Strategic Tourism Planning for Communities

This chapter investigates the concept and relationship between community pride, involvement, and participation needs in the sustainable tourism development. The study will also try to find out how local communities are involved in various activities and practices for the development of the sustainable tourism. Local community participation in tourism activities has become one of the major principles of sustainable tourism. As tourism is a people-oriented industry, its major functions depend on human resources. A significant number of communities depend on tourism as a primary source of income. Tourism contributes to the growth of a community because it creates a lot of jobs in the various industries associated with tourism.

Riverston, Sri Lanka, is famous for its natural and cultural significance. The tourism industry is emerging there and expanding with more community engagement. Riverston being a community-based tourism site, this study aimed at discovering the perception of the Riverston community on tourism development further focusing on the market opportunities, challenges, and strategies for the way forward. Data were collected from the Riverston area community who engage in tourism through in-depth interviews with semi-structured questions, and the sample was selected based on the purposive sampling technique. Data were analyzed through content analysis. The findings disclosed that challenging the authentic culture, traditional livelihood shifting toward tourism, lack of awareness and knowledge of the tourism industry among the community, the impact of legal restrictions on the community, and lack of education are the sociocultural challenges for the community on tourism development. The Riverston area is getting developed in terms of infrastructure with tourism development, and that benefits the living conditions of the community. Further, results indicated forest conversation policies had impacted the community’s living in high magnitude. It persuades people to move away from agriculture to the tourism sector. In addition, the timely need for a well-planned sustainable tourism approach and awareness from ground-level tourism practitioners was underscored by the data set.

Intangible cultural heritage (ICH) can be a valuable tourism asset for both government and local communities. Due to the fragmented nature of ICH data, it becomes difficult for the researchers to comprehend its impact on the psychology of the interacting tourists. Prior research has shown that traditional crafts and craftsmanship as ICH could be used to promote a place. However, ICH has scarcely been considered as a place branding element. The study apprehends that branding places with ICH will not only upscale the place in terms of ethno-cultural significance but also will integrate the visiting population with the ICH and thereby ensure knowledge propagation and preservation and reinforce the cultural roots. The study proposes a reflective brand model in the context of ICH of Natungram, a village known for its legacy of craftsmanship of wooden dolls. The study used crossover analysis framework (CAF), as a part of causal mixed-method research design, to inquire into the complex psyche of the tourists while interacting with the ICH and the artisans at Natungram. Three distinct brand elements were identified through a qualitative thematic content analysis, namely subjective vitality, authentic experience, and experiential quality. The brand model was tested for its impact on the behavioral pattern of the tourists by using appropriate quantitative method. The results confirmed both direct and partially mediated effects of the brand elements on the tourist behavior. In future, the model could be extrapolated spatiotemporally for places of ICH significance.

This chapter delves into the enhancement of the tourism industry through strategic entrepreneurship (SE) and digital transformation. The potential of these methodologies in revolutionizing tourism development and management is emphasized. The Fourth Industrial Revolution, characterized by technologies such as the Internet of Things, big data, artificial intelligence (AI), cloud computing, augmented and virtual reality, and 3D printing, has permeated various sectors including governance and commerce.

This paradigm shift has also seeped into tourism, dubbed as Tourism 4.0 by Korze (2019). As highlighted by Peceny et al. (2019), the infusion of critical communication and information technologies, particularly augmented reality (AR) and virtual reality (VR), into the tourism sector can provide tourists with vivid previews or simulations of attractions. Such immersive experiences can influence travel decisions.

There's an evident rise in the integration of the Fourth Industrial Revolution's technologies in tourism. A prominent example is the adoption of these innovations in digital marketing strategies, especially on social media platforms (Zeng & Gerritsen, 2014; Leung et al., 2013). Given the profound impact of digital tech in molding a network-driven consumer behavior (Rogers, 2016), it becomes imperative for the tourism sector to undergo a comprehensive digital metamorphosis, paying heed to value chains and systems (Ismail et al., 2017).

Furthermore, the importance of SE cannot be overlooked (Ireland et al., 2003; Ireland & Webb 2007). It encapsulates an entity's prowess in seizing opportunities with apt strategies, ensuring the tourism industry remains resilient and thriving.

Rebuilding communities in economically struggling places might mean taking steps to combat poverty and promote economic growth. This can entail boosting employment prospects, promoting small-town enterprises, and enhancing access to health care and education. The COVID-19 pandemic had a significant and all-encompassing influence on economy around the world. In order to craft a convincing case for the critical role that microfinance plays in promoting the expansion of small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) and, as a result, helping to rebuild communities and achieve the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), the author has used a thorough literature-based methodology in this chapter. This is an opinion-based chapter. In order to discover recurring themes and patterns connected to microfinance, SME development, and SDGs, the author has rigorously analyzed and integrated the data and insights offered in various sources. The presented thoughts and policy suggestions are built upon the findings of this literature research.

Social/physical distancing rules that resulted in the novel coronavirus (COVID-19) have caused restrictions on national and international transportation. Since tourism activities are an industry based on transportation and travel, they have been affected negatively because of COVID-19. It has become necessary to create a contactless environment by leveraging technology to mitigate these negative impacts. smart transportation system (STS) applications have played a crucial role in enabling contact-free travel in providing the continuation of tourism activities in a controlled manner by utilizing information and communication technologies. Therefore, in this study, it was tried to determine whether STS applications are functional in ensuring the contactless transportation required in COVID-19 and in the face of possible future outbreaks. In this study, COVID-19 and STS terms are tried to be defined, and the importance of these two concepts in terms of tourism activities has been discussed considering their cause–effect relationship in line with the purpose of the research. STS applications have been determined to be the most appropriate approach in terms of carrying out controlled tourism activities in accordance with the social/physical distancing rules arising from COVID-19. According to the findings of the research, STS provides an opportunity for people to use contactless payments and purchase tickets online with smart phones. Additively, by controlling passengers’ luggage through mobile applications and reducing the time spent waiting in the lobby, thereby minimizing prolonged interpersonal contact.

Travel aimed in experiencing the arts, heritage, and activities that authentically depict the stories and people of the past and present is referred to as cultural and heritage tourism. This has gathered a lot of attention in the last 10 years. In order to protect their valuable history, developing countries require assistance from the international community. Cultural heritage tourism is a significant economic development tool and one of the best components of the tourism sector.

In the 21st century, in terms of museums and showcasing culture, there has been a significant commotion toward the role of people or community, rather than the morality of objectification of knowledge in a close-ended glass case. This concept can be traced back to “New Museology,” emerging since the 1970s, where a section of like-minded museologists believed that museums are for the people and of the people. It is important to include the “voices of the community” as a whole, therein, becoming a broad parlance of social culture (MacDonald, 2006).

Community participation is a process where people are facilitated by themselves and their responsiveness to their own traditions and culture. Henceforth, this chapter is an approach toward a case study of an emerging concept in Delhi – A Neighbourhood Museum in Shadi Khampur area, where the locality is prevalent since the 12th century. Other locals preside over the predating of Partition in the 17th century, when their ancestors settled from Lahore since then.

Pro-poor tourism (PPT) can be a strategy for sustainable tourism realization. The strategy puts local people as the subject of tourism development processes from planning, executing, controlling, and also evaluating. It means local people, including poor people, are empowered to increase their income because their daily activities are connected to the tourism sector. Tourism development in Pemuteran Village can be recorded as a good example of successful PPT implementation in Bali Province, Indonesia. In the 1990s, a Balinese socio-entrepreneur came to the north Bali Islands, introducing the tourism business as a new source of family income for poor people. To change poor people's perception that tourism can provide a positive impact on the village, it faced a difficult challenge. Therefore, the socio-entrepreneur approached poor people with such a special touch that he modified drama gong (a traditional art performance in Bali) and Hindu ritual ceremonies in the temple as development communication channels. This is a good strategy to encourage poor people's participation in tourism development so that Pemuteran Village is known as a popular tourist destination in Bali. Tourism activities provide better income to local people because residents of Pemuteran Villa can get jobs or manage businesses in the tourism sector. Therefore, this research discusses the transformation process of Pemuteran Village from a poor village to a favorite maritime tourism destination. In fact, both of this process and progress had been inspired and supported by the Balinese socio-entrepreneur in order to lead poor people shifting their mindset and behavior to engage in tourism development.

In recent decades, the concept of pro-poor tourism has emerged as one of the integral mechanisms that benefit the poor and the underprivileged sections of society. Eradication of poverty is a top priority of human development that is mentioned in the United Nations (UN) Millennium Development Goals (MDGs). Given the expansion of the tourism industry at present in India, the sustainability of this sector is significant, particularly in the rural and remote areas for the facilitation of income-generating opportunities to these vulnerable sections of society at large. The present research study aims to find out the various factors that determine the growth and expansion of the Indian tourism industry and to evaluate how such factors correlate with the alleviation of poverty in India. A panel regression is fitted to find out the nexus between the growth and expansion of the tourism industry in India and its impact on poverty alleviation standards. The selected dimensions, viz. number of tourists visited, per capita income at the state level, index of poverty as measured by headcount ratio, inequality index measured by GINI coefficient, economic specific variables such as literacy rate and infant mortality rate, and state of instability in states measured as by frequency of incidence of crimes in the region are being employed in the study. The estimated model reveals that the effects of tourism development have significant and bountiful outcomes in reducing poverty in India during the study period 2005–2018, as indicated by the estimated coefficient value of (−0.0655), controlling for the selected economic and state/region-specific variables.

The COVID-19 pandemic has had a profound impact on the world, particularly on the international travel and hospitality industry, which is highly sensitive to such disruptions. The global tourism industry has been severely impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic, leading to extensive discussions and examinations of the relationship between the virus and tourism in international tourism literature. Based on this premise, this chapter presents the results of a bibliometric study analyzing the COVID-19 literature in tourism. The study aims to identify current research areas and provide recommendations for future research. A total of 537 studies, comprising 477 articles and 60 other types, were included in the analysis. Analysis was conducted using R tools to identify and discuss the most pertinent sources, authors, affiliations, and countries. The most frequently cited countries and documents were also examined. The 537 studies that were examined in these discussions have developed various propositions. It is desirable for these propositions and other research findings to serve as a roadmap for potential research opportunities.

Green labeling and green scapes are generally associated with environmental practices known as eco-labeling. In the hospitality industry, the concept of green scapes and green labeling has been associated through the attraction of customers toward hospitality organization's brand mark. Green practices make a customer conscious and more tangible for a brand or product. Somewhere, green practices have the instinct to throw as an open-up strategy for futurism growth and to build the brand mark at the next market step of the industry. The determination of green practices of a hospitality organization is performed by the environment working employees (Villemereuil & Gaggiotti, 2015). The organization is advantageous only when the in-house environment is attractive. Green scapes are performed only on the criteria of key certification. The viewpoint of this chapter is to fulfill the criteria of green practices (Warren et al., 2008), attracting brand marks in the hospitality organizations of UT regions. This chapter will investigate the perceptions of industrial employees attracting the brand mark of any hospitality organization in UT states. This chapter will highlight the impact of B2B and B2C businesses connecting to the working environment toward attracting the brand mark of hospitality organizations in the UT states region. This chapter will be paying heed to discuss the enhancing effect of B2B businesses in the UT states market of the tourism and hospitality sector. The sample collected for this chapter using closed ended questionnaire from hospitality organization or hotels in UT destination.

Tourism is one of the key economic activities in the world. Sri Lanka is a country that deeply relies on income from tourism. Hence, identifying new horizons to develop the tourism sector is vital. Since wellness tourism is a trending concept in world tourism, this chapter aimed at Ayurveda-based wellness tourism and ways to uplift the existing outfit through lessons from other Asian counterparts. The researcher conducted 19 in-depth interviews with industry professionals to collect qualitative data inputs to understand the real scenario in Ayurveda wellness service providers. Results showed that Sri Lankan Ayurveda wellness tourism (AWT) is impacted by the actions of three main stakeholders, tourism-related authorities, Ayurveda-related authorities, and service providers. Tourism and Ayurveda-related authorities identified the importance of AWT to some extent, but actions are insufficient or rather bottleneck the sustainable development in the industry. Further, the bureaucracy of authorities prevents the expansion of AWT through medium- or small-scale service providers. The results suggest that Sri Lankan AWT requires long-, mid-, and short-term-based corrective actions.

This chapter aims to highlight practices that ensure a livable climate and support the creation of a greener and more sustainable environment for community-based tourism in the case of Turkey. Green tourism needs to be improved and enhanced integrally from the perspective of tourism stakeholders, including tour operators, travel agencies, hotels, guests, and the host community. Turkey is the first country in the world to apply the green tourism certification system. It is a system very similar to the safe certificate system applied in tourism facilities. In Turkey, 4–5 star hotels are obliged to switch to this system. Community-based tourism is an alternative tourism approach that meets the needs and wishes of the host people, provides a more sustainable economy compared to other economic activities, and does not harm local culture and traditions. Global climate change and tourism are in a relationship with each other, and this relationship is even more evident for nature-based tourism types. Climate, natural environment, and personal security are seen as three main factors in the selection of a tourism center, and it is predicted by the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change that global climate change will have significant effects on these factors at the regional level. The United Nations World Tourism Organization accepts that the tourism industry should develop its potential to adapt to global warming, considering that the tourism industry is an economic sector that is open to the direct and indirect effects of climate change and is dependent on climate.

Tourism is considered to be one of the fastest growing industries with huge potential for economic development and economic reform, especially in developing countries. It directly contributes in the economy not only by earning foreign exchange but also makes a direct contribution through multiplier effect. Diversified tourism methods that promote employment opportunities and business practices provide new innovations and methods to meet the diverse needs of tourists in domestic and international markets. The contribution of women in the global business world has increased in recent years, especially in the hospitality and tourism industry. Their contributions are not only restricted as employees but also equally in business and entrepreneurship. These women have become major actors in the tourism entrepreneurial arena despite facing inequality in a perceived male-dominated environment. In the tourism industry, the proportion of women working in the industry is high, but their roles are mainly engaged in unskilled, low-paid jobs. This chapter will emphasize the opportunities for women in the tourism industry. A brief discussion on the various challenges women face, mainly in terms of a lack of appropriate training and education within the tourism industry sector that might adequately support their business ventures, as well as in relation to lacking sufficient access to finance for their business(es), is provided in this chapter. Significant and rapid measures are needed to support the tourism industry; henceforth, this chapter will also focus on the significant policies and strategies adopted by government and private players to change the role of women in this industry.

Community-based tourism (CBT) is known as a strong strategy and tool to promote community development and conservation of natural resources through its various virtues in both developing and developed economies. Local people's active and functional participation is considered as the focal point in CBT practice and development. However, their functional participation doesn't always come instinctively; rather, it requires proper extrinsic and intrinsic motivation in the form of both tangible and intangible, which ultimately help them to influence their behavior and pursuit of goals that may ensure their participation in CBT and to receive various benefits. These benefits are linked to the sustainability of CBT development including community development. Therefore, strategic CBT planning and its implementation are essential to ensure sustainable CBT which can also safeguard the link between the local community people and their guests as well as other stakeholders including internationals to facilitate local community development. This chapter focuses on various theories and concepts of motivation from various fields of research, and efforts have been taken to apply those in the field of CBT development to explore its optimum potential for the sake of human welfare. Moreover, attempts have been taken to use various CBT initiatives in Bangladesh to relate these theories and concepts to evaluate these initiatives as well as to provide some suggestive measures to improve the performance of CBT and to facilitate more community development as a whole.

All around the world, the tourism sector was hard hit by the pandemic. Many nations across the world are majorly dependent on tourism for their gross earnings. It is the backbone of service sector and has a great potential to boost entrepreneurial and related industries. The employment generation through this sector can be enormous if proper emphasis is laid on the factors inducing entrepreneurship, like conducive start-up policies, supportive government initiatives, and adequate financial support to the budding entrepreneurs along with development of financial and societal support systems. Across the globe, many communities suffered due to pandemic and the problems associated with that. Entrepreneurship is regarded as key to business innovation and development of economies. Thereby, in order to plan for resilience strategies, it is very important to understand the peculiarities of entrepreneurial ecosystem. It becomes necessary to understand and strategize the growth of entrepreneurial ecosystem to rebuild communities. This chapter highlights the relationships between entrepreneurial ecosystems and tourism sector for the growth of economy. The major finding is that without entrepreneurial growth, no economy or no sector can revive from crises. Therefore, it is necessary to focus on building effective strategies to support the stakeholders of the entrepreneurial ecosystems so as to promote growth and revive from the damage caused by pandemic.