Emerging issues and directions of cultural heritage tourism in the Asia pacific region

Abstract

[Extract] The chapters in this book have made abundantly clear how important cultural heritage is in the Asia Pacific as a resource upon which much of the region's tourism is based. Parts of the region are among the world's fastest growing tourist destinations, thanks in large part to cultural heritage. This collection of essays spans a wide spectrum of countries and brings to the fore many empirical examples of living and built culture that draw visitors from around the globe in both the developing and developed areas of the Asia Pacific. The book highlights many issues that are of considerable interest to heritage and tourism scholars and which directly affect the management of heritage resources and heritage tourism. Several conceptual foundations underlie the chapters in this book: the vast array of heritage resources, the idea of impact and unacceptable change, heritage branding and demand, and power/politics. Each of these is examined below in greater depth and ideas are formulated regarding future trends and research needs.