The Role of Edu-Tourism in Bridging Racial Divides in South Africa
Tourism and Hospitality Management
ISBN: 978-1-78635-714-4, eISBN: 978-1-78635-713-7
Publication date: 15 September 2016
Abstract
The tourism industry in South Africa today faces the dual challenges of finding ways to extend tourism spending into previously marginalised communities and to redress the imbalances in cultural representations of those communities. The legacy of formal racial segregation is extremely difficult to reverse. The study investigated the potential of Edu-tourism to fundamentally change tourism dynamics. This approach targets young, intelligent, ‘new tourists’ who choose different types of visitor experiences and contribute to changing the way South Africans value and use their own cultures. The method used included requiring students to design tourist packages, in consultation with tour guides, visitors and local community members. The outcomes provide stimulation for new research, widely distributed income generation and building bridges between divided communities.
Keywords
Acknowledgements
Acknowledgements
Appreciation must be expressed to all the students of Public History who, have diligently explored ways to share local historical content and experience with international visitors. Most of the thinking around the possibilities inherent in Edu-tourism has arisen from extensive conversations with a range of tourism and museum staff, too numerous to mention.
Citation
Wells, J.C. (2016), "The Role of Edu-Tourism in Bridging Racial Divides in South Africa", Tourism and Hospitality Management (Advances in Culture, Tourism and Hospitality Research, Vol. 12), Emerald Group Publishing Limited, Leeds, pp. 251-263. https://doi.org/10.1108/S1871-317320160000012019
Publisher
:Emerald Group Publishing Limited
Copyright © 2016 Emerald Group Publishing Limited