Not only is tourism becoming one of the fastest growing industries of both the developed and developing countries, it is also the point of entry into a country and its culture. The movement of people between countries and the burgeoning size of the tourism industry has created the need for the professionalisation of tourist guides within countries. Furthermore, there has also developed a need for implementing tourist guiding legislation to better regulate the tourism sector. The tourist guide has become one of the key industry players, because he or she is usually the first point of contact between the tourist and the country. As such, this study will focus on the development and implementation of tourist guiding legislation in three destinations: South Africa, Canada and Australia. It will compare the different regulatory measures each country has implemented and also look at the relationship between the tourist guide and government, as well as the relationship of the tourist guide and the tourist. The importance of the tourist guide as mediator or interpreter will also be focused on. Lastly the concept of cross-border tourism will also be considered, this is because people usually visit more than one country when they go on holiday and tourist guides will often have to operate between the two countries and take part in cross-border tourism. In short, this study will be a comparative one primarily concerned with tourist guiding legislation within South Africa, Canada and Australia. It will consider the place of the tourist guide within the historical and practical context. / Dissertation (MHSC)--University of Pretoria, 2016. / National Research Foundation (NRF) / Historical and Heritage Studies / MHCS / Unrestricted

Research on disability tourism and accessibility has predominantly focused on visible disabilities, while research on invisible disability and tourism has received very limited attention. For the most part, work on invisible disability and tourism has featured primarily on social media platforms and has been written by individuals who are themselves People with Disabilities (PWDs). This has resulted in a gap in scholarly research on invisible disability and tourism and one which this dissertation sets out to address. This study considers invisible disabilities and how they feature within the tourism industry with the focus on accessibility. A Tourism Journey Model was devised within this context and a study was made of three counties: India, South Africa and Australia. The legislation and tourism experiences relating to invisible disability were analysed and compared in these countries that represent the global South and global North. While the most recent legislation and regulations in these respective countries were consulted as primary documents, the experiences of tourists with invisible disabilities were assessed through the creation of a fictitious scenario based on social media sources. This research intends to draw attention to the accessibility of tourism regarding disabilities, with a specific focus on invisible disabilities. It highlights the gaps in the legal systems of South Africa, Australia and India regarding invisible disability tourism and accessibility, as well as the issues experienced by tourists within this realm. As regards all the phases of the Tourism Journey Model, it appears that Australia and India have a slight advantage over South Africa in terms of accommodating invisible disabilities. However, in the final analysis the study emphasises the importance of making the invisible visible. / Dissertation (MSocSci)--University of Pretoria 2020. / Andrew Mellon Foundation / Historical and Heritage Studies / MSocSci / Unrestricted

Cultural tourism is considered to be one of the largest and fastest growing types of global tourism markets. Culture is increasingly being used to promote destinations and enhance their attractiveness and competitiveness. Many cities are now actively developing their cultural assets as a way of developing comparative advantages over others in the tourism marketplace. In the light of this, there is need to diversify the tourism economy of the City of Johannesburg by strengthening the Cultural tourism aspect. Despite the fact that Greater Johannesburg Metropolitan Area has a good cultural infrastructure which includes a number of theatres, museums and art galleries, cultural tourism is one of the underdeveloped aspects of the local tourism economy. The main focus of the research was to identify ways to diversify the tourism economy of the City of Johannesburg by anchoring it on cultural products and activities, thereby improving the cultural image and competitiveness of Johannesburg as an urban cultural city destination in Africa. / Dissertation (MHCS)--University of Pretoria, 2016. / Historical and Heritage Studies / MHCS / Unrestricted

Literary tourism refers to any travel inspired by literature. This dissertation considers literary tourism from the perspective of a contemporary literary tourism attraction. It investigates the origins of literary tourism both in the historical context as well as in academic writing as interdisciplinary research between geography and literature. The current state of literary tourism research is also considered and the main research themes at present are identified, that is, authenticity and who the literary tourists are. This study also considers what the future might hold for literary tourism by looking at popular contemporary examples, including the works of J.K. Rowling, G.R.R. Martin, J.R.R. Tolkien, Dan Brown, Stieg Larsson and L.J. Smith. In this context, literary tourism’s reciprocal relationship with film tourism is unpacked. This dissertation then moves on to discuss the main focus of this investigation. A mere decade ago, the world was unaware of a book series called The Twilight Saga by Stephenie Meyer. Yet in a few short years, the literary tourism associated with this series has turned a small town in northwest Washington State into a tourism phenomenon. This study considers the development, extent and impact of literary tourism on this town, called Forks. It also considers other literary and film tourism sites associated with The Twilight Saga to show the vast range of the impact literature can have on tourism. / Dissertation (MHCS)--University of Pretoria, 2014. / tm2015 / Historical and Heritage Studies / MHCS / Unrestricted

The number of single-family residences in the Nederlandsche Zuid-Afrikaansche Spoorweg- Maatschappij (NZASM) heritage area, to the east of the Pretoria Train Station, has decreased over recent years. Due to the pressures of the Tshwane Compaction and Densification Strategy (2005) and the addition of high rise apartment blocks positioned between the houses, the area’s density is certain to increase further and the future of these heritage structures are in jeopardy. A fragmented urban environment has resulted, which is further emphasised by the discrepancy in scale and density of the built structures. The few remaining houses have been altered in varying degrees to suit the needs of their occupants, with no regard to their heritage value in most cases. An approach to maintain the cultural and historical value of the area would be to introduce a new function which would attract diverse visitors in a bid to regenerate the area. As a catalyst to generate interest, tourist interventions are proposed in and around selected houses, with the intention of stitching the fragmented urban fabric from the interior outwards. The vision for the site is to create the NZASM Tourist Precinct, with different amenities and accommodation options for tourists. / Mini Dissertation MInt(Prof)--University of Pretoria, 2018. / Architecture / MInt(Prof) / Unrestricted