Abstract not available. / Thesis (M.T.R.P.)-University of Natal, Durban, 1998.

Thesis (MTech (Tourism and Hospitality)))--Cape Peninsula University of Technology, 2010. / Local communities in Namibia have few options for alternative income apart from selling crafts and livestock farming. The main objective of this study was to create an in-depth understanding of the perceptions of the local community at Twyfelfontein Uibasen Conservancy regarding community based tourism (CBT), and to develop strategies that could be used to influence these perceptions with the main goal of using CBT as a vehicle towards the improvement of local peoples' livelihoods. The study also examined structures and institutions that impact the direction of CBT development at Twyfelfontein Uibasen Conservancy. Both qualitative and quantitative methods were employed for data gathering. A survey was undertaken by means of 67 structured questionnaires among local community members and key stakeholders, which resulted in a 100% return rate. Five in-depth interviews with stakeholders from government, NGOs, the private sector and financiers were also conducted. The findings reveal that local community measure development in line with socio-economic issues since 39% strongly disagreed that their needs are being met through CBT project implementation. They feel that the infrastructure for tourist is well developed for international standards, whilst conversely, community members live in squatter camps, burn candles and live in squalid conditions. Whilst the Namibian government has recognised tourism as a potential means of poverty alleviation, issues of ownership of cultural heritage resources are still not yet in the hands of locals. The study argues that tourism development has been pursued more for economic purposes than for sustainable tourism development. Whilst the conservancies were set up as a strategy for poverty alleviation, the study concludes that development has not yet filtered down to the needy. Therefore, perceptions among the local community are negative towards CBT as a vehicle for socio-cultural and economic development. This study recommends that in order for CBT development to be meaningful, local participation through ownership, capacity building and control should have precedence over pure economic issues. Currently, the biggest beneficiaries seem to be the private tourism sector and, to some degree, foreign investors. Further research should be conducted to evaluate the impact of community perceptions on the tourist in the long - run, since tourist arrival figures continue to increase at Twyfelfontein.

Doctorat en sciences sociales, politiques et économiques / info:eu-repo/semantics/nonPublished

Thesis (M. Tech.) - Central University of Technology, Free State, 2006 / Since the earliest days, people have travelled. Not only was it time consuming, limited and only for the rich, but it was not necessarily a pleasure. Since those early days, travel and tourism has developed to such an extent that it has become one of the major industries in the world, providing the tourist with amongst others technologically advanced air transportation, luxury resorts and a variety of experiences and attractions at many different destinations. The major developments in air transportation have opened up many opportunities, but it has also placed most destinations within easy reach of the tourist, as most destinations have become more accessible. This automatically led to increased competitiveness between different destinations, both locally and internationally. Competitiveness of the destination may be based on a variety of contributing factors such as its scenic beauty, the variety of attractions offered, natural resources, the accessibility, the host population, availability and quality of infrastructure, diseases, flight availability and frequency, seasons and many other factors. However, a destination will never become the most popular or most visited one if the tourist cannot afford to visit it. Price undoubtedly plays a very important role in the decision-making process of the tourist when choosing a destination. The prices at any destination are influenced by a variety of internal and external factors which, in the end, has a direct influence of the actual travel cost of the tourist. This study focuses on South Africa’s price competitiveness as an international destination. The major travel components or products that an international tourist will spend money on during his/her visit to South Africa are international flights, accommodation, attractions and food and beverages. The prices of these components were compared to similar products of Thailand and Australia, which have previously been identified by SA Tourism as South Africa’s major competitors. The focus of the research is therefore on the expenditure patterns, price perceptions and the tourists’ perception of whether or not they perceived South Africa’s tourism products to be affordable, to offer value for money or not. Perceptions of departing international tourists who have already used these products were tested. Once established, an international travel price index and a hotel price index were formulated for South Africa, which may be used to monitor international tourist expenses. These indices may also be used as indicator of the affordability and price competitiveness of South Africa as a tourist destination. There is not one individual in South Africa that cannot, either by means of direct or indirect revenue, benefit from South Africa being a tourist destination of choice. The opportunities and possibilities created by foreign revenue spent are legio. Hence it comes as no surprise that tourism in South Africa has become the priority of many different role players such as government, commerce, product owners and private industries. As it is difficult for a destination to control the external environment, the destination’s focus should therefore rather be on the factors that it can control or influence to a certain extent. By ensuring that South Africa’s tourism products are competitively priced and offer value for money, one of the major factors that may hamper the growth of South Africa as a destination has been addressed. In economic challenging conditions, the tourist has become more value for money driven than before when choosing a destination. The focus of the research is therefore to establish if South Africa’s tourism product prices are regarded to provide value for money or not to international tourists. The research was divided into two parts: literature and empirical research. The population of this study was foreign tourists to South Africa that have completed their journey and who were questioned in the departure halls of Johannesburg’s Oliver Thambo and Cape Town International airports. An overview of the research results give a general indication that South African tourism products are more expensive than was anticipated by foreign tourists. Seventy five percent of respondents indicated that they paid more for accommodation, air transportation and attractions than they expected to pay. Of the different accommodation types used, the five star luxury hotel accommodations were found to be too expensive whilst other graded accommodation were perceived as being priced fairly, even cheaply. The paid attractions that the respondents visited were, with the exception of the Kruger National Park, all fairly priced. Cape Town was indicated as a city that was perceived to be more expensive that other cities visited by international tourists.

Despite its growing importance in industrialized nations, the service sector has received relatively little attention from economic geographers in recent debates over the nature and significance of the current processes of change affecting contemporary capitalism. This lack of attention means that we have little detailed knowledge about how the various industries that comprise the service sector are restructuring their operations and how these processes, in turn, influence broader economic change. This thesis goes some way toward redressing this imbalance by studying the evolving structure of two key sectors of the Montreal tourism industry--hotels and travel agencies. / I begin with an overview of past attempts to understand the changing role of the service sector in developed economies. Despite their weaknesses new political economy frameworks are shown to perhaps provide the best starting point for the development of a more 'services informed' approach to understanding current economic change. / In an attempt to highlight the strengths and weaknesses of applying such approaches to the study of services I first review their ability to explain and predict changes currently taking place in the tourism industry as a whole. This is followed by a discussion of the empirical findings of the thesis based on 103 interviews with managers and owners of Montreal hotels and travel agencies. I focus on the following key areas: the evolving competitive environment, changes in corporate organization, the adoption of new technologies and shifts in labour use. (Abstract shortened by UMI.)

No abstract available. / Thesis (M.T.R.P.)-University of Natal, Durban, 2001.

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