Effects of changes in climate and land cover on Tanzanian nature-based tourism in national parks: how are tourist attractions affected?

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Date

2019

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Abstract

Tourism is growing rapidly worldwide and its fastest-growing segment is nature-based tourism (NBT) (Kuenzi & McNeely, 2008), which typically involves experiencing wildlife biodiversity and enjoying natural environments (Eagles. 2001; Naidoo & Adamowicz. 2005). NBT can take many different forms, including trekking in mountains and engaging in wildlife safaris. Tanzania is a prime destination for NBT in Sub-Saharan Africa. The cou: a tu acted 1.2 million international tourists in 2016. up from 0.6 million in 2006 (World Bank •■) 161. In 2016, international tourism contributed 13% to GDP. 12% to employment and 21% to <por’ earnings (WTTC. 2017). Half of the international tourists engage in NBT (Mgonja et al.. 2015. and this makes NBT an important economic sector in Tanzania. Tanzanian NBT largely depends on attractions that are supported by natural environments and that include mega-fauna, wildlife migration in Serengeti and snow on Mount Kilimanjaro (Kilungu et al.. 2014; Tanzania Tourism Sector Survey, 2017). An attraction is a physical, environmental or cultural feature that meets a specific tourist's desire to travel to a specific destination (Leiper, 1979; Gunn & Var, 2002). A destination is a geographic area with political or administrative boundaries that provides tourists with a range of attractions for a memorable experience (Manente, 2008; Bomhorst et al., 2010; United Nations, 2010). Without developed attractions, NBT and its destinations would not exist (Yale. 1991). This means that the continued growth of NBT in Tanzania depends on the quality of natural environments and its attractions. My thesis considers Tanzanian national parks, game reserves, nature reserves and the Ngorongoro Conservation Area all as NBT destinations, while wildlife, plants and snow are major nature-based tourist attractions.

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PhD-Thesis

Keywords

Tanzanian, Climatic changes, Land cover, Tourist attractions

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