Perceptions of trekking tourism and social and environmental change in Nepal's Himalayas

The Himalayas are among the world’s youngest mountain ranges. In addition to the geologic processes of mountain building and erosion, they are also highly vulnerable to human influenced change, occurring at local, national, regional, and international scales. A photo-elicitation methodology is employed to show how residents perceive those changes from historical perspectives, as well as their current conditions and impacts on their daily lives. Nepal’s Khumbu region has undergone major social and environmental transformations since the 1960s when international trekking first began to influence the area's economy. The current perceptions of Khumbu residents of these changes is assessed through photo-elicitation interviews. Their responses are placed in the historical context of: (i) institutional and political changes, much of which have been driven by national government policies; (ii) social and economic changes, for which the tourism economy has been central; and (iii) environmental changes, reflecting the impacts of resource management and climate change. The mostly positive perceptions of Khumbu residents toward how their region has changed reflects general improvements in the physical and cultural landscapes of the Khumbu over time, as well as its continuing geographic isolation, which has helped to slow the rate of globalization, while also keeping the region a dynamic and popular tourist destination

The restrictions on travel of elderly tourists and their mitigation by facilitators and negotiation strategies

The segment of the elderly population has taken on a heterogeneous character due to the various economic and social policies and reforms that have been implemented by the governments of the various countries. This is the baby-boom generation, that is, individuals who were born between 1946 and 1964, and who currently have greater purchasing power than previous generations and have a high interest in leisure moments where travel ends up having great meaning. However, about half of the population is affected by several factors, which prevent travel. In this sense, the objective of this work aims to investigate how, in the literature review, travel constraints are mitigated or eliminated through facilitators or negotiation strategies. Tourism promoters and managers, stakeholders and DMO’s, have, thus, the great challenge of mitigating, as much as possible, the travel restrictions of elderly tourists, through several strategies and tools that allow a greater participation of this segment of the population in tourism activities.info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio

Exchange students’ views on tourism: the impact of first-hand experiences on transversal skills development and loyalty to the host destination

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