case study: an area where tourism is important

•case study: Jamaica 

•location: Caribbean Island, the 3rd largest island in the Caribbean Sea

•what attracts tourists to Jamaica 

          •climate

                    •hot, average of 25 degrees - 7 hours a day

                    •average of 10 hours of sunlight a day

          •accessibility

                    •local Caribbean places fly to the island  

          •attractions 

                    •snorkelling, deep sea fishing, golf courses

                    •hotels in Negril and Montego Bay - all inclusive 

                    •diving and a 7 mile beach - Negril Bay

                    •Dunn river falls

                    •Plantation houses turned into museums

                    •Cockpit caves 

                    •Negril Marine Park to preserve sea life - 4 marine parks 

                    •Blue Mountains in the East

                    •large biodiversity 

•economic impacts from tourism in Jamaica

          •GDP

                    •24% relies on the income of the total GDP

                    •tourists spend $2.2bn a year 

                    •$8000 per year 

          •employment 

                    •20.6% employed in the tourist industry 

                    •employment of 90,000 people

          •infrastructure and services 

                    •local farms sell produce - coffee, sugar, sugarcanes, sugar beet, citrus and coconuts 

                    •allows funding of social projects e.g education, HIV and AIDS 

                    •social taxes have gone directly into education and healthcare 

                    •helped develop roads and telecommunications 

•disadvantages of tourism in Jamaica

          •social

                    •inappropriate behaviour of tourists e.g littering, being too loud 

                    •heavy use of resources by tourists - 10 times more than the average local 

                    •loss of heritage - loss of reggae music to tropical house etc. 

          •economic 

                    •heavy use of resources by tourists - 10 times more than the average local 

                    •under-use of facilities in the off peak season - autumn and spring months 

                    •all-inclusive hotels money allows economic leakage e.g Moon Palace Jamaica

                     Grande

                    •locals have low-paid jobs where managers have high-paid ones but are expats

                    •45% of all income comes from tourism  

          •environmental 

                    •traffic congestion and pollution at popular locations at popular locations e.g Ocho Rios Marine Park, with 1 hour traffic jams and Montego Bay

                    •air traffic from planes into airports, as Montego Bya’s Int. Airport is 56km from Negril

                    •power stations from fuelling tourist’s use creates pollution e.g Rockfort Power Plant 

                    •some hotels are an eyesore e.g Falmouth Beach Hotel 

                    •coral reefs are being damaged by ship anchors and jet skis

•management of tourism 

          •national parks

                    •entry fees $8 in parks allow the preservation of local wildlife

                    •marine parks conserve coral reefs

                    •the Negril Marine Park has strict rules about number of people entering and conduct

                    •Jamaica Conservation and Development Trust is responsible for the management of national parks 

          •ecotourism

                    •landscaping in Montego Bay tries to be more attractive

                    •education of flowers and herbs etc. to preserve plants 

                    •raft trips on the Rio Grande river minimises the disturbance of the peace, relying on manpower

          •community tourism - the tourism of local residents 

          •pro-poor tourism - alleviating poverty in local areas 

                    •strict control of hotel height, to stop obstructing views

                    •moving away from inclusive tourism (Treasure Island), food festivals, 50,000 local farmers, fundraising events from governments 

                    •reggae festival of local residents 

                    •selling hats made by the people

                    •JTB is responsible for marketing the country, promoting the local attractions  

                    •local people running small guest-houses, improving lives in Port Antonio