This study aims to develop a holistic view of the politics of tourism development in China. It examines how political ideology intertwines with tourism development and the same time identifies factors which are relevant to the issue. From the political science point of view, international tourism may be regarded as part of foreign affairs. This study adopted the case study approach linked to a chronological framework. China's tourism industry has been transformed from a political activity to an economic activity. In Mao Zedong era (1949-1976), international tourism was virtually non-existent. The phenomenon was a result of both internal factors, including the dominant role of dogmatic socialist ideology, and external factors, such as the Cold War. China's rapid development in tourism since 1978 was under the pragmatic leadership of Deng Xiaoping. With the shifts of internal and external environments, China's tourism industry and development is now based on market-driven policy instead of ideological-driven policy. The development of international tourism in China is the evolution of development theories from underdevelopment theory to modernisation theory and now globalisation theory. Based on the findings of this study, an explanatory framework was formulated by incorporating factors including perspective on the external and internal environments, and economic and tourism issues. The future of China's tourism seems to be a movement from the socialist market economy model to a more capitalistic model.

This study has three main objectives. The first is to examine the role of international tourism corporations in determining the direction and volume of international tourism development in developing countries. The second is to consider one type of international corporation - tour operators - in the context of Turkey; the focus is on the economic opportunities and problems that arise as a result of the activities of international tour operators in their relations with the accommodation sub-sector in Turkey. Finally, the third is to suggest policies which will increase the benefits of international tourism to developing countries and reduce the negative aspects of dependency on international tour operators. In order to achieve these objectives, the study was carried out in two main stages. The first was an extensive literature survey to provide a background to the field research, which provided information mainly on 'Tourism in Developing Countries' and 'International Corporations in International Tourism'. The second stage was the field research. Two surveys were conducted; the first was the tour operators survey in the UK and the second was the accommodation sub-sector survey in Turkey. During the accommodation sub-sector survey in Turkey, both primary data and secondary data were collected. While the secondary data was used to make a general analysis of Turkish tourism development, the primary data helped to determine the international tour operators' relationships with the accommodation sub-sector in Turkey. In conclusion, a number of suggestions are made as to ways to reduce the negative aspects of dependency on international tour operators.

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(1) The major aim of this work was to provide a scientific basis for the management of St. Cyrus National Nature Reserve. The Nature Reserve itself consists of cliffs, sand-dunes and a salt-marsh. Most of the research was focussed on the latter two. The approach to the research was partly descriptive, partly experimental. (2) A description of the salt-marsh and sand-dune vegetation was obtained by means of classification and photointerpretation. The landform changes around the N. Esk estuary were mapped from aerial photographs (maps 1a and b). Six communities were described and mapped from the salt-marsh: a Festuca rubra-community, a Juncus gerardii-community, a Scirpus maritimus-community, a Relict Puccinellia or tall herb-grassland community and an open and closed Elymus-Ammophila -community on deposited sand (map 2). These communities were ranked into the Braun-Blanquet phytosociological classification system. The distribution of the surviving salt-marsh flora was mapped (map 3) and its distribution related to environmental conditions. The successional development since 1951 was related to the decrease in flooding frequency, a consequence of the landform changes in the area; most affected by the desalination and desiccation processes was the former Puccinelietum maritimae which developed into the tall herb-grassland or Relict Puccinellia-community, characterised by pasture and ruderal species. The future development of the salt-marsh vegetation largely depends on the dynamic processes around the N. Esk estuary. (3) A polythetic divisive classification method, TWINSPAN, led to the identification of the sand dune communities. The following sequence of communities was described (map 4): foreshore colonisation, mobile Ammophila-dune, Ammophila-dune in its stabilising and early stages of fixation, tall Arrhenatherum-grassland and grazed dune pasture. The last stage of the successional series is represented by dune scrub dominated by Ulex europaeus. The lichen-rich grey dune community, an anomaly in the present series, probably represents a deflection of the successional trends. The most important trends observed since 1951 were the stabilisation and fixation of the Ammophila-dunes, the development of tall Arrhenatherum-grassland and Ulex-scrub. The decrease in rabbit numbers after the advent of the myxomatosis in 1954 was partly responsible for these changes. (4) The effect of the removal of the rabbit grazing factor was assessed from rabbit-proof exclosures. Principal Components Analysis proved to be an effective means of detecting time-related trends in the vegetation. The exclusion of rabbits from the grazed dune pasture led to the development of taller vegetation, a significant increase in the cover of Festuca rubra and a small but significant decrease in species richness. Excluding rabbits from the grey dunes resulted in a decrease of annual species. A more detailed study of the grey dunes revealed that the variation in this community was related to the disturbance by man and/or rabbits. (5) About 18 km of paths, and tracks, were mapped from the Nature Reserve (map 5). This included 3 km of tractor tracks created by the fishermen. The remaining 15 km represented footpaths and old tracks. Nearly all of these paths and tracks were concentrated in the dunes which had a path, density of 739 m/ha. A general description of the vegetation and the amount of erosion revealed weak points in the dune system. Vegetation recovery on a footpath in the dunes took approximately two years. Camping on the dune pasture appears to favour a particular assemblage of species. Removal of camping pressures had initially little effect on the dune pasture vegetation. (6) Experimental burning of a part of the Arrhenatherum-grassland was followed by a rapid recovery of the dominants during the first season after the fire. Recolonisation by mosses started in the second season after the fire. Complete recovery of the vegetation is to be expected three or four years after the burning. Fire also appeared to have a rejuvenating effect on Ammophiia arenaria. (7) Bracken and gorse have been invading the dune pasture to the detriment of its attractive and rich flora. Experimental control of bracken with the herbicide asulam demonstrated that spraying with asulam was a safe method for controlling bracken on the Nature Reserve. Application of asulam at the recommended rate of 4.4kg active ingredient per ha resulted in an average reduction of bracken of 79% in the first year after treatment and 58% reduction in the second year after treatment. In the second year after treatment an increase in the cover of Arrhenatherum elatius and a decrease in the cover of bracken litter were observed. The rate of spread of gorse was estimated from maps made from aerial photographs and appeared to be exponential. Gorse-cleared sites in the Arrhenatherum-grassland and dune pasture were recolonised mainly by vigorous Holcus lanatus.

This thesis seeks to contribute to a better understanding of the effects of tourism on the host population, within the context of planning for regional development. In the Badenoch-Strathspey District of the rural Scottish Highlands, various surveys were undertaken to obtain a wide range of information on historical trends, policies and planning, use of resources, the tourist industry and the resident population. To provide a framework for assessing effects, a set of key indicators was devised. Many are subjective in nature, and a major challenge of this research has been to obtain suitable measures for each indicator. Effects could not be 'proved', given the absence of a controlled experiment, so many of the observations are suggestive rather than conclusive, or deduced rather than based on inferential statistics. The explanation of effects required a detailed assessment of the tourist industry, so that actual mechanisms of change could be isolated. It was found that the most profound changes affecting residents stemmed from development and growth in general, leading to the integration of residents in the mainstream of national economic and social trends. Tourism had some unique effects and exacerbated others. Most significant of the positive effects were the creation of new opportunities for jobs, incomes, and leisure, while a shortage of housing and some crime and social disruption were the main negative effects. The demands of large-scale developments for importing staff and using mainly unskilled and female labour had the greatest effect which could be attributed uniquely to tourism. However, the attainment of a winter season and an emphasis on sports and large facilities increased the value of tourism by providing more all-year jobs for males. Overall, it was concluded that the benefits brought by recent developments had outweighed the costs and problems to residents and the local authorities. In assessing the implications of the case study, analysis focussed on key policy-related questions. Most significant of these was the question of concentration versus dispersal of developments. It was concluded that a large-scale concentration was most appropriate for generating major changes, but that it eventually became desirable to limit the dominance of the concentration in order to disperse more widely the benefits that could be obtained from tourism.

Recreation has been a major force in enhancing the quality of life in a modern society. The provider must try to fulfil the requirements of the recreational users and has to focus on the quality of the products it delivers. As a recreational destination the National Park must offer opportunities to satisfy the diverse needs and requirements of the visitors. This involves establishing recreational participation patterns, preferences and the related demands and benefits to the users. In turn, a suitable user fee must be established and explained to recreational users in order to enhance their appreciation of costs. The study focuses on the evaluation of recreational usage of the National Park. The data acquired from the survey in the area established the background of the visitors in terms of socio-economics, leisure and recreation patterns, travel characteristics, on-site recreation attributes and the interrelationships between various activities. Besides, users perspectives in relation to the incremental and improvement of the facilities, the environment and related management approaches were recognised. These findings can be useful for the development of an integrated management approach leading to social and ecological balance. In addition recreational preferences were established by valuation of the opportunities of Taman Negara based on the willingness to pay responses of the user groups. Recreational use of the Park was later evaluated using the contingent valuation method. The demand for recreation use of the Park in its existing condition is attributed to foreigners, income, education, those not visiting friends or relatives during vacation, visitors pursuing specific recreational activities, visitors accompanied by friends and visitors accompanied by their families. The demand for improved facilities is related to Malaysians, urban residents, income, education and visitors participated in bird and wildlife observation. The recreational value for existing opportunities of the Park was RM211,939 per annum and value for opportunities if improved was RM304,086 per annum. The benefits gained by the recreationists for existing opportunities was RM175017 and RM267,164 per annum for improved opportunities. The suggested entrance fees were RM3.00 for existing opportunities and RM8.00 for improved opportunities based on total revenue obtained by the management. Finally information of recreational usage and its management highlighted from the study could be used to aid the formulation of the National Park policy and better management of this area.

This study aims to examine the concept of national parks as tourists destination. It will explore the relationship between tourism and conservation; discuss specific issues of tourism planning in national parks; and propose a conceptual framework of tourism management in national parks which will examine how visitor recreational opportunities are influenced by three main factors: visitor management, service management and resource management. Taman Negara, the largest national park in Malaysia, located in the central part of Peninsular Malaysia and Kinabalu Park, situated in the northern part of the island of Borneo are utilised as case studies. These two national parks are among the oldest national parks in Malaysia, having established themselves as important tourist destinations. They are considered by the Malaysia Tourism Promotion Board (MTPB) as promising tourism destinations associated with 'nature-based' or 'ecotourism' and are being promoted as important 'add-on' destinatio ns in an effort to increase tourists length of stay and to stimulate regional development. The primary data in this study has two main purposes. The first is to examine the socio-demographic profile of local and foreign visitors to the parks; determine the differences in their trip characteristics; their perception of the park's services and facilities; and their evaluation on the charges of facilities and user fees. The second is to examine the socio-demographic characteristics of local communities living in the vicinity of the parks and explore the economic, environmental and socio-cultural impacts of tourism as perceived by the local communities. Findings of the study highlights the different characteristics of local and foreign visitors to the parks, such as their perception on the information and interpretative services; user fees in the parks; and the favourable perception of local communities towards the development of tourism. Foreign visitors perceived the information and interpretative services provided local visitors, while the latter perceived the user fees in the park to be higher compared to former. Strategy implication for the parks include the introduction a two-tier entrance fee, park personnel who are knowledgeable in various fields, besides natural sciences and a more active involvement of the park management with the related tourism agencies and local communities.

The purpose of this study is to examine tourism development planning in Kenya and The Gambia; to compare and contrast their relative approaches to tourism development, and to assess their implications; to use the syntheses to identify hypotheses which might be used to stimulate tourism in developing countries. Concepts from tourism management (planning) and political economy (development) provide the theoretical framework for the investigation. Three hypotheses are put forward: Unless the tourism sector is managed well, problems are unavoidable. Second, because of weight of collective experience, management cannot obviate the problems but can help to solve them. Third, although planning for the sector may be good, this is only the input. Questions may be asked about structure, or about implementation. To test the hypotheses, Africa and the United Kingdom are chosen as field-work areas. The target is at two levels - demand and supply. The demand focuses on U.K. tour operators 'selling' East and West African tourist destinations. A short questionnaire, consisting of various factors considered important in choosing destinations, is constructed. The questionnaire seeks to ascertain tour operators' opinions on the competitiveness of Kenya and The Gambia as tourist destinations, relative to other African rivals. The results of the survey are incorporated into actual field-work in Africa. The supply side concentrates on a range of the travel trade operating in Kenya and The Gambia. It includes airlines, hoteliers, government officials. The purpose is to obtain sellers' view - the image the countries want to present overseas. The interview technique is used to generate field-work data. In both cases, the emphasis is to find out the problems of development as seen by the countries themselves and also the problems and difficulties experienced by tour operators in 'selling' the destinations. The thesis concludes on three notes: that the success of tourism in developing countries will depend largely on the need for planning, the need for flexibility, and the need for caution. It is argued that to disregard these propositions could spell a disaster for the tourism industry. The implication for developing countries is that if tourism is to provide the springboard for a realisation of the 'basic needs' cry of their citizens, in terms of an improvement of opportunity and quality of life, then the tourism sector needs to be planned. There have to be slack and selective tendencies built into it. These three factors are the main ingredients of success.