Assessment of tourism’s contribution to the economy of a country or a region is extremely complicated because of the nature of tourism. A tourism satellite account (TSA) is a major recent contribution in this area. It involves building a specific tourism account in the context of a national account. After more than 20 years of development, the current trend in TSA research is to refine and implement the method. This paper summarizes the methodology developments of TSA and explores the feasibility of adopting a TSA in municipal area. Thus, it discusses the TSA system from a municipal perspective. Because it is a new topic, a qualitative method is adopted by using a case study in Suzhou, China. The paper discusses and provides a definition of TSA from varied perspectives. It also provides a technical framework for a municipal TSA, illustrates the driving forces and institutional attitudes behind the development of such a TSA, and examines the limitations and advantages of the TSA methodology in a municipal context.

The purpose of my dissertation is to bring cultural geographic theory, including the ideas of representation, power, cultural and religious identity, and the contested and negotiated nature of places and identities, into discussions about the broader field of religious tourism. I use Temple Square in Salt Lake City, Utah, the spiritual centre of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (also known as the Mormon or Latter-day Saint Church), as a case study to discuss and contest three theories related to religious tourism and sacred space that are prevalent in the academic literature. These include the contested space theory, where I argue that discussions about contested space must be set in the historical context and conditions under which conflict or contestation is first developed, and the pilgrim-tourist dichotomy, the utility of which I question in light of management strategies Latter-day Saint Church leaders use to destabilise identities at Temple Square. I also critique the view that religious sites lack sufficient managerial expertise to be run effectively by religious site managers. In doing this I argue that scholars and tourism industry officials need to take religious culture and history more seriously when attempting to understand how leaders of various religious faiths view tourism and how those views influence the management of their sacred sites.

Local festivals and cultural events, signage and streetscape improvements, and regional marketing efforts indicate that tourism is present in some Business Improvement Areas (BIAs). However, the extent and form of this relationship has never before been examined in the North America context. The purpose of this thesis is to explore the involvement of Ontario’s BIAs in tourism. It reports on the findings of a 2008 province-wide survey of approximately 260 BIAs, touching on a variety of topics, including: the proportion of BIAs that are involved in tourism, the factors prompting them to attract tourists, the ways that they promote themselves to tourists, the types of tourism experiences that they offer, the positive and negative impacts of their tourism efforts, and whether they partner with other stakeholders in tourism promotion efforts. The data are then used to propose a typology of Business Improvement Areas showing differing levels and forms of tourism involvement. The thesis concludes by considering four case studies of successful tourism-oriented BIAs (Downtown Kingston, Downtown London, Downtown Yonge and Creemore), which are examined to identify the characteristics that have led to their success. The findings show that the majority of Ontario’s Business Improvement Areas are involved in tourism, using diverse methods to promote themselves as destinations. Their tourism offering usually includes special events and festivals, but can also involve investments in other attractions. Although BIAs are aware of both positive and negative impacts from tourism, tourism management efforts are uncommon. Seven characteristics of successful tourism-oriented BIAs are identified: innovation, self-awareness, appearance, attractions, partnerships, experiences, and planning. BIAs that strongly manifest these characteristics are believed to be likely candidates to benefit from the tourism industry.

Film tourism is a widely growing phenomenon with various benefits the filmed location can take advantage of. This study examines the impacts of a Turkish television series named Kavak Yelleri on its screened location, a Turkish Aegean Seaside town named Seferihisar. Besides the impacts of the series, the relationship between the screened location and the film crew is studied. This case includes a further particular feature; the screened location in Kavak Yelleri is named after another existing town, Urla, in the storyline, while it is actually filmed in Seferihisar. A qualitative case study approach has been implemented in order to scrutinize the subject. The empirical data was conducted through interviews with the municipality of Seferihisar and its local people, local people of Urla, and an interview with a member from the film crew of Kavak Yelleri. a) It becomes evident that the television series has positive social and economical impacts on Seferihisar. The power of media and the presence of the film crew are the main contributors. b) The discrepancy of location name between reality and storyline has affected the path of the film tourists. c) A well handled relationship between the screened location and film crew can have valuable implications for tourism.

The aim of the study was to examine what the economic and touristic impacts of the sports event - UEFA EURO 2012 - will have on Polish regions. The essay was limited to some specific regions in Poland. Those regions were Gniewino, Malbork, Kalisz, Legionowo, Pommerian Province, Cracow, Olsztyn and Zamosc. The Football Championships that will be held in 2012 are dependent of the big amount of football fans that will came and spend their money in Polish regions. Thanks to the increased consumption this creates demand for local services and products. The generator of spending is the tourism multiplier that is the main link to the touristic expenditure.The multiplier is a catalyst of the region that creates jobs, growing yield, promotion of the region and improvement of its infrastructure and leisure facilities. This is considered as an advantage from an economical and touristic point of view. The economical and tourstic benefits are different for every mentioned region in the study because of their location and link to the UEFA EURO 2012. This study shows only how the different eight regions prepare for the UEFA EURO 2012 and what they think that the negative and positive economical and touristic impacts will gain them. The study gives only a short brief of the football event of what can happen.

Culinary tourism is emerging as an important component of the rapidly growing cultural tourism market. It introduces tourists to new flavours and different traditions associated with the preparation, serving, and consuming of foods and beverages. Although food has been strongly linked to tourism in some European and Asian destinations for years, culinary tourism is a relatively new phenomenon in North America. Current research tends to focus on only one aspect of culinary tourism, wine, with most research done in Australia and New Zealand. Although growing, there is still little research in Canada, and it has also concentrated on the wine component of culinary tourism. However, those who engage in wine tourism may not necessarily be the same people who would engage in other culinary practices such as visiting farmer?s fairs and markets, browsing food stores featuring local and gourmet ingredients, or who seek out authentic cuisine in restaurants. This study examines the characteristics and composition of the Canadian culinary tourism market and also explores the relationship between food and wine tourism. The study is based on the Travel Activities and Motivations Survey (TAMS) dataset. The survey was carried out between September 1999 and April 2000 and involved a telephone interview followed by a mail questionnaire. The total number of completed mail questionnaires received was 5,740, generating a response rate of 23. 2%. The objectives of the study were to understand the similarities and differences between 1) Canadian culinary travellers and the rest of the Canadian traveling population; 2) culinary tourists engaging in food-related activities, those who participate in wine, and those who participate in both; and 3) to identify segments of culinary tourists with respect to cross-participation in each of the culinary related activities. The segments were compared in terms of demographics, psychographics, vacation and getaway trip characteristics, and media consumption habits. To accomplish the first two objectives, culinary-related activities were arranged in three groups: <br> <b>Group One</b>: farmer?s fairs/markets; shop/browse gourmet foods in retail stores or farms; pick-your-own farms/harvesting; <Br> <b>Group Two</b>: restaurant dining featuring regional or local cooking; restaurant dining at internationally acclaimed restaurants; staying at a cooking school; staying at a gourmet restaurant with accommodation on premises; <br> <b>Group Three</b>: touring a region?s wineries where one stays one or more nights; going to wineries for day visits and tasting; staying at a wine tasting school. ?Culinary travellers? were conceptually defined as those who had taken trips in Canada in the past two years preceding the survey, and had participated in at least one activity from both group one <u>and</u> two <u>or</u> had participated in at least one activity from group three. ?Food travellers? were defined as those who had traveled in Canada in the past two years preceding the survey and had participated in at least one activity from Group One <u>and</u> Two and had not engaged in any activities in Group Three; ?wine travellers? were those who had participated in at least one activity in Group Three and did not qualify as ?food travellers?; and ?food and wine travellers? were those who met the criteria of both ?food? and ?wine? travellers. A factor analysis was performed in order to establish which cuisine-related variables were closely related and what underlying dimensions might exist in culinary tourism activities. The next step was to perform a k-means cluster analysis of the factors in order to identify distinct groups of cuisine travellers. The resulting four clusters were labeled: ?rural?, ?sophisticated?, ?indifferent?, and ?true cuisine?. The results show that the Canadian culinary tourism market represents nearly 45% of Canadian travellers and exhibits characteristics and behaviours that clearly distinguish them from other tourists. Canadian culinary tourists tend to be females in their mid-forties, highly educated with above average incomes; they are highly diverse in their travel motivations, interests, and activities pursuits (both at home and while traveling); travel mainly in the summer months but also take trips in the other seasons; they are accompanied by a spouse/partner (no children) while traveling and stay at hotels/resorts/country inns or at the homes of friends and relatives. They exhibit high readership preferences for newspapers (daily and weekend) and travel publications, and are more likely to use the Internet as an information source. In all instances, the culinary segment represented the large majority compared to the non-culinary travellers. Two segments emerged as relatively consistent across the analyses involving the ?food?, ?wine?, ?food and wine?, and the ?rural?, ?sophisticated?, ?indifferent?, and ?true cuisine? segments. These segments were the ?food/rural? and the ?food and wine/true cuisine? groups. The ?food/rural? group are highly interested in the local, traditional country-style forms of cuisine associated with rural regions; they seem to enjoy being in rural areas and close to the sources of their daily food. They tend to be females, in their mid-forties, with secondary education and middle incomes; travel to strengthen family ties, and seek simpler holiday experiences associated with rural regions. In contrast, the ?food and wine/true cuisine? group is very diverse in their travel motivations and activities pursuits; they are highly involved in all aspects of culinary tourism and exhibit high cultural orientation and exquisite tastes; these are females, in their mid-forties, university graduates with incomes well above average. Another interesting finding is that wine tourists appear mostly interested in the wine itself; they are not really as active and diverse in their activities and interests as the food and food and wine enthusiasts. This may indicate that food and not wine is what motivates culinary tourists; rather, wine is only a supplement. The findings of the study led to a consideration of possible marketing implications and areas for future research have been provided.

Assessment of tourism’s contribution to the economy of a country or a region is extremely complicated because of the nature of tourism. A tourism satellite account (TSA) is a major recent contribution in this area. It involves building a specific tourism account in the context of a national account. After more than 20 years of development, the current trend in TSA research is to refine and implement the method. This paper summarizes the methodology developments of TSA and explores the feasibility of adopting a TSA in municipal area. Thus, it discusses the TSA system from a municipal perspective. Because it is a new topic, a qualitative method is adopted by using a case study in Suzhou, China. The paper discusses and provides a definition of TSA from varied perspectives. It also provides a technical framework for a municipal TSA, illustrates the driving forces and institutional attitudes behind the development of such a TSA, and examines the limitations and advantages of the TSA methodology in a municipal context.

The purpose of my dissertation is to bring cultural geographic theory, including the ideas of representation, power, cultural and religious identity, and the contested and negotiated nature of places and identities, into discussions about the broader field of religious tourism. I use Temple Square in Salt Lake City, Utah, the spiritual centre of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (also known as the Mormon or Latter-day Saint Church), as a case study to discuss and contest three theories related to religious tourism and sacred space that are prevalent in the academic literature. These include the contested space theory, where I argue that discussions about contested space must be set in the historical context and conditions under which conflict or contestation is first developed, and the pilgrim-tourist dichotomy, the utility of which I question in light of management strategies Latter-day Saint Church leaders use to destabilise identities at Temple Square. I also critique the view that religious sites lack sufficient managerial expertise to be run effectively by religious site managers. In doing this I argue that scholars and tourism industry officials need to take religious culture and history more seriously when attempting to understand how leaders of various religious faiths view tourism and how those views influence the management of their sacred sites.

Local festivals and cultural events, signage and streetscape improvements, and regional marketing efforts indicate that tourism is present in some Business Improvement Areas (BIAs). However, the extent and form of this relationship has never before been examined in the North America context. The purpose of this thesis is to explore the involvement of Ontario’s BIAs in tourism. It reports on the findings of a 2008 province-wide survey of approximately 260 BIAs, touching on a variety of topics, including: the proportion of BIAs that are involved in tourism, the factors prompting them to attract tourists, the ways that they promote themselves to tourists, the types of tourism experiences that they offer, the positive and negative impacts of their tourism efforts, and whether they partner with other stakeholders in tourism promotion efforts. The data are then used to propose a typology of Business Improvement Areas showing differing levels and forms of tourism involvement. The thesis concludes by considering four case studies of successful tourism-oriented BIAs (Downtown Kingston, Downtown London, Downtown Yonge and Creemore), which are examined to identify the characteristics that have led to their success. The findings show that the majority of Ontario’s Business Improvement Areas are involved in tourism, using diverse methods to promote themselves as destinations. Their tourism offering usually includes special events and festivals, but can also involve investments in other attractions. Although BIAs are aware of both positive and negative impacts from tourism, tourism management efforts are uncommon. Seven characteristics of successful tourism-oriented BIAs are identified: innovation, self-awareness, appearance, attractions, partnerships, experiences, and planning. BIAs that strongly manifest these characteristics are believed to be likely candidates to benefit from the tourism industry.

Over the past decade, Persian Gulf countries witnessed an increase in tourism development and the number of international tourists. Though tourism development plays an important role in enhancing economies, tourism development may conflict with the region's conservative traditions and culture. The purpose of this research is to identify the attitudes and perceptions of residents in the State of Qatar towards the impacts of tourism development by: 1) applying Ap & Crompton's (1998) Index of Tourism Impacts (ITI): measuring the physical/ecological/social or cultural environments, and the residents' acceptance of visitors, 2) by identifying resident attitudes as expressed on Qatari-based social networks, and 3) through personal observation of resident attitudes. Respondents were selected using a convenience sampling technique to complete a survey instrument. Non-intrusive personal observation was also carried out to observe the nature of host-guest interactions at local tourist areas. Material regarding resident attitudes towards tourism development published through local media and forums on local social networks were collected. Descriptive statistics, factor analysis, and independent t-tests were used to describe data and to better understand resident attitudes towards the ITI dimensions. Content analysis was used to analyze forum entries, and field note extracts of personal observations were also used to present observed behaviours of residents. Survey findings reveal that resident attitudes differed according to respondents' age, length of residence, and ethnicity, particularly with respect to perceptions of change in local services and natural environment. The content analysis of forums revealed mixed feelings by residents (primary expatriates) towards tourism development. An attitude typology was derived from resident attitudes expressed through forum entries. Attitudes ranged from “denying tourism's existence” to “encouraging tourism”. Field observation of behaviours also revealed mixed attitudes towards the presence and behaviours of tourists, where residents either “accepted tourism” or “disapproved tourism”. Results suggested further research be carried out in testing the attitude typology in countries within the same region, and to modify the belief scale items and dimensions.