Annual EA Exhibition & Workshop
URBAN TOURISM:Opportunities for Cities with Low
Endowment of Historical/Cultural Built Environment Heritage
Eliud Liku Department of Architecture & Building Science – UoN
23rd July 2015
Presentation OutlinePreambleSubject FramingScholarly EngagementOpportunitiesConclusion
MisnomerLiterature available has tended to suggest that:
Urban tourism takes place only in cities with high concentration of historical/cultural buildings
Contemporary buildings/structures play insignificant part in tourism offering
The role of architects and urban designers in provision of tourist offering is limited to restoration of historical/ cultural buildings and provision of secondary tourism elements
This paper will attempt to show that these arguments need rethinking
Objective
The key objective of this paper is to arouse debate on the subject of
Urban Tourism amongst academicians in schools of architecture and urban planning in the region
DefinitionVarious scholars have different definitions of the term “Urban Tourism”:
A set of resources or activities located in a city and made available to visitors for the purpose of entertainment, business or for other reasons (Garbae R.X., 2013)
That it takes place in urban agglomeration with at least 20,000 inhabitants, and characterised by short stay of 1-3 days, and travel distance of over 100km
Historical PerspectiveUrban Tourism has been in existence for over 2000 years but remained unnoticed by scholars for a long time(the story of Paul in the Bible is a good case in point)
Became an important economic activity in the 1970’s after the collapse of manufacturing industries in Europe
Complexity of Urban TourismFairly difficult to isolate amongst other city
activities because of the shared consumption of urban facilities
It is vaguely demarcated from other city activities (Ashworth R.V., 2013)
It is a multi-dimensional industry, and therefore a system made of various features & components
It is both a social and economic activity (Moosivand J. and Farahani B.M., 2013)
It is pervasive; takes place in all cities
Top Urban Tourist Destinations(Master Card; 2014 Global Destinations Cities Index)
GLOBAL
City No. of Visitors
1. London 18.69 million
2. Bangkok 16.42 million
3. Paris 15.57 million
4. Singapore 12.47 million
5. Dubai 11.95 million
6. New York 11.81 million
7. Istanbul 11.60 million
8. Kuala Lumpur
10.81 million
9. Hong Kong 8.84 million
10. Seoul 8.63 million
AFRICA
City No. of Visitors
1 .Johannesburg
4.25 million
2. Cape Town 1.6 0million
3. Cairo 1.35 million
4. Lagos 1.33 million
5. Casablanca 0.99 million
Urban Tourism StudiesScholarly studies began to emerge in 1960s and
mainly by geographersToday is an area of study by many disciplines;
geographers, sociologist, economists, marketers, planners and policy makers
HOWEVER;Studies on urban tourism in the developing
world have been lacking (Rogerson C.M., 2010)
Schools of architecture have not actively participated in the subject
Types of TourismBased on the purpose of the visit, Ben-Delia et al
(2012) identified 4 types of tourism:Sea and sand tourismCulture tourismVisiting friends and relatives tourismBusiness tourism Culture and business have grown faster than the other two
The two take place mainly in urban centers
Attraction of TouristsScholars have identified three tourism elements:Primary; the key motivators Secondary; complementary Tertiary; supportive
Attributes of key motivators:Destination personalityVariety of offerings
Destination PersonalityDestination must have personality to attract tourists
Traits (Ekinci & Hosany, 2006)Excitement and convivialitySincerity/authenticitySophisticationBeautyCompetence
Destination Personality (cont’d)Current literature is silent on the role of
tourism planners in destinations personality acquisition
Tourists use their instincts to bequeath personalities to destinations. (Lovelock B., 2004)
Historical events play a key role in the process of personality acquisition
It can be argued that destination personality is acquired by default and not design
Destination Personality (cont’d)A tired farmer who left his boots hanging on a fence led to creation of this artifact by tourists(Lovelock B.,2004)
Offering VarietyTo be attractive to tourists, a city should provide destinations with personality as well as variety in its offerings
Some of the urban features that have been used as vehicles for achieving offering variety are:Contemporary structuresStreet activitiesWater fronts
Contemporary StructuresLondon EyeDesigned by Julia Barfield and David MarksLeading tourist destination; built in 1999Attracts 3.75m tourists per year, more than the Great Pyramid of Giza and Taj Mahal
Contemporary Structures (Cont’d)Guggenheim Museum in BilbaoBuilt in 1997Designed by Frank Gehry Had 4 million tourist visits in the first 3 yearsA case of duality in tourist offering
Building and the exhibits are both artifacts
Street Activities
Street Market – Cape Town
Court Yard Market - Nairobi
Water Fronts
Intaka Island -Canal Walk -Cape Town
Nairobi River
Paradigm ShiftArchitects and urban designers need to get
involved in the debate of urban tourism and make the necessary interpretation and connection between urban design and tourists’ needs
Tourism policy makers and planners need to change from being reactionary to proactive in provision of primary tourism element offerings
Is it possible to bequeath tourism elements with “destination personality” through design?
Call to ActionArchitects and Urban Designers should take their
rightful position and make positive contribution in the discourse of urban tourism offerings especially in the areas of “destination personality” and “offering variety”Indeed there are enormous opportunities for urban tourism in cities with low endowment of historical/cultural built environment heritage
Contemporary buildings/structures have potential to serve as attractions for tourists
Thank You