This timely book explores how hiking, trekking and climbing mountains, increasingly popular leisure activities, can stimulate change and create opportunities for sustainable development. Using empirical evidence from interviews held in the Himalayas combined with a theoretical grounding, it focuses on the socio-economic and environmental issues of the impact of mountaineering adventure tourism on local communities.
In May 1993 the British Mountaineering Council met to discuss the future of high altitude tourism. Of concern to attendees were reports of queues on Everest and reference was made to mountaineer Peter Boardman calling Everest an ‘amphitheater of the ego’. Issues raised included environmental and social responsibility and regulations to minimize impacts. In the years that have followed there has been a surge of interest in climbing Everest, with one day in 2012 seeing 234 climbers reach the summit. Participation in mountaineering tourism has surely escalated beyond the imagination of those who attended the meeting 20 years ago. This book provides a critical and comprehensive analysis of all pertinent aspects and issues related to the development and the management of the growth area of mountaineering tourism. By doing so it explores the meaning of adventure and special reference to mountain-based adventure, the delivering of adventure experience and adventure learning and education. It further introduces examples of settings (alpine environments) where a general management framework could be applied as a baseline approach in mountaineering tourism development. Along with this general management framework, the book draws evidence from case studies derived from various mountaineering tourism development contexts worldwide, to highlight the diversity and uniqueness of management approaches, policies and practices. Written by leading academics from a range of disciplinary backgrounds, this insightful book will provide students, researchers and academics with a better understanding of the unique aspects of tourism management and development of this growing form of adventure tourism across the world.
This book offers a critical account of the historical evolution of mountaineering and its relation to the phenomenon of tourism, providing an overview of recent developments linked to the diversification, commodification and commercialisation of mountaineering activity. Mountaineering, broadly defined as hiking, trekking and climbing, is now a mass phenomenon, with continually growing numbers of trekkers, climbers and religious tourists hiking in mountain regions. Increasing visitor numbers require the current policies to be updated. The environments around high-mountain areas and their local resident communities, until recently cut off from civilisation, are sensitive to outside influences and have been abruptly exposed to the impact of mountaineering and related activities. This is the first book to disentangle overlapping terms and definitions related to mountaineering tourism. It identifies the key terms and turning points in mountaineering tourism and discusses the impacts of mountaineering tourism from an environmental, socio-cultural and personal perspective and identifies current tourism management policies. Finally, this book provides a continuum between the past and future of mountaineering tourism and aims to provide policy suggestions for sustainable management of fragile mountain regions. This will be of great interest to upper-level students and academics of tourism, as well as industry representatives and policymakers with an interest in adventure tourism and mountaineering.
Mountaineering has served as a metaphor for civilization triumphant. A fascinating study of the first ascents of the major Alpine peaks and Mt. Everest, The Summits of Modern Man reveals the significance of our encounters with the world’s most forbidding heights and how difficult it is to imagine nature in terms other than conquest and domination.
Walking tourism is one of the most popular ways to experience a destination. It allows to engage with local people, nature and culture, and meets the growing demand of travellers of outdoor activities. Walking tourism can be developed anywhere as a sustainable tourism offer and can bring social and economic benefits for local communities.
The Himalayas, with their grandeur and cultural richness, magnetize global travelers searching for an escape from the ordinary. However, behind this allure lies an ecological responsibility and sustainability imperative. Many involved with the tourism industry in mountainous regions have been confronting the stark realities of tourism's impact on these delicate ecosystems. There is an urgency to address the challenges posed by climate change, all while safeguarding the indigenous traditions that define the Himalayas. Mountain Tourism and Ecological Impacts: Himalayan Region and Beyond unravels the intricate connections between tourism development and its far-reaching implications. This comprehensive exploration delves deep into the heart of the Himalayan region and beyond, shedding light on the diverse dimensions of mountain tourism and its profound impact on local environments, communities, and cultural heritage. This book reveals the tapestry of tourism experiences found in the peaks and vistas of the Himalayas. It delves into eco-tourist's delicate dance with fragile ecosystems, the coexistence of travelers and wildlife, the exhilaration of adventure tourism, and the spiritual pilgrimages that draw seekers from across the globe. This book comprehensively explores the pivotal role of preserving local cultures and underscores this as a key element of conserving the pristine natural habitats. This book is ideal for academics and researchers, tourism professionals, environmentalists and conservationists, government and NGOs, and travel enthusiasts.
This timely and interdisciplinary book is the first to examine mountain tourism and local communities with a pro-poor lens. By drawing on human geography, political and social science, ethics and moral philosophy and empirical research, the volume explores how mountain tourism can be used to fight poverty and inequality in mountain regions. Mountain tourism represents a growing mass tourism phenomenon. The local population, recognizing the possibilities for increased income, started to develop in situ services. However, sensitive to outside influences, the environment of high-altitude mountain areas resident communities have been abruptly exposed to impacts from mountain tourism-related activities, although until recently, they have been cut off from civilization. The natural environment and people living in mountain regions have been affected by an increasing number of visitors in the last few decades. Hence, this book provides an expert-led and comprehensive summary of mountain tourism development and illustrates how tourism can increase benefits for the poor within local communities. Furthermore, it presents updated management and governance policies. This volume will be of pivotal interest to scholars and practitioners from the fields of geography and tourism studies, ethics, and development economics, as well as policymakers, aid agencies, and general readers interested in sustainable development in mountain regions.
The academic study of adventure tourism is rapidly increasing in popularity, with research beginning to focus on it heavily. This book is a cohesive and comprehensive look at this multi-million dollar industry sector from a variety of perspectives relevant to the teaching of tourism. Ideal for the undergraduate student taking adventure tourism as a single subject degree, or as part of their tourism management studies, this book documents, analyses and offers insight into the latest research in the area. Includes analysis of products, trends, climate change, risk management and environmental management and many others. The Subsectors section within the book offers an overview of the twenty or more definable sectors within the adventure tourism industry considering their origins and history, latest trends and demographic groups. The author then goes on to look in more detail at: Wildlife Tourism, Marine Tourism, Helitourism, and Boardsports. Each chapter will include seven pedagogical elements: * introduction - what the chapter does and doesn't cover * plain-language review of the chapter topic with minimal referencing - essentially like lecture notes * concluding paragraph to the review section explaining how it leads to the next chapter(s) * review of recent research, condensed into tables where possible * revision notes - a few pages of bullet points summarising the review and research * a sample set of assignment questions, three to six per chapter in some cases * readings on relevant topics, condensed from previous publications.
"Experiences have become the hottest commodities the market has to offer. No matter where we turn, we are constantly inundated by advertisements promoting products that promise to provide us with some ephemeral experience that is newer, better, more thrilling, more genuine, more flexible, or more fun than anything we have previously encountered. In turn, consumers themselves are increasingly willing to go to great lengths, invest large sums of money, and take great risks to avoid "the beaten track" and "experience something new."" "Working with an interdisciplinary approach, this book critically analyzes the significance this market for experiences (and interest in them) is having as a generative motor of cultural and socioeconomic change in modern society."--Jacket.
This handbook offers a comprehensive overview of the themes and concepts related to nature-based tourism development. Providing interdisciplinary insights from leading researchers, academics, and practitioners across the globe, it delivers a critical and timely contribution to the knowledge around nature-based tourism. Nature-based tourism is currently the fastest-growing tourism sector globally and for many destinations, the most significant tourism segment. Organized into five parts, this handbook provides contemporary and cutting-edge perspectives on core topics and explores their linkages. It considers, among others, various natural settings and natural attractions where nature-based tourism can be exercised, including: protected and conserved areas, islands, and mountains; the emerging themes shaping the contemporary nature-based tourism development, including ethics, Sustainable Development Goals, COVID-19 crisis, over-tourism, climate change, resilience; and new approaches toward the visitor management and low-impact experience design, including regenerative and transformative tourism, destination stewardship and pro-environmental behaviour. Part I introduces the concept of nature-based tourism and the emerging challenges in the field. Part II explores the key components in the management and planning of nature-based tourism development. In Part III the handbook focuses on visitor experience design and management and Part IV highlights the impacts of nature-based tourism. Part V examines the future of nature-based tourism and possible solutions to mitigate associated challenges in the field. The handbook offers a valuable contribution with a systematic outlook of the phenomenon of nature-based tourism and critical perspectives on key concepts, policy, and practice. It shares current knowledge, innovative tools, and sustainable solutions with substantial evidence and societal impact. The book will appeal to students, researchers, and professionals in the fields of tourism, human geography, leisure studies, business studies, and sociology. Chapter 12 of this book is freely available as a downloadable Open Access PDF at http://www.taylorfrancis.com under a Creative Commons Attribution-Non Commercial-No Derivatives (CC-BY-NC-ND) 4.0 license.
