Tour guides' interpretation of the Historic Center of Macao as a World Cultural Heritage site

Literature review suggests that little attention is paid to the interpretation of a World Cultural Heritage (WCH) ensemble such as the Historic Center of Macao (HCM). The present study aims to investigate tour guides' interpretation of the HCM and how their interpretation affects tourists' appreciation and understanding of a visited heritage site within the HCM, as well as tourists' interest in other under-used HCM sites. Methodologies include in-depth interviews with tour guides, on-site observations of tour guides and surveys of package group tourists. The findings indicate that tour guides tended to interpret an HCM heritage site as an independent WCH site. In turn, this results in tourists' misunderstanding of Macao's WCH and a lower level of authentic experience at the visited heritage site. It is advocated that the interpretation of any one heritage site of the HCM should connect to the HCM ensemble and other heritage sites within the HCM. The inter-cultural relationship among the heritage sites should be further explored and highlighted in narratives.     

Museums,exhibits and visitor satisfaction: a study of the Cham Museum,Danang, Vietnam

Museums have several functions as custodians of heritage and culture, disseminators of knowledge about heritage and as places that attract tourists as well as local residents. Arguably all these functions require visitors to be satisfied with the visit experience if museums are to achieve their objectives. This paper reports findings from 411 visitors to the Cham Museum, Danang, Vietnam. It describes the nature of the museum and argues that satisfaction involves the conative, which may be measured by the willingness of visitors to make recommendations to others. However, the study identifies that interpretation and displays are important determinants and simply adjuncts to the generation of satisfaction.     

World Heritage as NIMBY? The Case of the Dutch part of the Wadden Sea

Acquiring the world heritage label, a reward for establishing and preserving an outstanding environment, is often assumed to be an honour for the local population and a useful leverage for the tourist and environmental organisations. However, the case of the Wadden Sea, a trilateral nomination by Denmark, Germany and The Netherlands, makes clear that this is not always true, and public consultation in The Netherlands has revealed that these local stakeholders do not support such a nomination. It seems they epitomise a 'Not in my back yard' (NIMBY) approach to World Heritage listing. This discussion paper examines the factors that complicate the nomination process. Contrary to common expectation, why do critical stakeholders, like the tourism industry, local inhabitants and environmental organisations become opponents? What are the interests at stake that subvert the balance of benefits and costs of the world heritage status to the extent that nomination is suspended? Is this phenomenon an exception, or an indication that obtaining the accolade is increasingly assessed from a rational rather than an emotional viewpoint, and that 30 years after the convention which created it the world heritage stamp has lost its uniqueness?     

Bamyan: Whose Heritage Was It and What Should We Do About It?

The destruction for ostensibly ideological reasons of the Buddhist statues at Bamyan in Afghanistan by the Taliban (whether or not inspired by Al-Qaeda) raises a number of wider issues. Apart from the problems of minority, dissonant and enclave heritage, there is the question, 'how can relics of the past that are valued in different ways by local, national and international claimants be managed in a way that satisfies all parties?' The idea of world heritage, and its manifestation in international tourism, may conflict with heritage used for local or national purposes. One, if not the most important, actor in this arena, UNESCO, is evaluated on the basis of its goals and efficiency in saving the heritage of mankind in the recent past. The dilemmas inherent in the concept of world heritage and possible solutions for its management are outlined.     

Memory work versus memory-work and its utility in heritage tourism

This paper advocates researching the diverse, unstructured, idiosyncratic personal and autobiographical memories of individuals – visitors, tourists, local residents and geographically dispersed patrons associated with heritage resources and heritage tourism attractions. ‘Memory-work’, conceptualized by Frigga Haug and her collaborators in the 1980s as a feminist constructionist method, is differentiated from ‘memory work’ (without hyphen) as defined in the scholarly literature from different disciplines in the past three decades. For the purposes of this paper, memory work is then conceptualized as a qualitative, interpretivist research approach focused on memories, which employs a range of methodologies and techniques to elicit and ‘process’ memories, and draws on memory theory for analysis. It is argued that memory work can provide useful insights for academic knowledge production and applied research in heritage tourism. A few examples of specific research techniques are presented to illustrate the diverse spectrum of how memory work can be carried out in practice. It will moreover be discussed how memory distortion and ‘false memories’ are to be treated, how memory work differs from other qualitative modes of enquiry, and what its benefits and limitations are.     

Rural tourism development in the USA

Rural tourism has been a subject of study since the early days of tourism scholarship. Most of tourism's deleterious impacts were identified from studies conducted in rural settings. It is only recently, however, that rural tourism has become a special focus of study, dissimilar enough from urban tourism, to be a study subject unto itself. This paper reviews some of the history of rural tourism development in North America with most of the attention paid to the USA's experience, with some examples from Canada. The reason for this is the huge economic difference between the two countries with respect to tourism flows and impacts. In reviewing the history of rural development in the USA, the argument is made that most developments are unplanned and result from market and economic forces that have greatly transformed the American rural landscape. A review of these transformational forces is provided. It is also shown that rural destinations are used, primarily, by local tourists and do not, with few exceptions, cater to an international clientele. After the historical perspective is presented an argument is made that current rural tourism development practices rely on an old paradigm, which is to use local attributes as the primary basis for development and marketing strategies. This has led, in recent years, to a great deal of development attention being paid to the cultural/heritage attributes of a place. Using research conducted in the state of Minnesota on highway travellers and tourists to rural destinations, a new way to look at actual and potential visitors is offered. Instead of an attribute‐specific development approach, a benefits‐based model is suggested as a different way to position rural tourism destinations. Copyright © 2004 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

The Impact of Host Community on Destination (re)branding: A Case Study of Hiroshima

This paper investigates local groups’ opinions on interpreting a dark heritage site for the promotion of tourism and analyzes their roles in tourism activities, through a case study of Hiroshima, Japan. As the first city suffered nuclear bombing, Hiroshima is a primary tourism destination in Japan but faced the challenge of revitalization. Fieldwork investigation methods, including semi‐structured interviews, were applied. The results suggest that local people hold favorable attitudes toward tourism development. They conduct an alternative approach to rejuvenating Hiroshima by identifying the essence of the place – a cheerful and peaceful city – and incorporating it into tourism events. Copyright © 2013 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Approaching tourism: perspectives from the young hosts in a rural heritage community in Tibet

This study reports an investigation of the ways in which local youth understand tourism in a rural heritage community in Tibet, China. The sustainable livelihoods framework was adopted to organise the areas of interest. Focus groups were initially conducted, and the resulting information was used in a subsequent questionnaire-based survey. It was found that the young Tibetan hosts understood tourists as ‘passers-by' in different vehicles. The tourists were seen as visiting the community because of two major tourism resources: the traditional Tibetan incense-making techniques, and the residence and culture of a Tibetan historical figure. The youth were positive towards tourism development in their community and identified some activities and strategies for their involvement in tourism. In assessing future outcomes and directions for tourism, the rural Tibetan youth would like to see both community and personal well-being improved through tourism.     

Re-enactment Events and Tourism: Meaning,Authenticity and Identity

Re-enactment events have began to play a significant role in the calendars of individual attractions, regions or even nations to generate media exposure, develop inbound tourism activity and raise the cultural heritage profile of a locality for community development and/or regeneration purposes. The (re-)presentation of cultural heritage in these forms creates a unique set of interactions between landscapes, local communities, tourists and heritage organisations. In the recent past however, re-enactment events have been subjected to increased debate and criticism as to their educational value and meaning and for their contribution to understandings of cultural heritage in post-modern consumer societies. This paper presents an interdisciplinary review of these debates and draws on small scale research findings to reassess the value of re-enactment events as a means of presenting heritage to audiences. The paper argues that re-enacted historical events achieve a range of purposes and provides examples of evidence from a range of differing perspectives including: public policy and event organisers; re-enactors and academics in the field. It argues that the professional heritage industry, tourists, and re-enactors all contribute to making such events meaningful and as such they represent unique frames through which to understand issues of authenticity and identity in the production and consumption of post-modern cultural heritage attractions.     

Cultural technology district: a model for local and regional development

The urgency to cope with the international economic crisis has led to efforts to identify innovative tools and frameworks that are capable of regenerating local and national economic development. The enhancement of the cultural heritage sector can be a strategic factor in improving the competitiveness of country systems. In Italy, the nation's rich cultural heritage is not managed in an efficient and effective manner, even though it embodies a tremendous opportunity to enhance local economic growth, especially in light of the role of new cultural technology districts (CTDs). This article intends to present the CTD business model aimed to promote local and regional development in Italy, to attract domestic and international tourist flows and spread them out more evenly across all regional territories and to verify the CTD's opportunity through the Lazio Region experience.     

Residents’ perceptions of tourism development – implications for small economies business: the case study of Ali Sadr,Iran

Ali Sadr Cave is the world's largest water cave and is a protected national heritage of Iran. This paper examines the residents’ perceptions of tourism development. In total, 250 residents of Ali Sadr village were interviewed. To improve the economic outcomes of the exchange between individuals from various cultural backgrounds, it is important to resolve the conflicts between residents and international tourists. In the management of tourism in the region, the local people who strongly support tourism development are not involved much. This paper concludes with recommendations for tourism managers to improve the economic outcomes of local people through tourism development.     

Residents’ recreational and social use of and perspectives on a World Heritage Site: Temple of Heaven,Beijing, China

Many heritage sites are shared by tourists and local residents. Possessing more familiarity and often a deeper understanding of local heritage meanings and values, residents are often considered to be more worthy users of the heritage resources. However, the recreational use of heritage resources by local residents, who are often portrayed and examined as service providers and impact receivers, is often neglected at heritage sites. This research identifies the use patterns, motivations, perceptions and experiences of local residents at Temple of Heaven World Heritage Site in Beijing, China. Research findings enhance understanding of the recreational use of residents and their perspectives on the heritage sites. Practical implications are generated to inform future planning and management decisions at heritage sites shared by local users and tourists.     

Big mountain,big name: globalised relations of risk in Himalayan mountaineering

The paper explores how visitors' perception of a destination's heritage management affects satisfaction with actual visits to the sites and overall perception of the destination's cultural image, using Macao as the case setting. The study will also look at how site visit satisfaction influences the intention to revisit and recommend to others. The findings indicated that perception of the quality of heritage interpretation was significantly associated with destination cultural image and site visit satisfaction. However, associations between site visit satisfaction and intention to revisit and recommend were weak. The findings also led to a discussion on whether the labels ‘cultural’ versus ‘non-cultural’ tourists remain stable over time.     

Exploring the Shared Use of World Heritage Sites: Residents and Domestic Tourists' Use and Perceptions of the Summer Palace in Beijing

Many heritage sites are shared by tourists and local residents, who may have different motivations, preferences and experiences. These common areas offer a setting for understanding how the host and guest populations utilize, interact and perceive a heritage site. Results show that residents and domestic tourists differ in their use patterns but generally share motivations, perceptions and experiences at the Summer Palace. Use conflicts and interplay are examined in relation to their behaviours, perceptions and experiences. Practical implications are generated to inform management and planning decisions for the study site and other heritage sites shared by local users and tourists. Copyright © 2014 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Residents' perceptions of tourism impacts in Guimarães (Portugal): a cluster analysis

In this investigation, a cluster analysis was used to separate Guimarães (Portugal) residents into clusters according to their perceptions of the impacts of tourism development. This approach is uncommonly applied to Portugal data and is even rarer for world heritage sites. The world heritage designation is believed to make an area more attractive to tourists. The clustering procedure analysed 400 data observations from a Guimarães resident survey and revealed the existence of three clusters: the Sceptics, the Moderately Optimistic and the Enthusiasts. The results were consistent with the empirical literature's results, with the emergent nature of the destination found to be relevant. The fact that tourism is relatively recent in this destination has its major reflex in the devaluation by most of the residents of the negative impacts of tourism development.     

Collaborative Management and Planning of Urban Heritage Tourism: Public Sector Perspective

‘This paper investigates collaborative management and planning among public organisations involved in urban heritage tourism. An exploratory case study has been applied, capturing urban heritage tourism development in Plovdiv, Bulgaria. The findings demonstrate a shared desire for further collaboration between the key public bodies involved, with limited existing and previous collaboration, beyond work that is the result of existing hierarchies. Collaboration is at an early stage, and many looked to the Local Authority to provide leadership in driving new initiatives. The private sector has a limited but increasing role in this. There are differing views on the focus of heritage tourism development – some suggesting a regional, others a city focus.’ Copyright © 2014 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Industry convergence in rural tourism development: a China-featured term or a new initiative?

ABSTRACT

Industry convergence is a popular term that has been widely referenced in the context of rural tourism development in China. All levels of government (local, regional, national) in China have repeatedly addressed the significance of industry convergence in their tourism plans and related policies. Despite its popularity, limited studies at present have explored this concept in-depth. Using Huai’an as a case, this study applied a path analysis and reported the industry convergence process in a destination. The findings of this study can provide both theoretical and practical implications that are useful for tourism planners and policy makers.     

Locating Global Legacies in Tana Toraja,Indonesia

In 2001, the picturesque Toraja village of Ke' te' Kesu' was nominated for candidacy as a UNESCO World Heritage Site. Situated in the South Sulawesi highlands in Indonesia, this hamlet is home to rice farmers, wood carvers, tourist vendors, government workers and sporadically-visiting anthropologists. Drawing on long-term anthropological field research in the village, I suggest that while world heritage sites may entail what UNESCO terms 'genius loci', they are, rarely the unchanging embodiments of tradition they are imagined to be. The paper illustrates how heritage landscapes such as Ke' te' Kesu' are, to some extent, products of local responses and and engagements with regional, national and global political, cultural and economic dynamics. Ultimately, I argue that the emergence of UNESCO world heritage sites is not a 'natural' process, but rather one borne out of complex exchanges, competitions and collaborations between local groups, as well as national and international entities.     

Global Heritage and Local Problems: Some Examples from Indonesia

This article examines what happens to those who live in and around monuments as a result of World Heritage designation. Using the examples of Borobudur and Prambanan in Indonesia as study sites, it is argued that the values that local people attach to heritage are often different from, although not necessarily less important than, the values ascribed by international agencies, government officials, tourism developers and others. However, their perspectives are often not adequately represented or respected by other participants in the planning and management of sites, to the detriment of both the plans and the people. The tendency to adopt top-down, rational comprehensive planning procedures has resulted in the disenfranchisement of local people, giving greater prominence to expressions of national, 'official' culture and nationalism at the expense of local culture. It has tended to freeze sites and displace human activities, effectively excluding local people from their own heritage.     

A system dynamics approach to explore sustainable policies for Xidi,the world heritage village

The relationships between heritage, tourism and community are complex and inter-related. Although the heritage system was initially proposed and set up for conservation, the enthusiasm for heritage conservation derives from its potential as a resource providing economic benefits, such as through the tourism industry. Although tourism development brings incentives to the heritage owners and other stakeholders to preserve the heritage, it also changes the nature and universal value of the heritage. In addition, neither the conservation of heritage nor heritage tourism necessarily brings benefits to the community. Yet, the policies are often formulated from one particular approach and lack a systematic and dynamic view and often lead to counter-intuitive results in the long run. This study attempts to develop a holistic system dynamics model of the Xidi world heritage village and analyse the interaction of the social, economic and heritage sectors to examine policies to achieve the goals of development and conservation. The study shows that conservation alone is not enough, policies which attempt to target the needs of the local community, including providing economic opportunities, can be a better choice if the development is carefully planned and effectively controlled to avoid the over-consumption of resources.