Maintaining the Quality of Ecotourism: Ecotour Operators' Responses to Tourism Growth

Abstract

In spite of a growing literature on ecotourism, there are still problems in defining it and applying it to the businesses that provide ecotourism opportunities. It is perhaps more realistic to recognise that in place of distinct categories, there is a continuum of operators displaying different degrees of environmentally responsible behaviour, from ecotourism at one end of the spectrum to exploitative nature-based tourism at the other. Case studies in Australia indicate that those operators located towards the ecotourism end of the spectrum showed a consistent response to increasing levels of tourism use of their tour sites: all would seek to relocate their tours in untouched areas where they could guarantee the quality of their tourists' experience. Ecotourism thus has the potential to spread tourism geographically into hitherto untouched areas. Although these ecotour businesses were operating in situations of tourism growth,few were expanding their businesses. Most were experiencing severe competition from the less environmentally responsible nature-based operators. These results are discussed in the context of the ecotour operators' possible role in the process of destination development as described by the Butler cycle. Environmentally responsible behaviour does not render businesses immune to the competitive processes that drive the cycle.