Search

This study investigated the shoreline evolution of the Tuscany coast (Italy) from 1878–1883 to 2019. The 205 km sandy coastline, divided into 821 sectors, each one 250 m long, was analyzed to understand how human activities have altered this once-pristine coast. Sub-period analyses highlighted the impacts, both positive and negative, of various shore-protection projects. Initially, regional beaches were undeveloped and accreting, except for a few river deltas where alternating phases of erosion and accretion were observed. Coastal erosion began at deltas' areas due to the reduction in sediment inputs and, at other areas, enhanced by the development of human settlements and tourism activities. This triggered the construction of protection structures that shifted erosion processes downdrift, a process that induced the downdrift extension of the structures (according to the "domino" effect), determining the transformation of a completely natural and resilient environment into a largely rigid one. Beach nourishment projects, mostly using inland quarries, added about 1 million cubic meters of sediment from the 1980s to 2019. Currently, 57.8% of beaches are larger than in the 1880s, 9.4% did not change and 32.8% are narrower. Overall, the Tuscan coast gained 6.5 km2 of beach surface with an average shoreline advancement of 32 m. Recent trends (2005–2019) show that 37.7% of the coast is eroding, 21.1% is stable, and 41.2% is accreting, with a total surface area increase of about 200,000 m2. The beach surface area is still increasing despite the existing reduced sediment input due to the limited sediment loss resulting from the presence of morphological cells enclosed by very prominent headlands and the absence of submarine canyons that would otherwise direct sediments to the continental shelf. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The specter of new global conflicts has brought up old questions about dark tourism: is it ever appropriate to visit recent ruins? Can ruins, and places where violence has occurred, teach lessons about peace and cooperation? Or is it merely war voyeurism? This piece considers the ruins of Varosha (a beachfront district of Famagusta, or Gazimağusa, in Turkish) a once thriving tourism hub which has been walled off from visitors since the Turkish invasion of Cyprus in 1974. The invasion, and the creation of the largely-unrecognized state of Northern Cyprus, was preceded by years of interethnic tension between Turkish- and Greek-Cypriot communities. Recently, the government has reopened the destroyed city, forcing peace activists and urbanists to consider what role these ruins play in conflict resolution and in claims for space. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Air Manis Beach is one of the tourist beaches in Padang, West Sumatra, Indonesia. The position of the Air Manis beach facing the Indian Ocean in the west which can see the sunset and the beach is located behind a hill which makes the beautiful scenery and the legend of the Malin Kundang stone the main attraction for tourists. This study aims to determine the value of the aesthetic quality of the Air Manis beach scene based on the physical parameters of its constituent. The research was carried out from December 2021 to July 2022 in the Air Manis coastal tourist area, Padang City, West Sumatra. The method used is the method of observation and literature study and analysis is used to solve research problems, namely the euclidean classification. The results showed that this beach has a low aesthetic quality value. In general, Air Manis beach can be developed into beach tourism. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Hotels are under increasing pressure to reduce their plastic consumption and keep holiday destinations cleaner. Tourism experts already pointed to a variety of solutions, from replacing, avoiding to waste collection campaigns with guests. This study mirrors these measures with the opinions of German consumers who, in the European Union, travel most and mainly for beach holiday. A survey (n = 630) showed that plastic prevention should be practised by holiday organisers, actively involving guests, e.g. in beach clean-ups, was least popular. Personal attitudes towards plastic avoidance had no effect, but rather women and older people were more willing to engage on holiday (max. r = 0.17). Also, agreement tended to decrease with the distance of the holiday destination (max. r = 0.11). For effective marketing, providers of plastic-free holidays should rather avoid this material than replacing it and participate in environmental protection projects on destinations and get certified for this. This most convinces diverse consumer groups, instead of demonstrating sustainability with obligations and bans. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Beaches are distinctive destinations, and their attractiveness is decisive for attracting tourists, enriching their experiences, and sustaining coastal tourism. This study investigates how different dimensions of beach attractiveness—scenery and cleanliness, facilities and services, geophysical aspects, and access and comfort—affect visitors‘ overall beach experience and revisit intention. By utilizing structural equation modelling (SEM) in AMOS, with data from 311 respondents, this study aims to provide a comprehensive understanding of how these factors contribute to beach tourism sustainability. The mediating role of overall beach experience between beach attractiveness and revisit intention was also examined. The findings indicate that beach scenery and cleanliness, geophysical aspects, and facilities and services have direct positive effects on the overall experience of beach users. The results also revealed the positive direct effects of beach scenery and cleanliness, and geophysical aspects on revisit intention. Finally, overall experience mediated the positive indirect effects of facilities and services and access and comfort dimensions on revisit intention. These findings underscore the importance of enhancing beach attractiveness and improving user experience to encourage revisitation and promote sustainable beach tourism. The results are further discussed from a demand perspective and implications are provided for beach management, policymakers, regulators, and local governments on the supply side to support the development of sustainable beach tourism in Ghana. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Climate is a primary determinant of tourism and recreational decisions. According to climate resource perspective–the study's theoretical perspective–climate resources are meteorological variables of confirmable consequence to firm performance. Climate resources can be quantified using climate indices, or equations that variably weight meteorological variables that influence tourist decisions. To date, researchers have yet to calculate climate resources at the global scale using an index formulated for beach tourism, a subsector of marine tourism. We address this research gap, calculating the Holiday Climate Index (HCI)-beach globally from 1950 to 2019. The HCI-beach was formulated based on beach tourist surveys, an extensive literature review, and has been validated as the best‐fit index for beach tourism. Study findings (1) quantify ideal and unacceptable conditions for beach tourism globally, and (2) identify geographies with significant HCI‐beach changes over the span of 70 years (i.e., climate change). Findings contribute to the resource heterogeneity of climate resource perspective. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This research aims to explain the intended environmentally responsible behavior of Beach visitors. Beach tourism is one of the most vulnerable areas, and yet sensitive to the consequences of littering caused by the growing population of beach visitors. This work aims to determine the factors significantly influencing intended environmentally responsible behavior, particularly Beach litter prevention. An extended theory of planned behavior is used to explain this phenomenon by incorporating biospheric value and positive affect. Convenience sampling techniques were used to collect the data, and a survey was conducted in the Gunung Kidul area, Yogyakarta Special Region, Indonesia. The survey questionnaires were distributed in the three research sites: Krakal, Baron, and Sunda Beaches. The sample of this research consisted of 317 Beach visitors. The results were obtained from Structural Equation Modeling (SEM) following a two-step analysis to ensure and evaluate the accuracy and quality of the measurements and the model. The result demonstrates a positive association between biospheric value and positive affect and attitude toward behavior. Besides, attitude toward behavior and perceived behavioral control predict beach litter prevention intention, whereas subjective norms were insignificant. This study integrated biospheric value and positive affect to advance the theory of planned behavior. This work provides additional knowledge to the literature, particularly in the context of Beach tourism. The results highlighted the importance of biospheric value and positive affect, which can be leveraged when considering solutions to the littering problem. Both practical implications and future research agenda are also discussed in this study. In addition, this work addressed the limitation and future direction of this research, which suggest adopting this model in different contexts. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of Environmental & Social Management Journal / Revista de Gestão Social e Ambiental is the property of Environmental & Social Management Journal and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

Copyright of Leisure/Loisir: Journal of the Canadian Association for Leisure Studies is the property of Routledge and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

This article examines overtourism indicators at Kailua Beach Park in Hawaiʻi, and demonstrates a systematic approach to assessing carrying capacity by pairing descriptive indicators with more commonly used evaluative indicators. Data were obtained from an onsite survey of 452 visitors. Questionnaires with embedded photographs measured visitors' perceived encounters, norms, and crowding (evaluative indicators), while an unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) was used to collect actual use levels at the site (descriptive indicator). In total, 63% of respondents felt crowded at this site, suggesting that it is nearing over-capacity. Respondent norms showed that no more than approximately 950 people should be allowed. Use levels exceeding 700 people caused respondents to feel moderately or extremely crowded, yet use levels commonly exceeded this threshold. Standards representing these numeric thresholds should be set at this site, and management action is critical (e.g., quotas, reservations, fees, encourage alternative sites). This research contributes to the literature by demonstrating the importance of all four indicators (use levels, encounters, norms, crowding) when investigating overtourism issues, and the potential of UAVs to support the measurement of descriptive indicators. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper applies the Integrated Threat Theory as a framework for an exploratory sequential mixed-methods approach to examine the impacts of tourism on Seychelles' residents. In-depth interviews of 28 informants revealed residents' perceptions of tourism's negative impacts. Findings were combined with factors from previous studies in a quantitative survey of 281 respondents for a more comprehensive view. Results revealed that residents perceived restricted access to beaches near hotels, the strain on public infrastructure, economic leakages, and unfavourable employment prospects (vis-a-vis expatriate staffers) as unsavoury aspects of tourism. These impacts notwithstanding, Seychellois remain positively disposed to tourism and hold favourable attitudes towards tourists. Thus, while realistic and symbolic threats were confirmed, they did not translate into intergroup anxiety and negative stereotypes. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Through This research paper we will highlight the conceptual framework of the blue economy, clarify its most important principles, and indicate the importance of the blue economy and its most important sectors. In the end, we will present the endeavors and experiences of some Arab countries in this field, which became clear that, despite the novelty of the term, Arab countries have had successful experiences to some extent in this field. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Pereira da Silva, C.; Viana, C., and Fonseca, C., 2024. Navigating pandemic waves: Portugal's beach management approach to Covid and insights for the future. In: Phillips, M.R.; Al-Naemi, S., and Duarte, C.M. (eds.), Coastlines under Global Change: Proceedings from the International Coastal Symposium (ICS) 2024 (Doha, Qatar). Journal of Coastal Research, Special Issue No. 113, pp. 43-47. Charlotte (North Carolina), ISSN 0749-0208. The COVID-19 pandemic significantly affected beach management in Portugal, requiring authorities to balance public health with outdoor recreation. New protocols were implemented to reduce virus transmission, including reassessing beach carrying capacities for social distancing and developing real-time communication channels for beach use information. This paper presents a review of the strategies employed in managing beaches in Portugal during the COVID-19 era (2020 and 2021), highlighting the challenges faced and the solutions implemented. An online survey was conducted among beach users, aimed at assessing their perceptions of implemented measures and impacts. This survey was supplemented in 2021 by fieldwork on 3 beaches in the Algarve region (southern Portugal) and interviews with concession owners and municipal technicians. The questionnaire, accessible online in 2020 and 2021, collected approximately 650 responses. Despite its limited scale, it allowed the collection of valuable insights into users' behaviours and attitudes. In 2020, there was awareness of the measures adopted and a perceived sense of safety and comfort on beaches, albeit with some variance based on beach type and weekday. In 2021, users exhibited a more relaxed attitude towards safety measures. Fieldwork confirmed the results and interviews showed resistance to the adopted measures mainly from smallest concessions, while municipal technicians held a positive perspective. Furthermore, certain measures were positively received by beach users as they enhance comfort and the overall recreational experience. The pandemic highlighted the need for proactive planning and collaboration, suggesting that future beach management should focus on sustainability, resilience, and inclusivity. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This research explores the challenges faced by public and private stakeholders at Eastern Beach in East London, that are preventing attainment of Blue Flag status. Blue Flag beaches are a major tourism drawcard, yet the Eastern Cape province of South Africa is facing obstacles that impede achievement of this ecolabel. To investigate this, the paper focuses on Eastern beach. Twenty public and private stakeholders involved in coastal planning and management in East London participated in individual virtual semi-structured interviews. Through thematic analysis, key themes were identified. Findings indicate that public control, safety and security as well as infrastructure are key challenges. Environmental management also requires attention as several negative impacts prevail. Furthermore, the need for concerted stakeholder coordination in the drive toward Blue Flag status emerged as a necessity. Considering the potential of Eastern Beach, it would be favourable to East London to have this beach accredited. It would enhance sustainable tourism development with its positive economic, social and environmental impacts. The identification of the challenges can assist stakeholders in moving towards this status. These findings could also apply to managers at other beaches that are aiming to attain, maintain or regain Blue Flag accreditation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The study objective was to analyse the number of tourists present in the shore zone and bathing areas of lakes with regard to their tourist carrying capacity and the amount of biogenic substances potentially entering the ecosystem from the beach and bathing areas. The procedures from project between the EU and Poland, in the module "Development of the sanitary supervision of water quality" were used in three categories: physiological substances - sweat and urine; water-soluble and insoluble organic compounds; and biogenic elements - nitrogen and phosphorus. The research was conducted in two model mesotrophic lakes, Piaseczno and Zagłębocze, located in the Łęczna-Włodawa Lakeland (eastern Poland). The data were analysed in reference to biological trophic status indices defining the limnological status of lakes in the summer of 2014 and 2016. Analyses of gross primary production of phytoplankton using the light and dark bottles method and the analysis of chlorophyll a concentration were applied using the laboratory spectrophotometric method. The relatively small number of tourists recorded in the shore zone of both lakes did not exceed their tourist carrying capacity, and their potential contribution of biogenic substances to the lake ecosystems was small. Biological trophic indices for both lakes indicated that they had been continually late-mesotrophic for decades. The amount of biogenic substances directly linked to beach tourism usually has a minor effect on the limnological status of mesotrophic lakes. Due to the specific character of lake ecosystems, however, even small amounts of these substances can contribute to the destabilisation of the biocenotic system. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Coastal tourism is impacted by regional environmental change, including sea-level rise and climatic change. A case study at five Japanese beaches was conducted to determine the relative difference in coastal and climatic changes that are important for recreational beach tourism. Future climate conditions and projections of shoreline changes due to sea-level rise were estimated using ensembles of 14 and 21 Global Circulation Models (GCMs), respectively. The Holiday Climate Index (HCI:Beach) specific to recreational beach use was used to assess historical and future climatic suitability while beach loss area was used to quantify physical changes to beach conditions. Diminished beaches with improved climate conditions were observed at all sites except Yonehara, which had both diminished beach and climate conditions. Comparing HCI:Beach scores relative to historical conditions revealed a change of −2.4 to +10%, while beach losses were typically >60%. These results highlight that beach tourism suitability at the study sites will likely exhibit greater changes due to sea-level rise, compared to those driven by changing atmospheric conditions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Wediombo Beach, which is located in Gunungkidul Regency, Special Region of Yogyakarta, Indonesia, has the potential for beautiful and exotic coastal natural resources on the south coast. The potential for coastal tourism in Gunungkidul Regency still has the opportunity to be developed into mainstay tourism. This study aims to analyze the suitability of Wediombo beach tourism, Gunungkidul district, Yogyakarta Special Region, Indonesia. The research was conducted at Wediombo Beach. The research was conducted descriptively, using survey methods and direct measurements in the field. The study was conducted from March -- to October 2021. The results showed that the value of the Tourism Suitability Index (IKW) for Wediombo Beach was 84.52% and was included in the very suitable category (S1). [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Waves are movements of ups and downs of seawater that carry energy. This wave energy can erode the beach shore, including the Kenjeran Beach. The areas of eroded coast will depend on the magnitude of the energy of the waves. This research aimed to analyze wind and ocean waves for the management of coastal tourism areas, mainly related to visitor safety. This research used wind and wave data from BMKG obtained for ten years (2009-2018), and they were processed using Software ArcGis 9.3 and Software WRPOLT View 8.0.2. The statistical method used in this research was the Windrose method, which analyzed the wind direction and speed in a certain place and was the ratio of the wind blowing in each wind direction. The distribution of wind was intended to determine the significant wind speed and direction that have an effect in 10 years. The wind had an average speed of 5.31 m/s from 2009 to 2018. The variation in the dominant wind direction movement occurred in the range of 90° to 270°, but overall, the wind came from the East and Southeast. The highest ocean waves caused by wind in the Kenjeran tourism area were 0.8 m and occurred in 2014. It can be concluded that the wind and the ocean waves in the coastal tourism area of Kenjeran are relatively weak. Thus, in terms of security and safety for visitors, Kenjeran beach is very suitable for tourists. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Climate indices have a long history of use to combine multi-faceted climate information for tourism resource evaluation. Traditionally, indices have been used to assess tourists' sensitivity to destination climatic pull factors, not tourists' sensitivity to source market climate as a push factor for seasonality-driven markets. This study addresses this gap by using tourism climate indices to assess the influence of climatic push and pull factors for seasonal fluctuations in arrivals to Antigua and Barbuda, Barbados, and Saint Lucia, from the province of Ontario, Canada (from January 2008 to December 2017). Building on the conceptual foundation of the Holiday Climate Index:Beach (HCI:Beach), this study uses an optimization algorithm to develop two indices: (1) an optimized in-situ index that estimates the climatic pull-factor of the destination, and (2) an optimized ex-situ index that estimates the climatic push-factor from the source market. Findings reveal the optimized ex-situ (push) index explains 83% (R2 = 0.830) of the variability in total monthly arrivals from Ontario and has greater predictive accuracy than the in-situ (pull) index. The research advances understanding of climatic influences on Caribbean tourism arrivals and provides the foundation for new seasonal forecast-based Climate Services (CS) for destination managers and marketers. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The complexity of the human-environment interface predicates the need for tools and techniques that can enable the effective translation of weather and climate products into decision-relevant information. Indices are a category of such tools that may be used to simplify multi-faceted climate information for economic and other decision-making. Climate indices for tourism have been popularized in the literature over the past three decades, but despite their prevalence, these indices have a number of limitations, including coarse temporal resolution, subjective rating and weighting schemes, and lack of empirical validation. This paper critically assesses the design of the tourism climate index, the holiday climate index-beach, and a new, mathematically optimized index developed for the unique contextual realities of Great Lakes beach tourism. This new methodology combines the use of expert knowledge, stated visitor preferences, and mathematical optimization to develop an index that assigns daily weather scores based on four weather sub-indices (thermal comfort, wind speed, precipitation, and cloud cover). These daily scores are then averaged to the monthly level and correlated to visitation data at two beach parks in Ontario (Canada). This optimized index demonstrates a strong fit (R2 = 0.734, 0.657) with observed visitation at Pinery Provincial Park and Sandbanks Provincial Park, outperforming both the tourism climate index (R2 = 0.474, 0.018) and the holiday climate index-beach (R2 = 0.668, 0.427). This study advances our understanding of the magnitude and seasonality of weather impact on beach tourist visitation and can inform decision-making of tourism marketers and destination managers. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Climatic resources are vitally important for tourism, driving major intra- and inter-regional travel flows for sun-sand-surf (3S) tourism around the world. The development of climate indices to measure the suitability of climate for major tourism market segments has evolved over three decades. This study provides the first application of the holiday climate index (HCI):Beach specification in the Asia-Pacific tourism region. The HCI is designed from international tourist climate preference studies and is compared with the tourism climate index (TCI), which is widely applied, but not based on tourist climate preferences. The index inter-comparison is conducted at 14 of the most popular beach resort destinations in China, which include four geographic regions of China with four different Köppen classifications. The results show key differences between the two indices in rating the climatic suitability of the selected beach destinations in China, with the TCI rating beach destinations in the north and south higher during the spring and fall seasons, which is not consistent with beach tourism visits. During the summer months, southern destinations have much higher HCI:Beach rating, reflecting the 3S tourists' desire for higher temperatures. The findings reinforce those from other tourism regions that indicate the TCI is not appropriate for assessing 3S tourism potential and that additional cross-cultural studies of tourist climate indices are needed to better inform market segment climate service development and to understand the potential impacts of future climate change. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The effect of perceived service quality and perceived value on attitude-behavior models is still under investigation in literature. This study is aimed at examining tourists' revisit intention to beach destinations using a conceptual model developed by adding two additional predictors, service quality and perceived value, with the theory of planned behavior (TPB). Data were collected by a personal-administered survey of 419 tourists who had visited Cox's Bazar Beach in Bangladesh. A PLS-based SEM was applied to examine relations among various constructs of the conceptual model. The results revealed that perceived value significantly influenced both tourists' attitudes and revisit intention but service quality influenced tourists' attitudes only. These findings contribute to the body of knowledge in tourism literature as well as provide useful insights for designing effective marketing offering to provoke tourists to revisit beach destinations. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of TW: Zeitschrift fuer Tourismuswissenschaft is the property of De Gruyter and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

This study aimed to determine the destination competitiveness of beach tourism in Batangas Province as input to the proposed tourism sustainable development plan. It assessed the level of sustainability of the beach destinations in Batangas Province relative to economy, socio cultural and environment. It also tackled on how competitive are the destinations in Batangas Province in relation to inherited resources, created resources, destination management, supporting factors, demand conditions and situational conditions. The study is quantitative in nature where it utilized descriptive method design that involved the collection of primary data using structured questionnaire. Cronbach Alpha was used to test the reliability of the tool after pilot testing. Quantitative method was used to assess the level of sustainability of the beach destination so with the competitiveness of the beach destinations in the municipalities of Calatagan, Nasugbu and San Juan in Batangas Province for a filed survey. There were 420 respondents used in gathering data which composed of different stakeholders such as tourists, residents, resort owners and local government unit treated with utmost confidentiality using purposive sampling. The statistical treatment of data was applied such as frequency, percentage, weighted mean, analysis of variance or F-test and z-test and Pearson-R. Findings revealed that majority of the respondents are 15 to 20 years old, female, single, college graduate and from San Juan, Batangas. The respondents assessed the evidence of sustainability of beach destinations in Batangas Province as evident and sustainable on overall indicators for economy, socio cultural and environment. The respondents agree on the competitiveness of beach destinations in relation to inherited resources, created resources, destination management, supporting factors, demand factors and situational condition which found competitive. A tourism sustainable development plan was proposed so that policy makers can use this approach for the development of tourism industry. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Saayman, M. and Saayman, A., 2017. How important are Blue Flag awards in beach choice? South Africa's almost 3000-km coastline has long stretches of sandy beaches. An important yardstick for measuring their quality is the Blue Flag award, desired by beach and coastal management agencies. This paper investigates whether the Blue Flag status necessarily attracts a different beachgoer. It asks whether clear differences can be found between beachgoers at Blue Flag and non-Blue Flag beaches. Surveys of beachgoers were conducted during summer (March to April 2014) at six beaches near Cape Town and three near Mossel Bay. Four of these nine Western Cape beaches had Blue Flag status. The data from 374 completed questionnaires collected via random sampling were analysed using principal component analysis and logistic regression analysis. The results showed that seven beach-specific attributes attract beachgoers, with the most important ones being beach cleanliness and infrastructure. The results of the logistic regression showed that Blue Flag beachgoers are more likely to be locals, travelling in larger groups and who are motivated to visit the specific beach on the basis of attractiveness. They also regard visual beach cleanliness as more important. The paper has several findings, namely, it identified unique motives for travelling to a beach and it identified the attributes that mattered to beachgoers. It also highlighted the need for educational activities as well as environmental issues. Another important finding is a clear distinction between Blue Flag and non-Blue Flag beachgoers. This innovative study made a contribution in terms of literature and practise. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of Revista de Ciencias Sociales (13159518) is the property of Revista de Ciencias Sociales de la Universidad del Zulia Venezuela and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

Surf zone injury and environmental condition data were collected concurrently during the summer of 2014 along the Delaware coast. Documented injury data included injury type, gender, age and activity, while measured environmental conditions included local wave height, wave period and foreshore slope. Daily water user counts were used to normalize injury rates relative to the number of beachgoers at risk. There were 280 injuries over 116 sample days along the entire Delaware coast and 169 injuries over 82 sample days within the 5-beach focused study area where water user count data were available. Injuries were not distributed randomly as tested against a Poisson distribution and occurred in clusters with up to 15 injuries occurring in a single day. There were 32 serious injuries (cervical fractures, spinal cord injuries) and 1 fatality. Water user counts throughout the course of a day exceeded 25,000 on busy weekends such that the mean injury rate was 0.02 %. Men were twice as likely to be injured relative to women, and the mean injury age was 32 years old. Tourists were six times more likely to be injured compared to local beachgoers. Wading (44 %) was the dominant injury activity followed by body surfing (20 %) and body boarding (17 %). Direct correlation between injury occurrence or injury rate and any environmental factors was weak (highest squared correlation coefficient <0.12), but the highest injury rates were associated with moderate wave height (0.6 m) with lower injury rates for both smaller and larger waves. Lack of direct correlation between injury occurrence or injury rate and environmental parameters suggests there was an important (and as yet undetermined) human element that also dictates the injury rate. Additionally, the high proportion of injuries to tourists may require alternate strategies in local beach safety and injury awareness campaigns. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of Annals of Maritime Studies / Pomorski Zbornik is the property of Croatian Association of Maritime Science & Transport and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

The study was conducted on Cox's Bazar Beach, the longest beach of the world and tourist capital of Bangladesh. The purpose of the study is to identify the determinants to measure the tourists' satisfaction towards Cox's Bazar beach using expectation and disconfirmation theory. Basically, the study is based on primary as well as secondary data; applied quantitative method and 308 questionnaires were used. The study revealed that perceived performance attributes scores are consistently lower than expectation attributes scores, and a significant gap is found between them. Multiple regression analysis was conducted by Stochastic frontier model and the results revealed that all factors derived from factor analysis have a significant relationship with the overall satisfaction of tourists, and F1 (Emergency and ancillary services), F2 (Accommodation and security), F3 (Destination on the spot facilities) are most important factors that influence overall tourist satisfaction most. The tourism managers and marketers should provide and ensure quality service with derived factors. Moreover, this finding can be useful to the policy makers and marketers of beach tourism in formulating strategies to maintain or enhance their competitiveness. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Pre-interview interactions between qualitative researchers and research subjects are characterized by two-way sense-making processes, through which research subjects attempt to make sense of researchers’ intentions, and what they themselves stand to gain or lose from participating in a given research. Based on a reflexive account of my ethnographic fieldwork experiences in Kenya’s South Coast region, among men known as ‘beach boys’ and as participants of ‘female sex tourism’, I illustrate how the concerns and interests of my target interviewees were generated and negotiated during the pre-interview phase. I do so by analysing our pre-interview interactions, drawing links between my assigned identities, asymmetries between us and the concerns and interests that were generated, as the men considered their participation or non-participation in the research. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this study, we compare the perception of climate change in two different tourist settings of northeastern Spain: the Catalan Pyrenees and the Catalan Mediterranean coast and the Balearic Islands. We carried out a survey of 906 cases (506 in the coastal areas of Catalonia and the Balearic Islands and 400 in the Catalan Pyrenees) asking residents on those areas to assess the possible effects of climate change on tourist-related activities. While the existence of climate change and of its estimated impacts is widely accepted, we observe statistically significant differences in most of the questions between residents in the coastal areas and residents in the Pyrenees. In general terms, respondents from the Pyrenees display a much higher concern regarding the economic impacts of climate change on tourism. On the other hand, the results also show that some demographic groups, such as women, members of large households, or unemployed, tend to present higher levels of concern. This study may give new hints on which tourist modalities and which groups are more concerned for the impacts of climate change in Mediterranean tourist environments and could translate into more targeted adaptive and mitigation practices. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of Estudios y Perspectivas en Turismo is the property of Centro de Investigaciones y Estudios Turisticos and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

The global spread of mass tourism is often understood in terms of the diffusion of practices first developed by English tourists and driven by the seemingly universal processes of urbanization and industrialization. This article offers a postcolonial critique of this approach, arguing it fails to appreciate the political and cultural dynamics of local adoption and remains blind to the role of alternative, indigenous practices. Moreover, as mass tourism practices are often viewed as expressions of modernity, societies are understood as modern only to the degree that they adopt northern European styles of leisure. Using Spain and Tunisia as examples, the article shows how the spread of beach tourism to the Mediterranean was shaped by geopolitical factors and imposed cultural and architectural expressions of modernity ill-suited to local contexts. Suggesting the value of alternative approaches, the article discusses forms of domestic coastal tourism in Morocco that express a modern hybrid Moroccan identity, in which a popular Islamic traditional ritual is performed and reinvented within the space of leisure beach tourism. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

Major impacts of climate change have been projected for tourism in Europe. Typically, these projections took general tourism activities such as sight-seeing and their climate requirements as their point of reference. The purpose of this study is to reassess the impact of climate change, by looking specifically at beach tourism in summer, a crucial market segment in Europe and more specifically in the Mediterranean. As beach tourism requires relatively high temperatures, relatively modest shifts in attractiveness are found. With respect to climate, the Mediterranean is likely to remain Europe's prime region for summer-time beach tourism for at least the next 50 years. Coastal managers in Mediterranean destinations are advised to focus some of their attention on other climate change impacts such as sea-level rise or water availability, and include environmental quality and diversification of activities in their deliberations. In non-Mediterranean regions, a promising strategy may be to focus on short- and medium-distance visitors who can take advantage of the new opportunities for beach tourism, and to explore the merits of seasonal climate forecasting. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Tourism is a major socioeconomic contributor to established and emerging destinations in the Mediterranean region. Recent studies introducing the Holiday Climate Index (HCI) highlight the significance of climate as a factor in sustaining the competitiveness of coastal and urban destinations. The aim of this study is to assess the future HCI performance of urban and beach destinations in the greater Mediterranean region. For this purpose, HCI scores for the reference (1971–2000) and future (2021–2050, 2070–2099) periods were computed with the use of two latest greenhouse gas concentration trajectories, RCP 4.5 and 8.5, based on the Middle East North Africa (MENA) Coordinated Regional Downscaling Experiment (CORDEX) domain and data. The outputs were adjusted to a 500 m resolution via the use of lapse rate corrections that extrapolate the climate model topography against a resampled digital elevation model. All periodic results were seasonally aggregated and visualized on a (web) geographical information system (GIS). The web version of the GIS also allowed for a basic climate service where any user can search her/his place of interest overlaid with index ratings. Exposure levels are revealed at the macro scale while sensitivity is discussed through a validation of the climatic outputs against visitation data for one of Mediterranean's leading destinations, Antalya. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Coastal erosion and inundation represent the main impacts of climate change and the consequential sea level rise (SLR) on beaches. The resultant deterioration of coastal habitats and decline in beach tourism revenue has been a primary concern for coastal managers and researchers. Nevertheless, the extent of SLR on beach tourism in Egypt remains relatively unknown. Therefore, this study investigates the relationship between beach width shrinkage due to SLR and the loss in tourist resort revenue. We use the hedonic pricing approach, which combines economic and environmental variables, to determine the environmental impact on beach tourism along 14 km of the coast of Sahl Hasheesh and Makadi Bay, Hurghada, Egypt. The resort revenue depends on the cumulative benefits from the market price of the resort rooms, which is a function of morphological variables and tourism variables. Three regression models (semi-log, double-log, and custom-log) were used to select the most appropriate functional hedonic model. Three coastal slopes were considered (0.03, 0.06, and 0.12) to address the uncertainty in beach width. When 0.06 coastal slope is used, the expected losses in revenue are 84,000, 220,000, and 546,000 USD/day period (representing 3%, 7%, and 18%) for 2030, 2050, and 2100, respectively, considering the lowest scenario representative concentration pathway (RCP2.6); for the worst case (RCP8.5 SLR), the expected losses are 142,000, 369,000, and 897,000 USD/day period (representing 5%, 12%, and 30%) for 2030, 2050, and 2100, respectively. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Through an empirical investigation of the historical relationship between the destination climate and tourist arrivals in the Caribbean, this study presents the first revealed preference evaluation of a climate index informed by tourists' stated climatic preferences for coastal-beach tourism (i.e., a sun-sand-surf or 3S travel market). The goal of this multi-organization collaboration was to examine the potential application of a newly designed climate index—the Holiday Climate Index (HCI):Beach—for three Caribbean destinations (Antigua and Barbuda, Barbados, Saint Lucia). This paper provides an overview of the evolution of climate indices, including the development of the (HCI):Beach. To test the validity of climate indices for a beach travel market, daily climate ratings based on outputs from the Tourism Climate Index and the HCI were correlated with monthly arrivals data from Canada (a key source market) at an island destination scale. The results underscore the strength of the new index, with each destination scoring consistently higher using the HCI:Beach, including a stronger relationship (R2) between index scores and tourist arrivals. These findings demonstrate the value of combining stated and revealed preference methodologies to predict tourism demand and highlight opportunities for future research. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]