Tourism’s Troubled Times Responsible Tourism is Not the Answer
The author argues that the fundamental problem of tourism, as a global phenomenon, is the sheer volume involved. Unless attempts to solve the ravages of tourism address this central issue of volume, then claims that there are answer to the problems of tourism are not only wrong but can be invidiously and dangerously misleading.
Rather belatedly, some sections of the media have increasingly drawn attention to the negative effects that have invariably accompanied tourism development. Recent newspaper articles and television documentaries have served as a graphic warning of real destructive power of that potential pollutant – tourism.
At many UK tourist resorts some of problems highlighted are all too apparent – congestion, noise, litter, environment deterioration, etc. are depressingly familiar and examples legion.
In the wider global arena the situation is more acute. The magnitude and intensity of effects are exacerbated by the current tourist invasion in many developing countries. Environmental destruction is prevalent, cultural differences are most marked and social tensions heightened By the rapid uncontrolled flood of tourists from the alien industralized nations into the developing world.
While notable contributions towards addressing and resolving the negative impact of tourism have been attempted, overall there has so far been little actual development of effective policies (murphy 1985, krippendorf 1987, gunn 1988). In reality, adequate comprehensive management policies to cope with accompanying problems of tourism development are scarce. To suggest, however, that these contributions have failed would clearly e unfair - they have at least raised the level of awareness and debate. Indeed, many would argue vehemently that firm foundations for long-term solutions have been laid. I would disagree. These 'solutions' remain essentially theoretical, are not practical answers for the future and indeed are likely to fuel the very problem they are seeking to solve.
Whether there is an overall plus or negative balance from tourism is open to conjecture, the questions involved complex. What seems indisputable, however, is that the costs and benefits do not accrue evenly. Some benefit more than others - frequently some benefit while others pay the costs.
Although many concerned parties now acknowledge some of the negative aspects of tourism, there remains the general misapprehension that these costs are only or primarily associated with mass tourism. It is not really the individual tourist or small groups of tourists that are identified for criticism, nor is it travel - travel and traveller are beyond reproach. It is in fact popular mass tourism that is seen as the villain of the peace. The volume, the huge numbers involved, are critical. We look for an answer, an alternative - ideally to plan not only to minimize the cost of tourism and maximize to benefits but simultaneously to ensure an equitable and just distribution of these costs and benefits.
Respon tour
Responsible tourism has grown as a reaction to mass tourism, is being caught up in the groundswell of green issues and championed as a suitable way forward. I would strongly question this latter assertion - it cannot, by its very nature, be the way forward everywhere and it is, in fact, dangerously misleading. We have, on the one hand, a problem of mass tourism growing globally, out of control, at an alarming rate. And what is our answer? Small-scale, slow, steady controlled development. They just do not add up. It is true that both domestically and internationally there are many example of small-scale 'alternative' successes. I am not suggesting that this is not a good thing, merely that they should not be cited, deliberately or inadvertently, as evidence that tourism as a whole can in a physical sense be sensitively controlled.
Although the idea of small -scale development is laudable, it does not tackle the large-scale problem of volume. If all tourist destinations could carefully calculate their appropriate tourism thresholds and then miraculously impose restrictions to keep tourist number below these limits and if all the tourists were indeed 'sensitive travellers' - even then the tourist destination at a macro level would far outstrip the supply. At best it is a micro solution to what is essentially a macro problem.
The notion of educating the tourist / traveller in destination awareness is surely idealistic. Just how is the utopian sensitive traveller to be created? How is the exercise to be coordinated? Who pays for it? What time span is envisaged for the effect of the educative process to reach fruition, and what precisely is meant by educating? (What influence can education have in the light of such contradictory messages from, for example, the sun's 'how to be a beast in benidorm or a terror in torremolinos'? (The sun 1988). Is press to be controlled to eradicate such views?).
To implement effectively such a mammoth educative task in all tourist generating countries presents enormous and, i would suggest, insurmountable practical difficulties. Given the speed with which tourist impact is spreading, the reality of the situation is that if such an education programme could somehow be achieved, the time span required for its inception would inevitably witness continued irrevocable tourism damage. If we look at tourism /travel education in perspective then, however hard it is to accept, it seems the problem is now but education is for the future. There is also, of course, the salutary thought that by raising awareness (by 'better' education) we also raise demand - one of the main factors in the growth of tourist demand has undoubtedly stemmed from education itself.
In their rush to escape the mass tourist, the so-called aware, educated, 'I'm going ethnic' individual traveller is forever seeking the new, the exotic, the unspoilt - the vulnerable. Inevitably, however, they are inexorably paving the way for the package tour. The package tour - where he or she goes others will, in ever increasing numbers, eventually follow. Who, in the longterm, is responsible for the most damage - the mass tourist to mediterranean, or the sensitive traveller to the amazon, the himalayas or the sahara?
It is perhaps also worth nothing here the ambiguity of the term 'appropriate'. Arguments for appropriate tourism are being heard everywhere - but the vexed question of appropriate to whom or to what is left unanswered. I would suggest that for a number of interested parties, be they tour operators, international hotel chains, local indigenous beneficiaries and indeed many of the tourists themselves, we already have appropriate tourism. Vague, glib assertions as appropriate 'to the environment','to the host community' are not good enough. What, after all is precisely meant by the host community - the majority, those in power (democratically elected?), or the local politicians? Is, for example, the decision-making and development of UK tourist industry in hands of the 'host community'?
The old adage put forward by the tourist industry is that it must, by careful, sensitive and sensible management, preserve and enhance the product it is selling in order to maintain its market appeal. Tourism, it is argued, must therefore make a positive contribution to the host region. While perhaps valid in some micro-situation, this patently has not been happening on a global scale. In the context of a rapidly spreading international pleasure periphery, the philosophy of 'bugger it up and pass it down' seems to be a far more accurate description of what is actually taking place - witness the north european successive tourist invasion of Spain, greece and turkey and the subsequent meteoric growth of long-haul holidays. As O'grady (1981) points out, the tourist industry inadvertently acknowledges its own destructive power when it advertises new 'unspoiled' destinations away from and, as yet unfettered by, tourist pollution.
Macro micro
i understand the desire for small scale, for slow steady development, for a caring tourism. However, there are a number of fundamental economic dilemmas in converting this ideal into reality
clearly there can be small scale yet viable development. By keeping costs down, charging high prices for a specialist product etc, small firms can composate for, and overcome, their lack of economies scale. (we will sidestep here charges of elitism which, if proven, seem uncomfortably at odds with many of the overt liberal, caring attitudes of the green movement. ) Even with high spending customers, the fact remains that a small-scale development catering for small numbers will only have a correspondingly small effect on income and employment. the argument that together a number of small projects operating in unison could make a significant economic impact might be acceptable but then, of course, the aggregate number of tourists would also increase to significant levels. this is the situation that the new forms of tourism are trying to avoid.
There is the school of thought suggests sustainable does not necessarily mean small. Certainly from an economic vantage, there is credence to this. But surely there are extreme difficulties in marring large-scale tourism developments with the concomitant beliefs of sustainable, alternative tourism. Large-scale, spatially concentrated tourism may, as it is argued, act as 'safety-value' syphoning off potential demand for scarce resources elsewhere and it may keep mass tourism firmly in its place - these are debatable. But surely it will not prevent the 'educated traveller' continually pursuing, and temporarily satisfying, the desire for pastures new.
There is another disturbing aspect to the question of compatible economic viability. If appropriate tourism development is seen as the answer, or partial answer, to regional regenera
Tourism’s Troubled Times Responsible Tourism is Not the Answer
The author argues that the fundamental problem of tourism, as a global phenomenon, is the sheer volume involved. Unless attempts to solve the ravages of tourism address this central issue of volume, then claims that there are answer to the problems of tourism are not only wrong but can be invidiously and dangerously misleading.
Rather belatedly, some sections of the media have increasingly drawn attention to the negative effects that have invariably accompanied tourism development. Recent newspaper articles and television documentaries have served as a graphic warning of real destructive power of that potential pollutant – tourism.
At many UK tourist resorts some of problems highlighted are all too apparent – congestion, noise, litter, environment deterioration, etc. are depressingly familiar and examples legion.
In the wider global arena the situation is more acute. The magnitude and intensity of effects are exacerbated by the current tourist invasion in many developing countries. Environmental destruction is prevalent, cultural differences are most marked and social tensions heightened By the rapid uncontrolled flood of tourists from the alien industralized nations into the developing world.
While notable contributions towards addressing and resolving the negative impact of tourism have been attempted, overall there has so far been little actual development of effective policies (murphy 1985, krippendorf 1987, gunn 1988). In reality, adequate comprehensive management policies to cope with accompanying problems of tourism development are scarce. To suggest, however, that these contributions have failed would clearly e unfair - they have at least raised the level of awareness and debate. Indeed, many would argue vehemently that firm foundations for long-term solutions have been laid. I would disagree. These 'solutions' remain essentially theoretical, are not practical answers for the future and indeed are likely to fuel the very problem they are seeking to solve.
Whether there is an overall plus or negative balance from tourism is open to conjecture, the questions involved complex. What seems indisputable, however, is that the costs and benefits do not accrue evenly. Some benefit more than others - frequently some benefit while others pay the costs.
Although many concerned parties now acknowledge some of the negative aspects of tourism, there remains the general misapprehension that these costs are only or primarily associated with mass tourism. It is not really the individual tourist or small groups of tourists that are identified for criticism, nor is it travel - travel and traveller are beyond reproach. It is in fact popular mass tourism that is seen as the villain of the peace. The volume, the huge numbers involved, are critical. We look for an answer, an alternative - ideally to plan not only to minimize the cost of tourism and maximize to benefits but simultaneously to ensure an equitable and just distribution of these costs and benefits.
Respon tour
Responsible tourism has grown as a reaction to mass tourism, is being caught up in the groundswell of green issues and championed as a suitable way forward. I would strongly question this latter assertion - it cannot, by its very nature, be the way forward everywhere and it is, in fact, dangerously misleading. We have, on the one hand, a problem of mass tourism growing globally, out of control, at an alarming rate. And what is our answer? Small-scale, slow, steady controlled development. They just do not add up. It is true that both domestically and internationally there are many example of small-scale 'alternative' successes. I am not suggesting that this is not a good thing, merely that they should not be cited, deliberately or inadvertently, as evidence that tourism as a whole can in a physical sense be sensitively controlled.
Although the idea of small -scale development is laudable, it does not tackle the large-scale problem of volume. If all tourist destinations could carefully calculate their appropriate tourism thresholds and then miraculously impose restrictions to keep tourist number below these limits and if all the tourists were indeed 'sensitive travellers' - even then the tourist destination at a macro level would far outstrip the supply. At best it is a micro solution to what is essentially a macro problem.
The notion of educating the tourist / traveller in destination awareness is surely idealistic. Just how is the utopian sensitive traveller to be created? How is the exercise to be coordinated? Who pays for it? What time span is envisaged for the effect of the educative process to reach fruition, and what precisely is meant by educating? (What influence can education have in the light of such contradictory messages from, for example, the sun's 'how to be a beast in benidorm or a terror in torremolinos'? (The sun 1988). Is press to be controlled to eradicate such views?).
To implement effectively such a mammoth educative task in all tourist generating countries presents enormous and, i would suggest, insurmountable practical difficulties. Given the speed with which tourist impact is spreading, the reality of the situation is that if such an education programme could somehow be achieved, the time span required for its inception would inevitably witness continued irrevocable tourism damage. If we look at tourism /travel education in perspective then, however hard it is to accept, it seems the problem is now but education is for the future. There is also, of course, the salutary thought that by raising awareness (by 'better' education) we also raise demand - one of the main factors in the growth of tourist demand has undoubtedly stemmed from education itself.
In their rush to escape the mass tourist, the so-called aware, educated, 'I'm going ethnic' individual traveller is forever seeking the new, the exotic, the unspoilt - the vulnerable. Inevitably, however, they are inexorably paving the way for the package tour. The package tour - where he or she goes others will, in ever increasing numbers, eventually follow. Who, in the longterm, is responsible for the most damage - the mass tourist to mediterranean, or the sensitive traveller to the amazon, the himalayas or the sahara?
It is perhaps also worth nothing here the ambiguity of the term 'appropriate'. Arguments for appropriate tourism are being heard everywhere - but the vexed question of appropriate to whom or to what is left unanswered. I would suggest that for a number of interested parties, be they tour operators, international hotel chains, local indigenous beneficiaries and indeed many of the tourists themselves, we already have appropriate tourism. Vague, glib assertions as appropriate 'to the environment','to the host community' are not good enough. What, after all is precisely meant by the host community - the majority, those in power (democratically elected?), or the local politicians? Is, for example, the decision-making and development of UK tourist industry in hands of the 'host community'?
The old adage put forward by the tourist industry is that it must, by careful, sensitive and sensible management, preserve and enhance the product it is selling in order to maintain its market appeal. Tourism, it is argued, must therefore make a positive contribution to the host region. While perhaps valid in some micro-situation, this patently has not been happening on a global scale. In the context of a rapidly spreading international pleasure periphery, the philosophy of 'bugger it up and pass it down' seems to be a far more accurate description of what is actually taking place - witness the north european successive tourist invasion of Spain, greece and turkey and the subsequent meteoric growth of long-haul holidays. As O'grady (1981) points out, the tourist industry inadvertently acknowledges its own destructive power when it advertises new 'unspoiled' destinations away from and, as yet unfettered by, tourist pollution.
Macro micro
i understand the desire for small scale, for slow steady development, for a caring tourism. However, there are a number of fundamental economic dilemmas in converting this ideal into reality
clearly there can be small scale yet viable development. By keeping costs down, charging high prices for a specialist product etc, small firms can composate for, and overcome, their lack of economies scale. (we will sidestep here charges of elitism which, if proven, seem uncomfortably at odds with many of the overt liberal, caring attitudes of the green movement. ) Even with high spending customers, the fact remains that a small-scale development catering for small numbers will only have a correspondingly small effect on income and employment. the argument that together a number of small projects operating in unison could make a significant economic impact might be acceptable but then, of course, the aggregate number of tourists would also increase to significant levels. this is the situation that the new forms of tourism are trying to avoid.
There is the school of thought suggests sustainable does not necessarily mean small. Certainly from an economic vantage, there is credence to this. But surely there are extreme difficulties in marring large-scale tourism developments with the concomitant beliefs of sustainable, alternative tourism. Large-scale, spatially concentrated tourism may, as it is argued, act as 'safety-value' syphoning off potential demand for scarce resources elsewhere and it may keep mass tourism firmly in its place - these are debatable. But surely it will not prevent the 'educated traveller' continually pursuing, and temporarily satisfying, the desire for pastures new.
There is another disturbing aspect to the question of compatible economic viability. If appropriate tourism development is seen as the answer, or partial answer, to regional regenera
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