Domestic Tourism in Asia


Book Description

Many countries have a rich tradition of domestic travel and holidaying which not only predates but exceeds mass international travel. This is particularly the case in Asia where recent economic prosperity and trends in globalization have not merely spurred, but continue to shape traditions in domestic tourism. This book is the first to address specifically the continuities and changes in domestic tourism in Asia. It explores the ethos of domestic travel and holiday-making in order to understand the distinctive common strands that underlie conventional and contemporary tourism practices, against the local and global backdrop. A considerable range of countries is covered in the case studies, including those with patrimonial histories, namely China and India, the economically developed nation-state of Japan and the microstates of Taiwan, Singapore, Macao and Hong Kong, besides the coastal countries of Malaysia, Philippines, Laos and Vietnam, as well as the land-locked countries of Kyrgyzstan and Mongolia. The book presents some of the many interfaces of Asian cultural and natural heritages with tourism, while giving due considerations to today's political and economic realities.




Tourism, Ethnic Diversity and the City


Book Description

The primary focus of this book is the role of immigrant entrepreneurs and workers in the emerging ethnic tourist industry as well as their interaction with public, private and civil society actors in this sector.




Asian Cultures and Contemporary Tourism


Book Description

This book focuses on cultures that shape contemporary Asian tourist experiences. The book consists of 10 chapters, which are organised into two themes: Collectivist Culture and Wellbeing. The chapters cover emerging forms of tourism (e.g., wedding and bridal photography tourism, roots/affinity tourism and shamanic tourism), investigate a wide range of topics (e.g., tourist motivation, tourist anxiety and decision making) and consider Asian perspectives from diverse backgrounds (e.g., China, Hong Kong, Singapore, Taiwan, South Korea, Japan, Philippines, Malaysia, Indonesia, India, Bangladesh, and Nepal). The book provides tourism researchers, students and practitioners a consolidated, comprehensive and updated reference for the understanding of Asian tourists.




Cultural and Heritage Tourism in Asia and the Pacific


Book Description

The Asia Pacific region’s enormous diversity of living cultures and preserved heritage sites has significant appeal to many tourists. However tourism has grown so rapidly that many issues associated with the incorporation of cultural and heritage experiences in tourist itineraries (such as authenticity verses commodification, exploitation of national cultures, impacts on local communities, and the management of heritage resources) have not been adequately addressed and must be debated. This revealing book reviews recent developments in cultural and heritage tourism in the Asia Pacific region and provides a discussion on how communities have faced and overcome significant challenges to develop and market their culture and heritage resources. A range of models and case studies are used to deepen the reader’s understanding of heritage and cultural issues, to illustrate many of the more controversial issues, and to examine new evaluative, and planning tools. This book is a special issue of the Asia Pacific Journal of Tourism Research.




Tourism, Ethnicity, and the State in Asian and Pacific Societies


Book Description

The expansion of international tourism is changing the relationship between ethnic groups and states around the globe. Yet tourism’s importance for the understanding of ethnicity in the modern world has been generally neglected within the field of ethnic studies. This pioneering volume investigates how international tourism development, state policies of ethnic management, and the active responses of local ethnic groups intersect to reshape ethnic identities and ethnic relations in Asian and Pacific societies. It analyzes the ways in which the very meaning of ethnicity and culture are being contested and reworked in the wake of tourism’s impact. Following an introduction that explores the close but often ambivalent relationship between tourism promotion and state ethnic policies, individual contributors examine tourism’s varied effects in China, Singapore, Malaysia, Thailand, Indonesia, and the island Pacific in rich ethnographic detail.




Asian Youth Travellers


Book Description

This book offers a bird’s-eye view of the current trends, opportunities, and challenges related to Asian youth travellers, and it also presents a holistic framework for future research to build upon. Managerial and policy implications are provided for the tourism and hospitality industry and government agencies to better accommodate the needs of Asian youth travellers – a unique and diverse market that is yet to be fully unveiled to the world. The book investigates the key characteristics that define contemporary Asian youth travellers, adopting a broad definition of Asia. While it includes relatively mature markets, it also features emerging markets in Southeast Asia, South Asia, and West Asia. The book looks at different forms of tourism undertaken by Asian travellers, encompassing educational tourism, adventure tourism, working holiday, self-driving tourism, dark tourism, volunteer tourism, and cultural tourism. A wide range of topics are discussed, from history to current trends, from motivations to constraints, from the influence of culture and religion on travel behaviour to the search of social freedom through travel, and from destination choice to destination avoidance. The findings and interpretations are drawn from diverse and novel research methods, such as netnography, visual anthropology, historiography, interview, focus group, survey, and document analysis.




Tourism in Asian Cities


Book Description

This timely and significant book explores the characteristics and complexities of Asian urban tourism, considering the extent to which Western paradigms can be transferred to Asian settings and the striking contrasts that exist within the region. In an era of unprecedented urban expansion in Asian cities, this book comes at a time of great urgency, illuminating the possible problems and opportunities that arise when a destination emerges as a tourism hotspot. Split into three parts; introducing Asian urban tourism and urbanization, the management and marketing of Asian cities, and emerging trends and issues associated with Asian urban tourism, the book offers a range of varying and vibrant perspectives from international and interdisciplinary experts in the field. Chapters include studies on a wide range of destinations such as Hong Kong, Macau, Cambodia, Phuket, Kolkata, Busan, Delhi, and Sri Lanka among many others, and explore crucial contemporary themes such as overtourism, urbanization and administrative challenges, world heritage, smart cities and the use of technologies such as VR in urban tourism experience creation. It will be a vital resource for upper-level students, researchers, and academics in tourism, city tourism, Asian studies, development studies, cultural studies, and sustainability, as well as professionals in the field of tourism management.




Food Tourism in Asia


Book Description

This book draws together empirical research across a range of contemporary examples of food tourism phenomenon in Asia to provide a holistic picture of their role and influence. It encompasses case studies from around the pan-Asian region, including China, Japan, South Korea, Thailand, Singapore, Vietnam, and India. The book specifically focuses on and explicitly includes a variety of perspectives of non-Western and Asian research contexts of food tourism by bringing multidisciplinary approaches to food tourism research and wider evidence of food and tourism in Asia.




Event Tourism in Asian Countries


Book Description

Events, including repeat annual events, have the unique ability to drive sustainable tourism to certain areas and regions and to generate economic benefits for local communities. The events industry has grown dramatically over the last several decades, and there has been increased participation from governments, local communities, and the private sector. This new volume offers a wide variety of research, experience, and examples of events in Asia, including business meetings and conferences, destination weddings, carnivals, food and art festivals, music festivals and concerts, cultural and traditional events, religious and spiritual gatherings, sports events, and others. The authors, from various parts of Asia, give illustrative examples of events tourism from their home countries, including India, Sri Lanka, Turkey, Malaysia, Uzbekistan, and Kyrgyzstan. The diverse perspectives are from stakeholders, travelers, researchers, academicians, professionals in the event and tourism industry, and the community. The chapters in the volume cover the changing trends in the event tourism industry, the influence and role of social media and other technology, the contribution of women in events and festivals, and the impact of event tourism in economic development on local communities. Addressing the issues, challenges, and future of event tourism and management, this new volume will be a valuable addition to the library of event professionals, hospitality and tourism researchers, community development managers, and others in Asia and elsewhere.