UK tourism

Facts and Figures

UK tourism

• Generates > £53 bn for economy

• aprox 27million visitors in 2000

UK tourism

• 4% GDP due to tourism

• 6% employment linked to tourism

UK tourism

• Tourists go: 41% London, 7% Scotland, 3% Wales

• £11bn spent on domestic trips within UK

UK tourism

History

UK tourism History

• 18th century:

• Spa towns popular

• Practice of taking waters?

• eg Bath Buxton

UK tourism History

• 19th century:

• Prince Reagent- believed in healthyness of sea bathing- established

Brighton Pavilion

UK tourism History

• 19th century:

• By 1840s Brighton and Scarborough major resorts

• Later on resorts like Margate+ Blackpool catered 4 working

classes

UK tourism History

• Wking class holidays^-• Better +cheaper rail transport

• Economic growth-Better pay

• Holiday act forcing companies to give workers holidays

UK tourism History

• 19th century:• Rural: Landscape of

Lake+Peak district pop with upper class

• +Club outings & Mystery trips

UK tourism History• 20th century:

• 1945-65 high point of great British holiday

• Paid holidays made compulsory in 1938

• New holiday camps etc

UK tourism History

• Rural - 1946 creation of national parks & rising car

ownership >

• Tourist explosion

• High demand for services>

UK tourism History• Tourist boards - distribute info

+ management

• New Accommodation eg B&Bs

• New attractions- eg country houses

UK tourism History

• Themed marketing eg Emmerdale

( I thought they were trying to promote tourism?)

• Development of Enclave tourism eg Centre Parcs

UK tourism History

• 1970 - Tourism act- To Strengthen UK tourism

internationally

• & improve provision of tourist facilities by:

UK tourism History• Co-ordinate commercial, public & voluntary sectors

• Tourist information offices:connect demand to

supply

• Help fund local projects

Oxford

Urban Tourism

Tourism in Oxford

• Not heavily promoted

• Over 5 million visitors in 1996

• Creates 7300 full time jobs (3-4% active pop)

Tourism in Oxford

• Botanic Gardens

• The Oxford story

• Ashmolean Museum

Attractions

Tourism in Oxford

• Blackwells Bookshop

• Carfax Tower

• Sheldonian Theatre

Attractions

Tourism in Oxford

• Most Pop colleges:• Christ Church• Magdalene

• New College

Attractions

Tourism in Oxford

• 750000 overnight stays in Oxford

• 2.28 m day trips

• £258 million total value to economy

Tourism in Oxford

• 45% come by car

• 36% pub transport (park + ride)

Tourism in Oxford

• Problems:

• Too much Traffic

• Overcrowded

• (expensive)

Tourism in Oxford

• Oxford Tourist Strategy Aims:

• Ensure tourist satisfaction

• Inc tourist spending

• Minimise enviro probs

Management

Tourism in Oxford

• By:

• Larger coach park

• Harsher parking regs

• Promote park + ride

Management

Tourism in Oxford

• Enc walking tours +cycles

• publicise less pop attractions to disperse

visitors

Management

Tourism in Oxford

• Increase no off season visitors

• Re-invest tourist money into infrastructure etc

Management

Tourism in Oxford

• Eg:

• University Student acc used for conferences

• Oxpen coach park

Management

Tourism in Oxford

• Signposts

• Shopping developments: Riverside Walk

• Improve disabled access

Management

The Lake District

Rural tourism in the UK

The Lake district

• Made a national park in 1949

• Good accessibility;

• M6 motorway

• +Railway links

The Lake district• 50% employment linked to

national park• Park managed by:

• Cumbria tourist board (business)• National Park Authority (conservation)

• Friends of the lake district(“)• National trust (owns 1/4 land)

The Lake district

• Aims of national parks:• Conserve environment

• Enable access & range of outdoor pursuits

• Protect local peoples quality of life, + economy

The Lake district

• These aims often conflict as do the management

bodies

• Problems eg Congestion

• 95% tourists arrive by car

The Lake district

• Congestion>pollution, detracts from scenery etc• eg Ambleside traffic major

problem through village

• Suggestion of building a bypass blocked by environment lobby

The Lake district

• 1993 Cumbria tourist board + other groups launched initiative

to reduce traffic: included:

• Blanket speed limits

• Park + ride Schemes

• Some roads banned form use

The Lake district• However, struggle with tourist industry as it reduces business• All groups agree on need for public transport eg Park & ride

ferry boat scheme on lake Windermere

The Lake district

• Other probs: power boats on lake Windermere

• Noise+pollution

• Park authority wanted a 10kmph speed limit

The Lake district

• V unpopular with local business -no one rents

power boats • Govt inquiry- found in favour of ban but was overturned by secretary of state (conservative)

The Lake district

• Lake district highly dependant on tourism, needs careful management

to remain popular

• Future developments shifting to outside park boundaries eg

Oasis holiday village

Broadstairs

Coastal tourism

(in decline)

Broadstairs

• V pop 1920’s -1960s• Historical attraction: Charles

Dickens wrote books there:• 2 Dickens museums get

28000 visitors pa

Broadstairs

• Serious decline since 1960s

• Hotels converted to Care homes

• 15% unemployment

Broadstairs

• Remaining Hotels had to diversify: bring in business

tourists

• Once profitable places like the theatre, built in 1993, now make a loss(relies on café)

Broadstairs

• Broadstairs now relies heavily on foreign tourists

• Arrive by channel tunnel or subsidised Ostend-

Ramsgate ferry

Broadstairs

• Many foreign tourists exchange students arrive

Easter - August aprox 1000 per annum

• Market generates £13M for Broadstairs

Broadstairs

• Quaintness + Dickens connection has kept

Broadstairs afloat

• Over dependency on tourism & a good summer

The Gambia

W Africa

advantages+problems

Tourism in The Gambia

• 130,000 visitors per year

• 90,000 from Europe

• Come for Winter Sun

Tourism in The Gambia

• Gambia-very poor:

• pop 1.038mill

• Under 5 mort rate 129/1000

• 40% pop live in towns

Tourism in The Gambia

• Tourism brings vital income

• Helps escape cycle of poverty

• Welcome alternative to agriculture (mainly peanuts

+cotton)

Tourism in The Gambia

• However tourism is seasonal: facilities unused+ unemployment in summer

• Tourist infrastructure development costs increass government debt

Tourism in The Gambia

• Infrastucture unavailable to most locals as it is

concentrated in tourist areas

• Govt has to increase security spending to protect tourists

Tourism in The Gambia

• Most tourist developments owned by foreign countries

>little money stays in country

• Hotels mostly import food >little trickle down effect

Tourism in The Gambia

• Problem especially with all inclusive holidays

• Foreign investors interested in quick returns not

sustainable development

Tourism in The Gambia

• Westernisation of local population> Bumsters young

peeps who follow tourists

• Local people seen by police as second to tourists

Tourism in The Gambia

• Attempts at Ecotourism:• Kachokorr ecotourist camp,

Tumani Tenda• Owned by villagers

• Built+ maintained with local materials

Tourism in The Gambia

• Experience true local culture + food eg Domoda (rice+

peanut sauce)

• Experience history of area: Slavery

Tourism in The Gambia

• Tours through forest (local guides)

• Tours through Bo Long marshes in canoes

(pirogues): observe Wildlife

Antigua, Caribbean

Tourism conflicts

Antigua

• Tourism vital

• Hotels alone employ >6000 people

• Future developments eg Asian run holiday village

promise 2000 jobs

Antigua• However few locals get high paid

managerial jobs, go to foreigners• Much of industry owned by

outside companies• All inclusive holidays & cruises-no

trickle down

Antigua

• Most tourist food imported

• Population made to feel subservient, hotel workers forced to smile for tourists

• Westernisation of culture

Antigua

• Environmental damage:

• Dredging for boat access stirs up sediment- settles on + kills

coral

• Tourist Developers get high subsidies> corruption

Venice

Veneto region of Italy

Environmental probs Venice

• Rapid tourist growth: 50 k tourist 1952 > 1.13m in 1987

• Pop loss 175,000 in 1951 > 78,000 in 1990

• Buildings protected from change by govt

Environmental probs Venice

• Major flooding problems: severe floods in 1966

–Sinking ground level

–Rising sea level (global warming)

Ian is great

(Subliminal message)

Environmental probs Venice

• Serious air + water pollution• Estimated carrying capacity

25,000 p day • Regularly exceeded; 37,000 in

Aug• Exceeded on 156 days(1987

Environmental probs Venice

• At peak times bridge from mainland closed

• Serious congestion

• Lower quality tourist experience

Environmental probs Venice

• Generally land prices increasing + too many tourists-

drives out locals• Area loses culture

• Economy stagnates• Set to get worse

Environmental probs Venice

• To reduce congestion only authorised coaches allowed

into city• City withdrew its bid for EXPO

2000 (comic convention)• (that was in mr Long’s notes god knows why)

Monte Verde Cloud Forest

Costa Rica

Ecotourism

Monte Verde Cloud Forest

• Currently attracts 1 million visitors pa

• The cloud forest is 1700m above sea level and is rich

in biodiversity

Monte Verde Cloud Forest

• 100 mammal species• 400 bird species

• 120 reptile & amphibian species

• Thousands of insect species

Monte Verde Cloud Forest

• Original visitors mostly scientists

• Carefully managed by Quaker community

• 1972 Monteverde reserve created

Monte Verde Cloud Forest

• Area publicised in media• Now accounts for 18% of Costa Rica’s tourism revenue• In-migration due to plentiful

jobs

Monte Verde Cloud Forest

• Most businesses, eg hotels owned by locals> money

stays in area>

• Trickle down effect (money spent on other local services

etc)

Monte Verde Cloud Forest

• Tours through parks carefully supervised>

• Environment protected

• Growth of infrastructure

• Some miss the isolation

Belize

Ecotoursim failed?

Belize• Good destination:

• 1/4 country a reserve of some kind

• coral reefs• 450 cayes (small islands) good

for scuba diving

Belize

• Historic interest> Mayan cities

• Sub tropical climate

• Close proximity to southern US cities

Belize• In 1990 tourism worth £40mill

to GDP

• 2nd to agriculture as % of GDP

• However poor management> problems

Belize

• Damage to reef at Hol Chan marine reserve

• Loss of mangroves due to development (important

fish hatcheries)

Belize• Important bird nesting sites bulldozed to build runway on

one island

• Increased Foreign ownership> 90% of new

developments

Belize• Some successes: eg Hopkins

village- A hotel and cultural centre run by a local woman’s

cooperative

• Encourages understanding of culture &history

Antarctica

It’s all about the money, I mean ecotourism

Antarctica

• Carefully regulated by IAATO (International Association of

Antarctic Tour Operators)

• Ensures protection of environment + wildlife

Antarctica• 3 types of tourism:

• V expensive camping trips for naturalists

• Cruises• Over-flights (previously stopped for 20

years after crash of a DC10 on Mount Erebus)

Antarctica

• Most cruises start either from Ushaia or Port

Stanley (Falkland Isles)

• 95% tourists use cruise ships

Antarctica

• Most ships relatively small-average capacity 50-100

• Tourists well educated about fragile environment

• Ships self contained> minimal pollution

Antarctica• 200 possible visiting sites

(although tourists can land anywhere except preservation

areas)

• Kept free of overcrowding by only allowing 100 ashore at a time (in

groups of 20)

Antarctica

• Tourism growing rapidly

• 1998 10,000 visitors recorded

• Predicted to reach 30,000 by 2020

Antarctica

• Increased environmental pressure: larger

ships:carrying 500

• So far little impact only 5% tourist sites show any “wear

and tear”

Antarctica

• Future problems:

• Frequent visitors may affect health of animals:

• Risk of introducing diseases

Antarctica

• Future problems:

• Frequent visitors may affect health of animals:

• Risk of introducing diseases

Antarctica

• & presence of tourists may stress animals: eg outside

Antarctic: bottlenose dolphins rest 0.5% of time

when 3 boats present, 68% with one boat

Antarctica• Also some pollution: paint

scrapped of hulls of ice breakers contains tributyltin (TBT),

designed to kill algae & barnacles

• Found at v high levels on floor of McMurdo Sound