Leisure, Sport and Tourism

Students will be able to:

• Understand the factors that have led to the growth and changing patterns of international tourism.

• Describe the leisure and sport at various scales and their significance for urban regeneration, using examples examples.

• Explain the characteristics of a national tourist industry, ecotourism, and tourism as a development strategy, with reference to principles of sustainable tourism.

Tourism

Travel away from home for at least one night for the purpose of leisure.

Three sub-divisions of tourism:

• Ecotourism• Heritage tourism• Sustainable tourism

Ecotourism

The Ecotourism Society defines it as "responsible travel to natural areas which conserves the environment and improves the welfare of the local people"

Heritage Tourism

• The National Trust for Historic Preservation’s (NTHP) definition of cultural heritage tourism is “traveling to experience the places and activities that authentically represent the stories and people of the past and present.

Sustainable Tourism

• Tourism attempting to make a low impact on the environmental and local culture, while helping to generate future employment for local people.

• The aim of sustainable tourism is to ensure that development brings a positive experience for local people, tourism companies and the tourists themselves

NEPAL VIDEO

• There are three models of tourism– Butler’s model of evolution of tourist

areas– The core periphery model of tourism–Myrdal’s process of cumulative

causation

Models of tourism

BUTLER VIDEO

Butler’s model• There are 6 stages to the butler

model– Exploration– Involvement– Development– Consolidation– Stagnation– Decline

Butler’s model• There are 6 stages to the butler

model

Exploration• Small number of tourists• Tourists are attracted by natural

beauty • New location• Exotic adventurous travel• Minimal impact• Few tourist facilities exist

Involvement• Tourists accepted• Tourism is acceptable• Destination becomes better known• Improvements in tourism

infrastructure• Some local involvement in tourism

may begin• A “tourist season”

Development• Inward investment• Tourism becomes big business• Companies from MEDCs take control,

manage and organise tourism• Increased numbers of package holidays• More holidays• Less local involvement• Increased tension between locals and

tourists

Consolidation• Tourism becomes important industry• Not just provision of facilities but also

marketing and advertising• Agricultural land converted to hotels• Facilities can only be used by tourists• Resentment begins• Decelerating growth rate

Stagnation• Increased local opposition• Awareness of problems tourism

creates• Fewer new tourists arrive

Decline• Area decreases in popularity• International operators move out• Local involvement may resume• Decline in tourism• It is possible for rejuvenation

Core periphery model

Core periphery model• Examines social and economic influences on

tourism• Flow of tourists from core (MEDCs) to

periphery (LEDCs)• Familiarity leads tourists to historic or colonial

areas• Unequal development– People from MEDCs perceive LEDCs as more

ignorant and less developed• Resorts and enclaves designed specifically for

tourists• Therefore little experience of real life– Socially, economically or culturally

Some key words

• Carrying capacity– The number of visitors that can be

catered for in a resort before the tourist experience declines and the resort becomes less attractive

– Ceiling or saturation level• Overpopulation– Too many people relative to the

resource– The attraction is ruined by tourists

Cumulative causation model• It is also known as the multiplier

effect• Acquired advantages are developed

and reinforced thereby attracting more investment