We use artistic metaphors to simplify the varying disciplinary methods used by tourism scholars. Through the art perspective, we illustrate how and why the majority of current tourism epistemology is based on a 'painters' perspective, a... more
We use artistic metaphors to simplify the varying disciplinary methods used by tourism scholars. Through the art perspective, we illustrate how and why the majority of current tourism epistemology is based on a 'painters' perspective, a preliminal approach focused on a disciplinary, structuralist approach. This represents a reactive stance to university and publishing expectations, where change, in the form of multi or post disciplinary thinking, as represented by an artist, is not always readily accepted. We note a small number of tourism scholars could be characterized as 'artisans, for while they recognize the value of art in a post disciplinary mode, they are not artists in their own right. The true artist, the one whose thinking totally disrupts that established by previous generations, has still to emerge.
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The book Accessible Tourism: Concepts and Issues is one of a kind, and is the only book currently on the market which discusses the concept of accessibility in relation to disability and tourism. Furthermore, the book covers a wide range... more
The book Accessible Tourism: Concepts and Issues is one of a kind, and is the only book currently on the market which discusses the concept of accessibility in relation to disability and tourism. Furthermore, the book covers a wide range of topics which are important in the field of accessibility research. By reading this book, the reader will obtain an overview of the concepts relevant to this field of study and will also learn about the gaps in research and knowledge in the study area, and what is occurring on the international stage. The book incorporates research that has been conducted in many countries around the world, providing a perspective on the accessibility challenges and issues that exist in different parts of the world. Furthermore, it explores the experiences and problems faced by people with a variety of disabilities. For example, blindness and the challenges of this group in accessing tourism amenities, mental health disabilities, physical disabilities, and the implications of aging, are all examined. The latter topic in particular is discussed to a level of detail that reflects its contemporary importance within tourism. Although the aging population may not necessarily have a disability, their age may cause them to have access challenges similar to those experienced by some disabled groups. Moreover, more generally the population of the world is aging and, hence, this is an issue of significant and increasing importance in the field of accessibility research, as well as being of direct current relevance to the provision and management of tourism opportunities and experiences. It follows that improvements in accessibility that are made to meet the needs of people with disabilities in particular are likely to improve the well-being of a much larger proportion of the population in general. One issue that is not discussed in the book is the accessibility challenges experienced by parents travelling with small children. This group of travellers has access needs and experiences similar to many of the difficulties faced by disabled travellers, yet this is not recognized and the implications of this are not discussed. Nevertheless, the book does a good job of examining the concept of universal design, and discussing the relevance of this approach for families travelling with small children could be a means of demonstrating that people with disabilities are not alone in their accessibility challenges, thereby confirming the applicability of universal design in improving accessibility for all travellers. Another topic which is pertinent in today’s technological age is accessible web design. This book devotes much space to the examination of accessible web design and adaptive technologies. People with disabilities use a wide variety of adaptive technologies and often experience many challenges in accessing basic information. Thus, in a book devoted to concepts and issues in the field of accessibility, web design and adaptive technologies are central issues. This is especially the case since many hotels, resorts, airlines and other touristic stakeholders use the web, not only to advertise but also to allow travellers Tourism Planning & Development Vol. 8, No. 4, 467–470, November 2011
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Many destination management organizations have treated brochures as an important platform to deliver various travel information. However, how people read a tourist brochure has not been investigated adequately. This may pose obstacles in... more
Many destination management organizations have treated brochures as an important platform to deliver various travel information. However, how people read a tourist brochure has not been investigated adequately. This may pose obstacles in designing an appealing brochure. There is a need to understand how people read a brochure and what information is most appealing to them. This research took the Ottawa Visitor Guide 2017/18 as a case and used a triangulated approach that included observational eye-tracking, a survey, and in-depth interviews to provide more insightful explanations. This study demonstrates how eye-tracking technique can be used in the assessment of the effectiveness of a tourist brochure, generates insights into consumers’ visual behaviours, and gives implications on the design of a tourist brochure
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Travel brochures have been considered an influential tool in shaping a tourists’ intention to visit and remain an important source for destination information today. This research provides a glimpse into the behaviours of tourism brochure... more
Travel brochures have been considered an influential tool in shaping a tourists’ intention to visit and remain an important source for destination information today. This research provides a glimpse into the behaviours of tourism brochure readers, demonstrating several major tourist reading typologies as found through eye-tracking technology and interviews
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Social media sites are an increasingly popular forum for loyal and engaged destination advocates to promote a place and encourage visitation. Motivation to advocate is related to one's identity, belonging and involvement with a place,... more
Social media sites are an increasingly popular forum for loyal and engaged destination advocates to promote a place and encourage visitation. Motivation to advocate is related to one's identity, belonging and involvement with a place, factors of particular relevance to residents. Borrowing from the field of social psychology, this study examines the role of national identification as a determinant of residents’ destination advocacy behaviour. Adapted to a tourism context, it measures relationships between identity and advocacy for the first time. Canadian residents (n = 465) were surveyed online through Destination Canada's Facebook page, revealing that the stronger one's national identification, the more likely one is to advocate for their nation. The relationship positively impacts destination image and tourism ethnocentrism, newly identified relationships that contribute to destination marketing theory and practice. Further, it is not destination image that influences an ethnocentric sense of duty to travel within one's boundary; it is national identification.
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To harness the benefits from tourism opportunities, especially in developing destinations such as the Caribbean, better integration of accommodation facilities into local supply chains is imperative. Attributes such as location,... more
To harness the benefits from tourism opportunities, especially in developing destinations such as the Caribbean, better integration of accommodation facilities into local supply chains is imperative. Attributes such as location, accommodation types, business model, and amenities, among others, all contribute to the success of the property. Hotel management will arguably be considered vital to properties’ success, but service leadership appears to be of utmost importance. The extent to which appropriate this leadership is executed directly impacts the service outcomes and service quality. Judgments on the appropriateness of service leadership can only reasonably be made by employees and customers in a service oriented business model. This qualitative study investigated two hotel-local food supply chains based on a service-oriented framework. It was found that the hotel with a focus and emphasis on service throughout the supply chain – both forward towards the consumer and backward towards the supplier – had greater success in strengthening local food usage at the property
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Virtual reality (VR) technology has provided a new way for tourism planning and design. It not only allows planners to better implement tourism planning, but also enables tourists to experience the charm of tourist destinations or... more
Virtual reality (VR) technology has provided a new way for tourism planning and design. It not only allows planners to better implement tourism planning, but also enables tourists to experience the charm of tourist destinations or attractions on a deeper level. However, research on planners’ perception of using VR in tourism planning is still in the early stages. Based on the Technology Acceptance Model, this study conducted a depth interview with five senior tourism planners in China to explore factors that influence VR application in tourism planning. The results show that five factors have important influences on VR acceptance, including perceived ease of use, perceived usefulness, perceived cost, perceived enjoyment and perceived immersion. Among them, the first three factors can be summarized as a technical support dimension, and the last two as an emotional feedback dimension. The results provide insights for improving tourists’ virtual experience by using VR technology in tou...
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ABSTRACT The use of social media to engage in travel-related discourse plays an increasingly important role in destination choice as users turn to virtual communities where exchanges between visitors and residents thrive. There is growing... more
ABSTRACT The use of social media to engage in travel-related discourse plays an increasingly important role in destination choice as users turn to virtual communities where exchanges between visitors and residents thrive. There is growing recognition of the local resident as destination advocate, yet research of online advocacy behavior is limited. This study analyzes 1,226 messages exchanged among members of a Facebook travel community using netnography, supplemented by several in-depth interviews, to reveal behaviors including sentiment expression, advocate-focused and visitor-focused. The findings extend our understanding of destination advocacy, building on social identity theory to identify unique patterns of co-created social participation.
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Tourism is becoming increasingly significant for the Xiajin County economy. The county has abundant natural, cultural and historical resources, and it would benefit from the development of rural tourism (RT). However, rural areas face... more
Tourism is becoming increasingly significant for the Xiajin County economy. The county has abundant natural, cultural and historical resources, and it would benefit from the development of rural tourism (RT). However, rural areas face many challenges in developing RT. The first step in overcoming these challenges is to engage in strategic planning, which is the process of determining a vision for the desired future and establishing how to get there. This study was intended to highlight the potential for RT in Xiajin County, China. The specific objectives of the study were to understand the current state of RT development in Xiajin County, to identify strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and threats and to provide possible strategies for development of RT in the county. Findings of the study indicate that to grow sustainable tourism, the Xiajin County government should develop, implement and monitor appropriate RT management and marketing plans that include identified weaknesses, str...
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This study delineates the benefits sought by US pleasure travellers to Hawaii by using a factorcluster market segmentation technique. Based on four benefit factors (knowledge/learning; relaxation; family/social bonding; and pleasure... more
This study delineates the benefits sought by US pleasure travellers to Hawaii by using a factorcluster market segmentation technique. Based on four benefit factors (knowledge/learning; relaxation; family/social bonding; and pleasure experience), cluster analysis was used to identify similar respondents based on the benefits that they sought. This study identified three distinct segments: active travellers, relaxation seekers, and traditional tourists. The following variables were shown to be statistically significant among the three segments: age; gender; education; occupation; marital status; ethnicity; household size; information sources; Web site visit behaviour; destination selection factors; appealing states; travel frequency to Hawaii; and activities enjoyed. The study discusses the distinctive and common characteristics of the three identified segments. INTRODUCTION Since Smith (1956) introduced market segmentation, it has received much attention in research circles and has b...
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This study investigates the effects of country image, subjective knowledge, and destination trust on influencing travel attitude and visit intention cross-culturally under the adverse conditions of an ongoing pandemic. Furthermore, it... more
This study investigates the effects of country image, subjective knowledge, and destination trust on influencing travel attitude and visit intention cross-culturally under the adverse conditions of an ongoing pandemic. Furthermore, it tests the travel attitude and visit intention by domestic residents and international travellers, specifically Canadians travelling in Canada versus Americans travelling in the US, and Canadian travelling to the US versus Americans traveling to Canada. Specifically, visit intention within one year and two-years was examined to further reveal the underlying relationships between those important constructs. Findings confirm that country image positively influences travel attitude, but that destination trust is more prominent under an adverse event. The indirect impact of country image through destination trust on travel attitude is significantly greater than the direct impact of country image. Subjective knowledge of the COVID-19 pandemic negatively influences both domestic and international travel attitude although its impact on destination trust varies with the risk of the domestic environment.
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This study aims to clarify how ecolodge entrepreneurship evolves from idea formation to ecolodge establishment in emerging markets. The related process affects authentic ecolodge development. The research employed grounded theory to... more
This study aims to clarify how ecolodge entrepreneurship evolves from idea formation to ecolodge establishment in emerging markets. The related process affects authentic ecolodge development. The research employed grounded theory to explore this process and its implications to examine for the first time how individuals enter the ecolodge industry in an emerging market. The interaction of four constructs (namely drivers, motives, context, and idea sources) explains the costs and benefits that ecolodge entrepreneurs perceive in entering this industry. Moreover, we develop a new typology of tourism entrepreneurs in an ecolodge context based on the combined approach. Entrepreneurs are classified into three segments, including ecolodge lovers, cool job seekers, and young detached entrepreneurs. Although the ecolodge lovers were most in line with the principles of sustainable tourism and most likely to set up authentic ecolodges, most of the entrepreneurs belonged to the other two cluster...
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ABSTRACT Effective and inclusive community participation is an essential and challenging component of sustainable tourism planning and development, especially as communities become increasingly diverse. The establishment of national parks... more
ABSTRACT Effective and inclusive community participation is an essential and challenging component of sustainable tourism planning and development, especially as communities become increasingly diverse. The establishment of national parks and other protected areas closer to urban areas provides a unique opportunity for investigating community engagement in diverse contexts, as park agencies are mandated to connect with a broader range of community stakeholders. Historically, the engagement of immigrants and minorities with parks and protected areas has focused primarily on visitation, while their role as members of host communities has for the most part been overlooked. This qualitative study, conducted during the development of Canada's first National Urban Park, addresses this need by providing a deeper understanding of immigrants’ engagement in planning. In-depth, semi-structured interviews are conducted with planners, politicians, community organizations, and first-generation immigrants who are now community leaders. The study draws upon, and expands on, earlier work by McCool and by Bramwell. It recommends five underlying principles for more inclusive public conversations: adopting an ongoing, long-term, and communicative approach; being open to new perspectives and willing to revisit assumptions; designing parallel strategies and customized tactics; collaborating with community leaders; and engaging in short-term and long-term learning.
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Since the mid 1990s, both domestic and international tourism in China has grown rapidly evidenced in many destinations. In particular, tourism plays an important role as a major destination in regional economic development. This article... more
Since the mid 1990s, both domestic and international tourism in China has grown rapidly evidenced in many destinations. In particular, tourism plays an important role as a major destination in regional economic development. This article reviews promotional videos of the main destinations in China as research data, analyzes the common content elements, orientations, presentation methods, persuasion methods, time patterns, and the use of sound, music and volume in Beijing, Nanjing, Chengdu, Chongqing, Xi’an, Qingdao, Shanghai, Shenzhen, Xiamen, and Hangzhou. Finally, the authors make suggestions regarding the images of promotional videos, reflecting on the subjects, contents and techniques of shooting the videos, and study the content and techniques of the photographers. Moreover, the authors put forward suggestions on improving promotional videos of destinations from the perspective of the subjects, contents and techniques of shooting.
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This study adopted two-factor theory in measuring tourist satisfaction by using two separate questions of ‘satisfaction’ and ‘dissatisfaction’ with the overall travel experience. It tests the premise that “tourists who are not satisfied... more
This study adopted two-factor theory in measuring tourist satisfaction by using two separate questions of ‘satisfaction’ and ‘dissatisfaction’ with the overall travel experience. It tests the premise that “tourists who are not satisfied are dissatisfied and those who are satisfied are not dissatisfied” on the basis of one-factor theory of consumer satisfaction, suggesting that there exist “tourists who are neither satisfied nor dissatisfied” and “those who are both satisfied and dissatisfied.” This implies that adopting the two-factor theory may be an advanced, more useful approach to study tourist satisfaction according to the research purposes and scopes.
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Abstract Many developing countries depend on tourism as their main engine for economic development, but sustainability is often a concern. In the absence of inter-sectorial linkages between tourism and other industrial sectors,... more
Abstract Many developing countries depend on tourism as their main engine for economic development, but sustainability is often a concern. In the absence of inter-sectorial linkages between tourism and other industrial sectors, opportunities for trickledown benefits to host communities are stymied. For decades, researchers have been contending with issues related to strengthening agriculture and tourism linkages as a strategy to maximize economic linkages. This service-oriented approach to the local food supply chain is posited as a new model in which agriculture and hotel linkages can be advanced. We collected data about local food hotel supply through interviews with key stakeholders. The findings from our exemplary case study confirm that strengthening inter-sectorial linkages have benefits for stakeholders. This case study suggests that there are opportunities for tourism policies that foster local food linkages with high-end accommodation properties as a strategy to spread the economic spin off from tourism and also to encourage youth involvement in sustainable tourism development.
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This article presents the first multivariate analysis of the Human Resource Module (HRM) of the Canadian Tourism Satellite Account. Annual labour productivity is calculated for six tourism industries using the National Tourism Indicators... more
This article presents the first multivariate analysis of the Human Resource Module (HRM) of the Canadian Tourism Satellite Account. Annual labour productivity is calculated for six tourism industries using the National Tourism Indicators and the HRM. The impact of various labour force characteristics on labour productivity is measured through the estimation of an econometric model. Labour productivity is found to increase with the capital labour ratio, the proportion of part-time hours, the share of hours supplied by women, the proportion of immigrant workers and the proportion of the most experienced workers.
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Binaries are very prevalent in society, including tourism scholarship. A review of the abstracts of published papers in Annals of Tourism Research, Journal of Travel Research and Tourism Management for a five year period (2007-2012) notes... more
Binaries are very prevalent in society, including tourism scholarship. A review of the abstracts of published papers in Annals of Tourism Research, Journal of Travel Research and Tourism Management for a five year period (2007-2012) notes a total of 88 papers based on either/or analysis. We suggest researchers seek out the fertile area between binaries to add new dimensions that go beyond forced boundaries.
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This paper was supported by the World Bank.