The Geography of Tourism andRecreation: Environment, Place, and Space
By C. Michael Hall and Stephen J. Page. Routledge <www.routledge.com>3r ed. 2006 xxi + 427 pp (plates, figures, tables, bibliography, index)$25.99 Pbk. ISBN 0-415-33561-2
Adam WeaverVictoria University of Wellington, New Zealand
This book is an overview of tourism and recreation research using perspectivesand concepts from human geography. While this volume should interest geogra-phers in general, it is an important resource for researchers in a number of otherdisciplines. The authors have written a well-organized, comprehensive, and clearsynthesis of many different ideas and issues: the global scope of tourism andrecreation, spatial patterns of international and domestic travel, the (im)mobilityof certain groups of people, the way in which this temporary movement shapeslandscapes and culture, and inequalities between core and peripheral areas. Thelist could go on.
This book has ten chapters covering a wide territory. The first discusses thebroad array of contributions by geographers. Chapter 2 examines demand-basedresearch with a review of the factors that influence participation in tourism andrecreation. This chapter also conveys the importance of both international anddomestic tourism worldwide. The next chapter addresses issues related to tourismand recreation supply. Research that deploys more ‘‘radical’’ theories is examined,describing power relationships that underpin tourism production. Chapter 4covers many familiar themes related to impacts, and usefully reviews their complex-ity. The next two chapters explore the subject in urban and rural settings. Conceptssuch as demand, supply, and impacts are effectively revisited and linked to specificexamples.
Chapter 7 discusses tourism and recreation in wilderness areas and nationalparks. A range of topics receive attention: different meanings attached to the word‘‘wilderness’’, the scientific value of it, its inventories, and perceptions of and theprovision of this experience. Chapter 8 looks at tourism and recreation in marineand coastal areas, with emphasis on the serious disjuncture between the marketingand the management of coastal and marine resources. The next chapter reviews anumber of approaches to the study of planning and policy. This chapter empha-sizes the importance of planning and outlines an array of policy instruments avail-able to organizations (namely government bodies) involved in destinationmanagement. The final chapter offers insightful commentary about the futureof tourism and recreation geography. Each chapter contains ‘‘boxed’’ case studies,black and white photographs, tables, and diagrams, and concludes with a series ofdiscussion questions and a list of recommended readings.
The book offers a diverse set of perspectives, and the authors refuse to privilegeone worldview over others. They acknowledge that the study of the subject has ben-efited from the work of positivists, behavioral and humanistic geographers, thosewho undertake applied research, neo-Marxists, and postmodernists. This openness
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to different ideas and approaches is refreshing; the field has clearly been enrichedby the variety of theories and methods used. The authors are, however, wary of self-indulgent intellectualization. If one of the tasks is to address ‘‘real world’’ prob-lems, an academic discourse that closes the gap between scholarly and practitionercommunities is desperately needed. Researchers are encouraged to think abouthow their work could possibly improve the human condition.
What sort of challenges face tourism and recreation geographers? The margin-alization of researchers within geography departments is noted. In response, anumber of them have migrated to business schools. One hopes that these are tol-erant of the wide range of (sometimes critical) perspectives that have, to date, beenused by tourism and recreation geographers. An issue not addressed in the book isthe extent to which physical geographers could become more involved, and howthey could make a substantial and worthwhile contribution to the study. This ques-tion does not have an easy answer.
Readers may prefer to dip into this book rather than read it cover to cover. It isdifficult for such a wide range of topics to be of interest to everyone. The authorshave not sought to write an encyclop�dia, but the diversity of ideas covered by thistext is extraordinary. This breadth is reflected in the bibliography, which is 65pages in length and will prove to be valuable to researchers across many disci-plines. Thus, it is possible for readers to pursue certain themes and ideas in greaterdepth.
Scholars who are familiar with the geography of tourism and recreation will behappy to see so much material compiled conveniently in one volume. Althoughthe intended audience is primarily specialists in geography, this book would likelybe of use to anyone conducting tourism- and recreation-related research. First-yearuniversity students would probably struggle to understand some of the conceptscovered, but it would certainly be a useful addition to bookshelves belonging toupper-year undergraduates, graduate students, and academics. The authors ablydemonstrate that the focus is topical, can be intellectually stimulating, and de-serves attention from different branches of human geography. Tourism and recre-ation geographers—and their fellow travelers—owe a debt of gratitude to theauthors.
Adam Weaver: Victoria Management School, Victoria University of Wellington,Wellington, New Zealand. Email <[email protected]>
Assigned 28 April 2006. Submitted 17 July 2006. Accepted 20 July 2006
doi:10.1016/j.annals.2006.07.010
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