Geography Reference
In-Depth Information
development (Hall 1995). As Murphy (1985:156) observed, 'planning is concerned with
anticipating and regulating change in a system, to promote orderly development so as to
increase the social, economic, and environmental benefits of the development process'.
Therefore, tourism planning must be 'a process, based on research and evaluation, which
seeks to optimize the potential contribution of tourism to human welfare and
environmental quality' (Getz 1987:3).
APPROACHES TO TOURISM PLANNING
Getz (1987) identified four broad traditions or approaches to tourism planning:
'boosterism', an economic, industry-oriented approach, a physical/ spatial approach, and
a community-oriented approach which emphasises the role the destination community
plays in the tourism experience. As Getz (1987) noted:
the four traditions are not mutually exclusive, nor are they necessarily
sequential. Nevertheless, this categorisation is a convenient way to
examine the different and sometimes overlapping ways in which tourism
is planned, and the research and planning methods, problems and models
associated with each.
(Getz 1987:5)
To these four approaches, Hall (1995) added a further approach, that of sustainable
tourism planning. Table 9.3 provides a detailed overview of the components of each
tourism planning approach. Different planning approaches, while not mutually exclusive,
conceptualise tourism planning in distinct ways. Each perspective differs in its underlying
assumptions about planning, problem definition, the appropriate level of analysis and
research methods. Researchers therefore choose their perspective/s according to their
profession, education, values, the organisational context within which they work, and the
nature of the planning problem.
Boosterism is the simplistic attitude that tourism development is inherently good and
of automatic benefit to the hosts. Residents of tourist destinations are not involved in the
decision-making, planning and policy processes surrounding tourism development.
According to Getz (1987):
Boosterism is still practised, and always will be, by two groups of people:
politicians who philosophically or pragmatically believe that economic
growth is always to be promoted, and by others who will gain financially
by tourism. They will go on promoting it until the evidence mounts that
they have run out of resources to exploit, that the real or opportunity costs
are too high, or that political opposition to growth can no longer be
countered. By then the real damage has usually been done.
(Getz 1987:10)
In contrast, an economic planning approach towards tourism aims to promote growth and
development in specific areas. The planning emphasis is on the
