Understanding ecotourism
Ecotourism arises from a mixture of interests including environmental, economic, and social concerns and it incorporates a commitment to nature and a sense of social responsibility within business practices. It should be an enlightening and responsible travel experience to natural landscapes in areas that incorporate a positive approach with regard to environmental conservation. Such areas should actively aim to improve or maintain the integrity and welfare of the local population. In recent years however issues of crowding, environmental impacts and displacement along with a loss of host community satisfaction, have become increasingly common (Hall and Page 2010).
As yet, there is no universal consensus on the meaning of ecotourism and indeed some confusion on the term’s meaning (Holden 2008). Unfortunately, at least partly explaining the problems mentioned above, much of the ecotourism industry is operating at the ‘shallow-end’ of the spectrum (Hall and Page 2010) seeking to brand a product or destination rather than seeking to achieve full long-term sustainability (Cooper et al. 2005).