No description available.

In 2004, the Brazilian Ministry of Tourism launched the Tourism Regionalization Program (Roteiros do Brasil), which presented new prospects for Brazilian tourism through decentralized management. One of the goals of this program was to disperse Brazil’s tourism supply, predominantly located along the coast, and bring tourism to the interior of the country. Brazil’s formal recognition of the need for diversification of its tourist destinations was a positive step toward the development of a thriving Brazilian tourism market, but in the global tourism market, Brazil continues to be associated with a limited number of stereotypical attractions. Despite the advances achieved by the Tourism Regionalization Program, tourism remains geographically concentrated in cities such as Rio de Janeiro and São Paulo. This research serves as an analysis of the lesser-known tourism market in the Serra Gaúcha region of Rio Grande do Sul, Brazil. Through the use of fundamental qualitative research methods, namely semi-structure interviews and questionnaires completed by students and professionals involved with tourism—both in the Serra Gaúcha as well as outside of Brazil—I assess the current state of tourism to the region in order to formulate key recommendations for the development and improvement of the industry there. From the results, I conclude that the tourism boards of the municipalities throughout the Serra Gaúcha should join together to function regionally in order to more effectively market themselves as a desirable tourist destination and to compete on a national scale for tourists’ attention. In light of the magnified attention Brazil is enjoying due to its selection as the host for both the 2014 World Cup and the 2016 Summer Olympics, now is an optimal time for competitive touristic regions, such as the Serra Gaúcha, throughout Brazil to actively build their brand and pursue tourism development strategies tailored to their unique regional strengths and weaknesses. / text

No description available.

Serious academic enquiry for the tourism sector may appear inconsequential, but the business of tourism is complex and fragmented. Tourism is a multi-disciplinary phenomenon facilitating research from a number of different angles and providing many services requiring partnership between public and private collaboration towards delivering an effective tourism sector. Waterloo Regional Council declared its aspiration for Waterloo Region to be a destination of choice. However, there has been no research conducted to understand the viability of this aspiration. Thus, this research understands from a stakeholder perspective how tourism development is being undertaken in the Region. This will provide a preliminary understanding on tourism development in the context of economic, social and environmental dimensions of development. The joint use of two theoretical frameworks helped to identify and manage divergent perspectives of sixteen stakeholders who provided the primary data for this research. The data revealed three major themes through a changing lens that first considers the role of tourism as an effective vehicle of development. This meets with change due to limitations and uncertainties due to constraints that lead to conflicts between stakeholders responsible for its development. Findings reveal that stakeholders confront numerous fundamental challenges, which provide constraints and bottlenecks for tourism development in the Region. This research understands the need for leadership, strategy and effective collaboration between all stakeholders as vital for tourism development.

ABSTRACT The cruise sector constitutes one of the fastest growing sectors of the tourism industry. With the continued growth of the industry comes the need to develop new ports to accommodate the increased volume of ships as well as the increasing size of modern cruise ships. It is important to understand how the development of new cruise ports impacts the local community. Therefore, the purpose of this study is to identify the attitudes and perceptions of residents regarding the impacts of the new cruise ship port development in Falmouth, Jamaica. The Historic Port of Falmouth was developed through a partnership between Royal Caribbean and the Port Authority of Jamaica and is the largest purpose-built port of call in the Caribbean. A case study approach was utilized to identify the attitudes and perceptions of residents regarding the impacts of the new port development in Falmouth, Jamaica. The study consisted of semi-structured interviews, and participant observation. The research took place in Falmouth in March 2012. A total of 23 interviews were carried out with residents who had varying levels of involvement with tourism. The three overarching themes emanating from the analysis of the data are: Big Ships, Big Disappointment, What could be improved? and All is Not Lost at Sea. Findings revealed that Falmouth residents are disappointed with the development because they have not received the economic benefits they were promised by Royal Caribbean. Despite the residents’ frustration and disappointment with the port, many still believe that it has given some opportunity for residents to improve their quality of life. The powerlessness of members of small Caribbean communities in the face of large tourism developers is evident throughout the study.

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.

A persistent trend in the tourism field is the emergence of different types of niche markets. One niche form of heritage tourism that has gained popularity in Scotland since the Millennium, is ancestral tourism. Ancestral tourism is defined as choosing to travel to a host country based on one’s ancestral origins and genealogical interest. This paper traces the nature and importance of ancestral tourism for Canadian Scottish descendents in Ontario, Canada. Based on a social constructivist and multiple methods approach, the ancestral tourism initiative was reviewed within the perspectives of both the demand and supply side. The demand side findings revealed that Canadian Scottish descendents identified with and participated more in their social heritage at the local level, than in their personal heritage in the homeland. The degree to which the descendents were involved in Scottish heritage and ancestry was dependent on a variety of factors such as the emigration date of the respective ancestor, life-changing circumstances, and external stimulants. The majority of Canadian Scottish descendents were characterized as supplementary ancestral tourists and revealed that traveling to Scotland, for an ancestral tourism experience, would be one of many motivations for traveling to the homeland. Supply side findings characterized ancestral tourism as being “embryonic and full of potential”. A few challenges for those involved in the facilitation and marketing of the ancestral tourism experience were also highlighted. Characteristics associated with the ancestral tourism product were diverse and the changing nature of the genealogical resources utilized by descendents was reviewed. A shortfall of marketing the ancestral tourism initiative to only international visitors was examined, despite healthy promotional efforts such as the “Ancestral Tourism Welcome Scheme”. Key recommendations for parties interested in the ancestral tourism initiative included increased coordination among stakeholders at a regional level, increased funding and functioning capacities for the volunteer sector, re-examining current marketing strategies to include the domestic level, expanding marketing activity in the Canadian context, and maintaining ancestral tourism as a modest and “intimate” trend.

Professional management literature suggests that goal setting is one of the most important steps in the organizational process as goals provide a clear understanding of the directions in which the organization is heading. In ensuring that each member of an organization is aware of its goals, the goal communication process is viewed as a central part of everyday management. Goal communication between managers and interpreters at Ontario heritage sites is the focus of the present study. Three sites were investigated, and three different research methods were used to obtain the data: semi-structured interviews with managers and interpreters; analysis of documentation related to the operation of the sites; and participant observation. The study’s findings revealed that: 1) not all heritage sites have their goals documented; 2) the documentation of site goals does not necessarily guarantee that interpreters are aware of them; 3) goals of the sites are communicated to interpreters by only two means – orientation, and reading materials; and 4) more training is required for interpreters in order to implement their site’s goals successfully and consistently. A number of recommendations for heritage site management were developed, which include extending goal communication techniques to daily site interaction and to daily assignments given to interpreters, as well as exploring new goal communication channels and providing opportunities for continuous training of interpreters.

The study explored risk perceptions and novelty dimensions associated with family vacations. In particular, the study focused on households containing married or common law partners, blended families, single parents and same-sex partners, with at least one child aged twelve years old or younger, located in one of the Region of Waterloo’s three cities, encompassing Kitchener, Waterloo, and Cambridge, Ontario. The research explored whether novelty or familiarity of a vacation destination affected the level of risk perceived as well as the locus of control. Additionally the research focused on particular aspects of the family vacation including the decision making process and the stage of the family life cycle in which respondents are categorized, having either younger or older children, affected the decision making process. Lastly, the study looked at external sources of information including family and/or friends, other sources of information, prior experience at the destination, if applicable, and the distance traveled, borders crossed and transportation utilized. Families in each specified area were initially accessed through five direct contacts and an associated snowball sampling method. A revised data collection method was utilized part way through the study being distribution at a recreation centre within the Region. Respondents were asked to complete a self-administered questionnaire containing questions relating to their last family vacation, preferences for novelty/familiarity, locus of control orientation, degree of risk perception agreement or disagreement and basic sociodemographic characteristics. Data were reduced to minimize complexity through a series of factor analyses through the use of components analysis. It involved taking salient items and factoring them together based on the conceptual fit within each loading having eight components created. T-tests and analyses of variance were utilized to further univariate relationships between variables of interest. Relationships between perceived risk, gender and prior experience were non-significant (p > .05) whereas family life cycle, level of education, crossing an international border, and total distance traveled had a significant effect on risk perceptions (p < .05) and were included in stepwise regression analyses. The present study complemented emerging literature suggesting that parents with older children attributing greater risks as associated with creating memories. There was less support for extant research indicating that families with younger children are more likely to associate as many risks with travel. Similarly, preference for novelty/familiarity was found to not have a significant effect on respondents’ risk perceptions yet certain external sources of information (e.g., friends/family, travel agents) played a large role in the level of risk perceptions.

Community-based natural resource management has been introduced in Ghana as an instrument to assist nature conservation and natural resource management, as opposed to the fences and fines approach of the protectionist model. The purpose of this study was to examine the extent of natural resource exploitation by the local communities in and around the Ankasa Resource Reserve after the introduction of the Amokwawsuazo Community Resource Management (ACREMA) programme. Particularly, the study sought to understand whether the implementation of ACREMA has helped to achieve nature conservation and natural resource management inside and outside the Reserve. The specific study objectives were as follows. First, the study seeks to assess the socio-demographic characteristics and economic activities of ACREMA community members. Second, the impact of ACREMA community members’ activities on natural resources of the Reserve was assessed. Third, the extent of natural resource exploitation after ACREMA was evaluated. Fourth, examine the measures undertaken to minimise natural resource exploitation in the Ankasa Resource Reserve after ACREMA was introduced. Fifth, the research assessed the ACREMA community members’ willingness to support nature conservation and other alternative livelihood programmes such as tourism. Finally, the research sought to provide guidelines and recommendations for policy makers, park management and other parties interested in the implementation of any development project in the Ankasa region. The study was justified because very little has been documented about the effectiveness of this approach in promoting nature conservation in Africa. Therefore, this study could contribute to understanding of the effectiveness of community-based resource management programmes in achieving nature conservation in Ghana. In order to achieve the objectives set, the study developed a conceptual framework based on social exchange theory. Social exchange theory conceptualises human behaviour as an exchange of goods and services, both tangible and intangible, and based on rewards for services rendered. The study combined both quantitative and qualitative research techniques. Hence, the main modes of data capture were survey, focus group interviews and in-depth interview. While quantitative data was analysed using SPSS version 14, qualitative data obtained were transcribed and analysed according to emerging themes. The results showed that natural resource exploitation declined following the introduction of ACREMA. This was as a result of the more effective collaboration and partnership developed between park management and local community members. Where exploitation existed, the study showed that this was primarily due to poverty and a lack of alternative resources. Secondly, the research demonstrated that ACREMA community members were willing to support nature conservation and as a result have undertaken several measures to minimise natural resource exploitation within the Ankasa region. The high level of enthusiasm to support nature conservation and tourism development was largely attributed to benefits already received for undertaken conservation measures as well as benefits perceived to result from the development of tourism in the future. Due to lack of alternative livelihoods, household heads also expressed interest in providing tourism-related services such as accommodation, catering services, working as drivers and tour guides if and when tourism becomes available in the region. This case study confirms that community-based natural resource management has been successful in achieving nature conservation and natural resource management in the Ankasa Resource Reserve and area. The study also provided several policy implications and pointed out areas for further study.