Thesis (M.A.)--Bowling Green State University, 2008. / Document formatted into pages; contains vii, 76 p. : col. ill. Includes bibliographical references.

Thesis (M.A. in anthropology)--Washington State University. / Includes bibliographical references.

Thesis (MTech (Tourism and Hospitality Management))--Cape Peninsula University of Technology, 2008. / Includes bibliographical references (leaves 99-113). Also available online.

Thesis (Ph.D.)--Aberdeen University, 2009. / Title from web page (viewed on July 23, 2009). Includes bibliographical references.

Thesis (Ph.D.) - University of Queensland, 2006. / Includes bibliography.

Thesis (DPhil)--University of Stellenbosch, 2005. / Bibliography. Also availabe via the Internet.

Thesis (M.S.)--Baylor University, 2006. / Includes bibliographical references (p. 90-94).

Tourism has excellent potential for further development in the provincial, national and world economies. However, tourist activity also has the potential to be a socially disruptive force. The purpose of this study is to find workable policies which planners can employ to mitigate the social problems caused by tourism in small cities. Such policies will allow growth to take place in the tourism sector of the economy while reducing resident intolerance or hostility. Before policies can be developed, it must be established that such problems exist and may become critical. This thesis examines the tourist industry and its benefits and costs. The literature makes it clear that there are social costs involved in tourism and also social limits to tourism development. A guideline for evaluating the social performance of tourism development is used. "Saturation" is defined as the level of tourism activity at which the residents in general feel that any further increase in tourist numbers and tourist-related development would be undesirable. The social saturation level is the point at which the number of tourists causes residents to become intolerant to tourists. Since the measurements of saturation found in the literature are unsatisfactory, vague, and not operationally defined, this study uses indicators that suggest capacity is being approached. These indicators are based on questions for evaluating the social performance of tourism development found in the literature, in particular the specific areas of concern which Young (1973) thought led to "psychological saturation" of residents. Chapter 4 discusses the literature on policies for mitigating the adverse social effects of tourism. These effects result from inadequate facilities and services, undesirable environmental characteristics, low levels of public acceptance of tourism, and little planning to attract or expand tourism. Once these general strategies have been listed, they are applied to Penticton, British Columbia. Penticton has had a lengthy history as a tourist destination and today the tourist industry is the mainstay of the local economy. According to D'Amore (1980), the major prospect for future economic development in Penticton is the further expansion of a year-round tourist trade. Yet, by examining the factors listed by Young (1973) leading to saturation, and reviewing the question list from Chapter 2, it would appear Penticton is approaching saturation. Chapter 6 applies the strategies developed in Chapter 4 to the situation in Penticton. The policies for Penticton include: - the addition of extra services and facilities to service a much larger population during tourist seasons; - improvement of beach areas; - separation of tourist areas and development from the mainstream of the city; - better aesthetic standards in building architecture; - public relations programs to convince residents that tourism is beneficial to them and their city; - more public input at all planning stages for tourism policy and development; - special projects funded by tourism revenue; - greater expansion of the tourist season into the fall, winter, and spring months to better utilize existing facilities and gain wider acceptance of the industry as a year-round job producer. There has been an implicit assumption that the ends of tourists and investors are more important than public welfare. Recently, various forces have been acting to place increasing importance on environmental goals instead of strictly economic goals. If future tourism development is to be both economically and socially viable, It must be intentionally planned. Considering the vital nature of the industry to cities like Penticton and the equally vital need to prevent the development of negative resident-visitor interactions, methods have been investigated to maintain a balance between the impacts of tourism and the ability of locals to deal with these impacts. In conclusion it was decided that plans should be consistent with the existing situation in terms of traveller facilities (supply), of the market (demand), and of social attitudes. Plans should have some regard to saturation levels beyond which the realization of economic, social or environmental objectives would be jeopardized. Further work needs to be done in several areas: - finding ways of funding tourist industry research; - organizing tourist industry offices in tourist areas to centralize all aspects of development, promotion and planning; - designing a resident survey to accurately appraise resident attitudes; - improving methodology to increase local participation in the planning process of all aspects of the tourist industry. Planning for tourism can be done by private entrepreneurs by means of facility development and promotion; by government planning, such as land use controls, public developments, and overall promotion of a destination; or by a combination of government agencies and private enterprise. / Applied Science, Faculty of / Community and Regional Planning (SCARP), School of / Graduate

A dissertation submitted to the Faculty of Arts in partial fulfilment of the requirements for the Masters of Recreation and Tourism in the Department of Recreation and Tourism at the the University of Zululand, 2009. / Any development or promotion of a product, be it in cultural tourism development or heritage, needs to be well planned and executed on the basis of existing policies, so as to effectively benefit the broader local community. Many municipalities in KwaZulu-Natal, such as the Ndwedwe Local Municipality, are dependent on an effective implementation of local policies and cultural tourism national mandate to promote tourism development within their areas with a bias to enhance Black economic empowerment. The application of such principles is particularly needed in the Ndwedwe Local Municipality, mainly for addressing of basic needs, equity and redistribution of cultural tourism wealth for the benefit of the previously disadvantaged communities. The fundamental aim of this research study is to establish how stakeholders perceive the existence and effectiveness of tourism policies and practices in the development and promotion of cultural tourism in the Ndwedwe Local Municipality. In other words the study seeks to establish the role played by policy and practice in the involvement, participation, and beneficiation of the Ndwedwe local communities. Among other things, the study is also carried out with a purpose of motivating the local community at Ndwedwe, to promote cultural tourism as well as to strive for the conservation of culture and heritage. It is clear that one of South Africa’ most abundant resources are the people and their diverse cultures. It is only recently that local community’s culture has begun to be appreciated and acknowledged for their true tourism potential. So cultural and heritage tourism is gradually gaining widespread acceptance as a true tourist attraction and also emerging as one of the most promising areas of economic development in South Africa. In order to put this investigation in its proper perspective, the following objectives were formulated: (a) To determine the level of understanding that the Ndwedwe stakeholders have towards the meaning of cultural tourism. (b) To examine the importance and value of developing and conserving culture for future generations in the study area. (c) To investigate the provision and maintenance of cultural and heritage tourism facilities in the study area. (d) To establish the levels of stakeholders participation in cultural and heritage tourism activities in the Ndwedwe Municipal Area. (e) To indicate how stakeholders perceive the existence and effectiveness of tourism policies and practices in the study area. (f) To assess the extent to which cultural and heritage tourism benefits are perceived by Ndwedwe stakeholders within the study area. The methodology for collecting data comprised a stratified sample size of 133 respondents, who were distributed in the Ndwedwe Local Municipality as follows: sample consisting of Tourism & Municipal Officials [12], Tourists [21], Tour Operators [16] and Local Community [84]. The data were analysed using the Statistical Package for the Social Sciences [SPSS] computer programme and represented using frequency tables and various graphics.

B-Tech Tourism Management (Vaal University of Technology) / Tourism is one of the fastest growing and largest service industries in the world that occupies the centre of the stage in the socio-economic, environmental and political fields. In South Africa the case is no different where the tourism industry makes a substantial contribution to the country‘s economic growth and almost all nations are in recent times recognizing the importance of tourism and embracing it. Both praised and despised as a development option, rural tourism is increasingly viewed as a remedy, increasing the economic viability of marginalised areas, stimulating social regeneration and improving the living conditions of rural communities. Tourism in the rural areas of developing countries is expanding at a rapid pace and is often a primary means of income in these areas. In many cases, destinations take reasonable advantage of this dynamic industry as a major income, employment, private sector growth and infrastructure development. However, some research endeavours indicate that tourism will never come to dominate all rural areas, particularly in the developing world – there are vast swathes of rural areas for which tourism is not relevant for the foreseeable future. These necessitate the need for the industry to be sustainable. Sustainable tourism development should aim at improving the residents’ quality of life by optimising local economic benefits, protecting the natural and built environment and providing a high-quality experience for visitors. This should also provide a long-term economic linkage between destination communities and industries. It should aim to minimise the negative effects of tourism on the natural environment and improve the socio-cultural well-being of the destination communities. This notion serves as a motivation for this study which aim is to analyse the perceptions of selected tourism stakeholders in the Vhembe district with reference to the community, tourism business owners and local government concerning rural tourism development in this region. Attention was given to the economic, social and environmental influences of tourism by focusing on both positive and negative aspects as well as aspects related to tourism development. The secondary objectives of this study were: (i) to describe different roles, relationships, responsibilities and expectations of stakeholders in tourism by means of an in-depth literature review; (ii) to analyse rural tourism with reference to community involvement in tourism, business contribution, local government support and identify types of resources integral to tourism in the rural areas by means of a literature review; (iii) to empirically analyse the perceptions of selected tourism stakeholders by assessing economic, environmental and social aspects as well as their level of participation, success factors and challenges; and (iv) to draw conclusions and make recommendations on mechanisms that might contribute towards the sustainable development of rural tourism with the focus on relevant stakeholders. To achieve the objectives, this study followed a mixed-method approach where both surveys (quantitative research) and interviews (qualitative research) were conducted. Two surveys were done; one in the community and the second one at tourism businesses in the Vhembe region. It was clear from the results that residents are fairly positive towards the tourism industry and acknowledge the contributions (both economically and socially) to the community and area. There is however room for improving the rural tourism product in order to attract higher numbers of tourists. Government is contributing to the development of the industry but it seems that a lack of skills and marketing campaigns are huge challenges. The business owners are interested in the economic gains from this industry but there is a need for training and mentoring so that the business can grow to such an extent that it becomes an employer to a number of residents. The natural and cultural uniqueness of this area was evident as well as the potential as a tourism attraction. The selected stakeholders however emphasise the importance of cooperation and integrated planning to grow the tourism industry.