This project is about mass tourism engagement with place in Halkidiki, Greece. It seeks to understand in a critical way how mass tourists engage with place through their actual doings and their everyday practices and performances in Halkidiki. The study is routed in the understanding that mass tourism is an embodied act that is full of performances, doings and possibilities and that the holiday is not just 'passive' or 'package' but is alive and vivid. In doing so, I move away from social constructions of the mass tourist as a passive consumer, towards a more nuanced and critical understanding of the mass tourist as an active and embodied figure, one who participates in the lived moment of doing mass tourism and therefore engages with Halkidiki. Also, place is approached in this study not as an authentic and fixed entity with clear boundaries that is 'just there' waiting to be visited, but as a dynamic space created and recreated by the performances and mobilities of mass tourists.

With the overarching research question “how Information and Communication Technologies can be used to support a destination in improving tourists’ information search and decision making through the use of its digital and cultural assets” this thesis connects the three themes of eTourism, destination marketing and heritage tourism through a user-centric approach and the application of innovative technologies. The eight papers provided utilise and investigate the application of technology to improve the effectiveness and promotion of destination marketing and destination marketing organisations whilst, at the same time, improving user experiences. Interdisciplinary research focuses on the opportunities provided by digital and cultural assets of destinations to enhance destination marketing efforts. This research recognises and discusses the importance and challenges of the commodification process of tangible and intangible heritage as part of the marketing process. Methodologies appropriate to each of the research purposes were applied and data was triangulated to improve understanding. Quantitative data was collected through questionnaires, web crawlers and log files enabling the research to draw on analytical methods such as correspondence and cluster analysis, as well as data envelopment analysis (DEA). Qualitative methods such as workshop cycles, observations, and interviews were used to provide rich narratives analysed through content analysis. The results from the eight papers enhance destination marketing efforts by providing a better understanding of user behaviour and preferences based on travel personalities, travel and search pattern. They provide a clearer representation of the technologies, digital assets and e-Services available, discussing web site content and effectiveness. Strategies and innovative ideas to improve the current utilisation of digital technologies are provided based on the outcomes of the studies presented. Furthermore, a reflection on the use of intangible cultural heritage assets within destination marketing supported through the use of technologies is explored to enhance opportunities for destination marketing. V The research presents innovative and new ways to a destination to create new meanings and unique selling points (USPs) through cultural heritage assets and user-centric technologies. It introduces an interpretative strategy within destination marketing, and ideas to make the tourists’ holiday choice process more engaging. It enhances the understanding of on-line destination presentation, enabling comparisons between providers and improving their competitiveness. The main contribution of this work is new and enhanced insights how to improve on-line destination presentation by understanding its current representation and users’ search and behaviour patterns online and during travelling. It provides examples for the usefulness of ICT and cultural heritage in order to improve destinations’ marketing efforts. It also adds to the debate of the application of technologies for heritage interpretation and the commodification of (local) cultural heritage assets for destination marketing and tourism purposes.

abstract: In this study the impact of outside the classroom activities and experiences of study abroad participants on cultural attitude change and perceived cultural competence was investigated. Motives to participate, expectations and outcomes of study abroad programs were also explored. The study used a mixed methods approach and was conducted in three parts including an exploratory sequential component followed by a concurrent embedded component. The exploratory sequential component included a photo elicitation project, the results of which contributed both to the results of the study and the development of the questionnaire used in the concurrent embedded component. The concurrent embedded component used a pre and post-test survey design and included a qualitative writing exercise with select participants between the completion of their pre and post-test questionnaires. The results suggest that study abroad participation does result in changes in both participants' cultural attitudes and cultural competency. It was hypothesized that length of time abroad and the cultural distance of the host country would have an influence on the change in cultural attitudes and cultural competency. As found in previous research, length of time abroad was not found to be a major contributing factor to this change when considering the results of the pre and post-test survey. However, the results of the qualitative studies resulted in many questions about the impact of length abroad. Participants in longer-term programs discussed changes in their cultural attitudes in a more complex way than short-term participants. Longer-term participants expressed changes in their cultural competency differently as well, though not in a way that it can be conclusively said they were more culturally competent. The reverse was the case for cultural distance. Cultural distance was a factor in the changes in cultural competency, however not in cultural attitudes when considering the results of the quantitative component. The qualitative results seem to bring up more questions. While shorter-term participants discussed cultural competency differently than longer-term participants, surprisingly the short-term programs had a higher percentage of participants studying in countries with large cultural distance than did long-term programs. / Dissertation/Thesis / Ph.D. Community Resources and Development 2014

M.B.A. / The travel industry is a dynamic fast changing environment that is impacted by many external factors. Travel Management Companies (TMC) need to align themselves to this environment ensuring that they are learning organisations and are changing with the times. In an attempt to reduce distribution costs, a number of airlines internationally have commenced with the reduction of commissions paid to travel management companies. As a result, a number of TMC's have closed their doors due to them not being able to convert their client base onto management fee or transaction fee models where the clients pay the TMC for the service they render, rather than the airline paying the TMC. The South African market is moving in a similar direction with airline commission cuts being planned for within the next year. The change in the manner in which agencies are remunerated would result in the need for the introduction of service fees, rather than the current commission income. This would result in the TMC's having to place increased attention on service delivery, aligned to the new income source being the client rather than the operator. A true travel management company needs to provide a complete travel management solution including statistical analysis of trends, cost saving initiatives and improved service delivery inter alia. With the onset of technology and the need for the airline distribution costs to be reduced, a number of airlines are directing travellers to their online website booking engines thus alleviating the need for the TMC. Airlines are utilising discounted airfares on the website as the attraction for travellers to rather make use of this cheaper form of distribution as opposed to airlines having to pay agents commission for the business forwarded by agents

In this paper it is illustrated that late eighteenth-century English travel guidebook writers promoted idyllic rural landscapes that met or were created to meet picturesque tastes while concurrently advocating the alteration of regional landscapes by means of agriculture, industry and transportation routes. While the impulses behind nostalgic and developed landscapes are at cross-purposes, both were concepts used by guidebook authors to renegotiate perceptions of their local regions: the former to exhibit regional beauties and marvels by appealing to the prevailing aesthetics, the latter to combat stereotypes of backwardness, reframing regional identities within national trends of development and "improvement." In this way late eighteenth-century travel guidebooks afford an interesting perspective on the rural English landscape of that period and how it was seen, experienced and represented by local promoters. / Arts, Faculty of / History, Department of / Graduate

Please write a brief description of your work, or copy an abstract you have included in the Thesis Walking is the principal outdoor recreation activity in the UK, and a significant part of the tourism offer. However, tourism study has not previously given significant attention to match participation levels. Furthermore, the range of participation in evidence necessitates a closer investigation. Walkers vary widely in the frequency of their walks, how important walking is in their tourism activity, and their motivations and preferences in walking environments. A combination of data collection methods involved a qualitative programme of 23 interviews with walking practitioners and an extensive survey questionnaire of walkers in the English Lake District (n=518). The study was framed by a grounded theory approach. This research design methodology reflects the exploratory nature of the study. Additionally it addresses the fact that the UK walking market is at present, supplied by a nebulous collection of sectors, which are as yet, not as congruent in their approach to management as they could be. The study resulted in a number of important findings which add to the body of knowledge on walking in national parks and other rural tourism environments. The range of walking activity can be explained in part by individual levels of confidence in the activity. Participants are either ‘casual’ or ‘serious’ in their approach towards walking; and this distinction enables research to conceptualise an activity which spans more extreme recreational activities such as mountaineering, and the significant part of the market who will walk whilst on holiday, or on day visits, but elsewise not frequently. Route-choice was found to be related to, but not dependent on the casual-serious typology: one individual could be serious in their approach but undertake less demanding, ‘more casual’ walks at certain times. This can be built upon by future research, to understand the motivations of individuals in more depth.

Includes bibliographical references (leaves 191-213).

Bibliography: leaves 283-291. / The fundamental product in tourism is the destination experience. Despite Cape Town offering a unique experience, the destination lacks a dear and positive brand images that persuade international tourists to visit. Currently, it cannot be ascertained how international travellers perceive brand Cape Town. As such it is felt that a significant number of tourists are being forsaken. Thus, it is imperative that research be conducted in order to gain a greater understanding of the brand, thereby enabling Cape Town to be positioned in a manner that lives up to tourists' expectations. In April 2001, the Joint Marketing Initiative was created to align the marketing efforts of the various destination-marketing organisations responsible for marketing the province of Western Cape and the city of cape Town both internationally and domestically. This is necessary to achieve consistency in image and message communication. This investigation is one of many commissioned by the Cape Metropolitan Tourism to improve stakeholders' understanding of brand Cape Town.

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