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A consensus map for Ladakh’s development as potential geotourism destination: key drivers

Rimsha Khalid (Faculty of Hospitality and Tourism, Prince of Songkla University Phuket Campus, Phuket, Thailand)
Rajinder Kumar (Department of Travel and Tourism Management, University of Ladakh, Leh, India)
Rupa Sinha (Amity Institute of Travel and Tourism Studies, Amity University – Kolkata Campus, Kolkata, India)
Kareem M. Selem (Hotel Management Department, Faculty of Tourism and Hotels, Suez Canal University, Ismailia, Egypt)
Mohsin Raza (Faculty of Hospitality and Tourism, Prince of Songkla University Phuket Campus, Phuket, Thailand)

Journal of Place Management and Development

ISSN: 1753-8335

Article publication date: 22 March 2024

Issue publication date: 29 October 2024

135

Abstract

Purpose

Given the prevalence of protecting geoheritage tourism sites, Ladakh has enormous potential. However, Ladakh’s potential and developments in its growth as a geotourism destination have received scant consideration. As such, this paper aims to explore Ladakh’s key drivers as a potential geotourism destination through cognitive dissonance and protection motivation theories.

Design/methodology/approach

This paper conducted in-depth interviews with 86 geoscientists and tourism professionals to assess Ladakh’s potential as a geotourism destination. This paper used a qualitative approach to congregate four constructs based on the image difference of the consensus map.

Findings

Because of the interviewees’ heterogeneity and uniqueness, meaningful constructs in the consensus were included for each figure and cloud words. This paper concluded that four drivers are the main forces behind geotourism development.

Originality/value

This paper explores the drivers – geotourism services, legislative requirements, experiential geotourism and SPARC (scientific, preservation, aesthetic, recreational, cultural) values – affecting geotourism in Ladakh. It is feasible to lessen the negative effects of overtourism and make sure that Ladakh’s distinctive nature is preserved for future generations by implementing sustainable tourism practices.

Keywords

Acknowledgements

Funding: No funding was received to assist with the preparation of this manuscript.

Conflict of interest: The authors declare no competing interests.

Author contributions: Rimsha Khalid, Software, Validation, Investigation, Resources and Writing – Original Draft.

Rajinder Kumar, Validation, Investigation, Resources and Writing – Original Draft.

Rupa Sinha, Conceptualization, Writing – Review and Editing and Project Administration.

Kareem M. Selem, Methodology, Software, Validation, Formal analysis, Supervision and Data curation.

Mohsin Raza, Investigation, Resources, Writing – Original Draft and Visualization.

Citation

Khalid, R., Kumar, R., Sinha, R., Selem, K.M.M. and Raza, M. (2024), "A consensus map for Ladakh’s development as potential geotourism destination: key drivers", Journal of Place Management and Development, Vol. 17 No. 4, pp. 389-414. https://doi.org/10.1108/JPMD-06-2023-0062

Publisher

:

Emerald Publishing Limited

Copyright © 2024, Emerald Publishing Limited

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