying customer loyalty levels, both attitudinally and behaviorally. More detailed findings and implications are also discussed.     

The Tourism Market's Response to the 2009 Black Saturday Bushfires: The Case of Gippsland

One of the key roles of a destination marketing organization (DMO) is to portray their destination in such a way that it is both appealing and inviting to their existing and potential tourism market. A challenge faced by a DMO in the regional Victorian destination of Gippsland in Australia, is the fact that they also have to manage unanticipated sudden changes in market perceptions that may occur in response to a disastrous event. The reoccurring natural disasters of this region (fires, floods and drought)—the most recent being the 2009 Black Saturday bushfires, deemed Australia's worst natural disaster in history—make it imperative that DMOs can respond effectively. This article presents the findings of an exploratory research project designed to investigate the tourism market's response to this particular disastrous event. The primary aim of the research was to better understand how a large-scale disaster impacts upon the tourist's destination image and visitation intentions, and the role of the media in these deliberations. Focus group research reveals the post-disaster media interpretations, images, and visitation intentions of intrastate and interstate, regional and metropolitan tourists. Differences are observed in relation to the participants' geographic location and distance from the fires and their understandings of the event, including their reflections on media coverage. Varying perceptions among the participants of the impact of the fires, the travel risk, and subsequent travel intentions are discussed. Managerial implications relating to media management and the refinement of future disaster management strategies are also presented.     

游客对国家公园功能的认知及其实现路径——以武夷山国家公园为例

中国国家公园体制以“生态保护第一、国家代表性、全民公益性”为核心理念,通过游憩功能体现其公共资源属性,促进全民公益性目标实现,是确保国家公园生态保护成效的基本要求。为寻求实现国家公园功能的路径,本文基于问卷调查,考察游客对武夷山国家公园功能的认知、对游憩服务的期待以及参与国家公园保护的态度。研究表明,游客看重与其切身利益密切相关的游憩和环境教育等功能,但在空间认知上割裂了保护和利用在国家公园内的统一性;游客关注国家公园在游憩机会上的多样化和创新性,关注点受到年龄、职业、收入、教育程度等人口统计学因素影响;游客的生态保护参与意愿普遍较强,但对保护对象并无具体认知。因此,国家公园游憩功能的发展需要从前端导入国家公园概念、功能和管理目标等公益性的基础理念,既需要根据游客多样性需求完善服务,也需要引导游客了解公园区域定位和内部功能分区。研究指出,国家公园需要在增强游客对其功能公益性理解的基础上,探索自然保护地旅游发展的新范式,从而改善游憩体验,促进游客更好地参与生态保护。     

Roles of Films and Television Dramas in International Tourism: The Case of Japanese Tourists to the UK

It is believed that films and television dramas that are not directly concerned with tourism promotion have become a catalyst for tourism as publicity and promotional media for attracting tourists. This paper considers what roles films and television dramas play in influencing overseas tourists' behaviors in terms of their travel destination selection. The results from the survey of Japanese tourists to the UK gave evidence of a wide range of roles of films and television drams as different stages in respondents' destination choice processes. This paper concludes that films and television dramas have an ability to create destination awareness, consciousness, and images leading to a stronger interest in the destination and actual travel to the destination.     

The influence of artistically recreated nature on the image of tourist destinations: Lanzarote's art,cultural and tourism visitor centres and their links to sustainable tourism marketing

Can distinctive natural assets in tourist destinations be artistically recreated and used to improve destination image and attract more visitors? This paper analyses the formation of the tourist image based on artistically recreated local nature icons, and shows how those images can enhance the overall destination image. It focuses on the island of Lanzarote, a destination with its development based on promoting an environmental image founded on the creation of a network of multifunctional, high-quality art, culture and tourism centres exhibiting artistic recreation of its unique environmental assets. The methodology utilizes a questionnaire (n = 453) structural equations modelling approach in which the overall image of the destination is directly dependent on the image of the environmental conditions and indirectly influenced by the image of the artistically recreated centres. Results show that the destination's image is significantly grounded on the image of the art, culture and tourism centres using art based on Lanzarote's natural assets. They suggest that destinations have relevant opportunities to artistically enhance natural assets to improve their tourist image and marketing, that quality multi-functional visitor centres can be important within a sustainable tourism policy, and part of the emerging breadth of approaches taken by sustainable tourism marketing.