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of continuing importance in tourism research, but one can objectthat they are minority experiences and do not represent the stan-dard Asian tourism product.

The reality of much tourism in Asia is that it remains based onorganised tours, major sporting events (need one mention theBeijing Olympics), conferences and urban nodes, and thus a bookon tourism in Asia might be expected to discuss the emergence ofmajor tourism centres such as Hong Kong, Singapore, Beijing andShanghai. Searching the index shows Hong Kong referenced forfive pages with an emphasis on eco-tourism, while Singapore,Beijing and Shanghai are not mentioned. In short, many of the indi-vidual case studies reflect personal interests by the authors ratherthan an appraisal of broad trends and majority tourism interestsin Asia.

It can be legitimately argued that the above examples are drawnprimarily from the case studies that are found in the second andthird sections of the book, and thus the over-arching perspectiveis to be found in the first section. There is indeed useful materialfor a reader seeking an overview of tourism and its associatedpolicies in this first section. Ravi Ravinder makes reference to thepolicies of APEC, PATA and ASEAN, but argues these collaborationshave yet to develop anything meaningful (although movement hasbeen made on visa arrangements, including the APEC BusinessVisa – none of which is mentioned). I found, as one might expectgiven Geoff Wall’s significant experience of the Asia Pacific, thechapter written by him on Asian Regional Markets, to be insightfuland detailed. One only wished it was longer. But after these two all-embracing chapters, the remaining ones again tend to be more sub-regional. The chapter by Trevor Sofield on the Greater MekongRegion is again detailed and benefits from Trevor’s long involve-ment in this region. Another chapter that I enjoyed that benefittedfrom long exposure in the subject area was Wolfgang Arlt’s laterchapter on outbound Chinese tourists in ‘Elsewhereland’ and theirsearch for modernity. This chapter contains challenging observa-tions such as ‘Chinese tourist behaviour in Europe dithers betweena largely unsuccessful search for modernity and falling back on tothe ‘minority’ pattern of sampling the strange customs of the localtribes’ (Arlt, 2008, p. 142). However, I felt that some chaptersprovided little more than could be gained from a relatively quicksearch of the Internet.

Of course – such views are those of the reviewer alone, and eachreader can dip and select from the chapters that which is of interestto them. Obviously there is difference in background and experi-ence of the contributors – some of the chapters represent the

research projects of younger and newly qualified members of theresearch body, while others are informed by many years of immer-sion in the subject matter. Some chapters tend to the descriptive,while others seek to provide a model or construct to better shapethe debate. Each chapter however, I am sure, will possess value toa given reader. Yet, at the end of the day I felt that here was anopportunity missed, and thus I return to the point made at the startof this review. I felt there was an attempt by the editors to includeas many conference papers as was possible, which is understand-able, but perhaps has the consequence of reducing much of thebook into a series of disparate case studies that, as noted, tend toreflect the research interests of academics rather than the main-stream of Asian tourism. Given, for example, the trends analysisconducted by UNWTO (2006), one can find discrepancies betweensome of the issues identified from the public media in the UNWTOreport (see Pan, Chon, & Song, 2008). That report identifies issuessuch as demographic changes, changing air transport patterns,concerns over health, the polarisation of tastes – and while thedata source is derived from media articles, arguably that reportprovides the over-arching perspective that is missing in this book.Possibly the title is at fault. To entitle a book Asian Tourism: Growthand Change invites a mega-trend analysis rather than the detail ofvery specific case studies, and thus possibly I had false expectationsof the work.

So, what conclusion can one reach? The book has value asa series of illustrative case studies. Many of the chapters areinformed by insight born of involvement and immersion in thesituations described. But I remain unconvinced that, as is claimedon the back cover, that the book is a ‘vital reference’ for anyoneinterested in tourism in Asia.

References

Arlt, W. G. (2008). Chinese tourists in ‘Elsewhereland’: Behaviour and perceptions ofmainland Chinese tourists at different destinations. In J. Cochrane (Ed.), Asiatourism: Growth and change (pp. 135–144). Oxford: Elsevier.

Pan, S., Chon, K., & Song, H. (2008). Visualizing tourism trends: a combination ofATLAS.ti and BiPlot. Journal of Travel Research, 46(3), 339–348.

UNWTO. (2006). Mega trends of tourism in Asia Pacific. Madrid: UNWTO.

Chris RyanUniversity of Waikato Management School,

Hamilton, New ZealandE-mail address: caryan@waikato.ac.nz

doi:10.1016/j.tourman.2008.07.005

Tourism and Climate Change: Risks and Opportunities,S. Becken, J.E. Hay. Channel View Publications, Clevedon(2007). 329 pp, £24.95 (pbk), ISBN: 9781845410667Tourism and Climate Change Mitigation: Methods, GreenhouseGas Reductions and Policies. Peeters, P. (Ed.). Stichting NHTV,Breda (2007). 207 pp, (pbk), ISBN: 9789072766533

As concerns over climate change intensify around the world, thepublication of these books is timely and reflects a growing interestamongst tourism researches in both the contribution of tourism toclimate change and the consequences for tourism of climatechange. Although the books are very different in nature, both addto the rather meagre research and knowledge base currently avail-able concerning the relationship between tourism activity andclimate change.

In Tourism and climate change: Risks and opportunities. Beckenand Hay combine their expertise well to provide a genuinelyimpressive examination of tourism and climate change interac-tions, offering conceptual platforms as well as illustration andexample aplenty. The book is wide in scope and strong on detail(for example, the many Text Box asides), and uses up to dateresearch findings throughout. Potential and actual adaptation andmitigation responses at different geographical and administra-tive/policy scales are particularly well featured; not surprising ina book that deliberately sets out to target decision makers as thekey readership. The book will also appeal, however, to universityteachers and students and academic and policy researchersapproaching the topic from tourism, land use planning and envi-ronmental science perspectives. Indeed, the nature of the topicrequires a cross-disciplinary vision and approach, and this is

Book reviews / Tourism Management 30 (2009) 463–469468

presumably why the authors provide much by way of basic intro-duction to both tourism (chapter 4) and climate change driversand impacts (chapter 5) before considering in detail greenhousegas accounting methods, mitigation measures, and risks and adap-tation in subsequent chapters (6, 7 and 8, respectively). Similarly,the penultimate chapter (9) on climate change policies andpractices offers a solid grounding in general climate change policymaking before delving more deeply into the requirements oftourism-specific policy and planning, and appropriate businesspractices. The authors also provide very useful summaries of keypoints for each of the main chapters, although some may find itodd that these appear at the beginning of each chapter.

Whilst the authors are to be congratulated on producing sucha valuable resource for a wide potential audience, there is a degreeof repetition apparent, not least because the book is almost twobooks: the first two substantive chapters (2 and 3) following theintroduction containing a distillation of many of the central argu-ments apparent in the book as a whole. One cannot help feelthat the case studies in chapter 3 would have been better towardsthe end, after the detailed examination of tourism, climatechange, adaptation and mitigation, and an overview of policyimplementation mechanisms. It is almost as if the authors are tooanxious about retaining the interest of a section of their potentialreadership. Also, and despite the book’s title, those expecting anin-depth examination of the potential opportunities afforded totourism from climate change will (thankfully) be disappointed.On the other hand, adaptation rather than mitigation tends todominate the policies and practices chapter, and this may concernthose with a stronger notion of how tourism policy and decisionmakers should respond to climate change and tourism’s part in it.There are also times when information is presented rather uncrit-ically, and although aviation is singled out in the concludingchapter as tourism’s ‘Achilles heel’, there is not a consistent sensein the book of which forms of tourist activity are in most need ofreform through mitigation. An expanded section on actual policyimplementation instruments and a closer link between these andthe case study examples provided elsewhere would, perhaps,benefit many readers. The authors also point out in the finalchapter that ultimately it is not easy or desirable to view tourismin isolation from other sectors when considering contribution andresponse to climate change. This, very important, argument (andone that is returned to below) might have been made more oftenthroughout the book. Overall, however, the book tackles itssubject in a comprehensive way, with impressive detail andexplanation, and I think it will convince many decision makersof the need to respond meaningfully to climate change, and ofat least some of the ways in which appropriate action might betaken.

Tourism and Climate Change Mitigation: Methods, greenhouse gasreductions and policies is an edited volume of papers (Abstractsincluded) selected from the eCLAT (experts in climate change andtourism) conference held in Westelbeers, The Netherlands in June2006, and is clearly aimed more directly at the tourism researchcommunity. There is a strong European bias in the origins of thecontributors, with researchers from the UK, The Netherlands andPortugal particularly evident. Unlike Becken and Hay, this bookfocuses on mitigation, and contributions are structured to addressthe three key concerns of the eCLAT research agenda: methodsand data to elucidate the links between tourism and climatechange; reducing greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions from tourismactivity; and policies to mitigate tourism’s contribution to GHGemissions and climate change. In the introductory chapter, Peetersprovides a clear overview of the various contributions in the bookand raises expectations by suggesting that the reader can expectanswers to several aspects of the eCLAT research agenda.

Section I of the book (methods and data) contains three contri-butions covering the estimation of GHG emissions from air trans-port, as assessment of the contribution of Antarctic tourism toclimate change, and the application of a Social Practices Approachto tourism. Section II (reducing GHG emissions) is the largest andoffers research findings relating to air transport again (carbon offsetcompensation schemes, the use of various air traffic managementtools), the potential of the train for long distance travel in Europe,scheduled buses as an alternative to the car in tourist areas of theUK, the use of a numerical simulation model to investigate energydemand in Portuguese hotels under different scenarios, and thepotential of better group-tailored marketing strategies toencourage more environmentally friendly travel choices amongstGerman holidaymakers. Section III completes the book with threecontributions apparently chosen for their focus on mitigation poli-cies: a study of rural tourism entrepreneur attitudes and behaviourto climate change mitigation and adaptation in New Zealand; anevaluation of tourism and transport policy conflicts in the UK;and the use of scenario analysis to assess the future of touristmobility in France under conditions of reduced GHG emissions.The contributions are, therefore, diverse in character, and withargumentation approaches ranging from the use of mathematicalequations to sociological discourse, it is unlikely that any onereader will necessary follow the detail of every chapter. As iscommon with edited volumes, perhaps especially those based onconference papers, the chapters are also varied in quality; boththe written English and the apparent desire to explain ideas clearly.This said, most contributions present no problems regarding theease of comprehension of the material and arguments presented.

Overall, this book has a less upbeat tone, perhaps because thenatural audience will be other researchers, and the focus is on miti-gation alone. The volume does not actually provide much by way of‘answers’ to the mitigation research agenda set out by eCLAT;indeed, many of the contributions serve to highlight our lack ofknowledge, understanding and robust data concerning the interre-lationships between tourism activity and climate change, and arealso rather exploratory (and frequently quite pessimistic) in nature.Readers may be slightly disappointed by the policies section, as twoout of the three contributions here, although interesting and wellwritten, do not really directly and consistently address the formu-lation or appraisal of mitigation policy measures, as might reason-ably be expected. The book, or at least the slant on content providedby Peeters, does not, however, shy away from pointing out the mainform of tourism activity where attention needs to be focused: airtravel. Indeed, Peeters goes as far as to say (p. 23) that, ‘‘mitigationby reducing (air transport) volumes seems unavoidable.’’ This is nota message that many in the tourism policy making and decisiontaking community will want to hear, particularly given the prob-lems surrounding carbon offset schemes for air transport asdescribed in the contribution by Boon, Schroten and Kampman.Overall, many of the contributions in this book are strong and inter-esting, and do signal lines of investigation that are, for the mostpart, of clear potential value. As an educational resource for univer-sity staff and students, however, the Becken and Hay book offersmore underpinning knowledge and a greater breadth of coverageon the totality of tourism/climate interaction.

To conclude, it is perhaps worth making a few general pointsapplicable to some extent to both books and possibly to muchrelated tourism research more widely. First, one wonders to whatextent influences such as ‘peak oil’ operating beyond the imme-diate tourism-climate ‘system’ will actually turn out to be criticalin shaping the future magnitude and nature of tourism develop-ment around the world. Indeed, Becken and Hay go to some lengthsto remind the reader of the potential impact of external shocks andtrends on features of tourism and climate interaction, but in neither

Book reviews / Tourism Management 30 (2009) 463–469 469

book is peak oil examined in detail. In fact, Becken (2008) is one ofthe few tourism researchers so far to have recognised the possibleconsequences of peak oil for tourism activity (see also Yeomanet al., 2007), and it is not inconceivable that the fallout from peakoil (assuming that peak oil is a real phenomenon) will do muchmore to curb tourist air travel than many a carefully targeted andtailored policy intervention.

A second point, and one that applies more to the research-ledvolume edited by Peeters, relates to our apparent lack of engage-ment with some of the important literature available in the widersocial sciences scholarly community. Just as it is important fortourism researchers to look outwards to specific trends and shockswhich may affect tourism-climate interactions, so it is also vital thatwe are more ready to embrace the rich sources of theoretical andpractical knowledge developed in other research communities. Itis not clear to me why when much of the thinking behind whatmight broadly be termed ‘sustainable tourism’ is embedded withinan individual consumer behaviour and consumption orientatedperspective on sustainability, tourism researchers so often appearto be unaware of potentially very valuable work available in thebroader literature. For example, models describing and predictingthe formation of an individual’s attitudes and behaviours, such asthe theory of planned behaviour (Ajzen, 1991), and allied investiga-tions incorporating consideration of sustainable consumption anda value-action gap in pro-environment behaviour (Corraliza &Berenguer, 2000; Gatersleben, Steg, &Vlek, 2002; Hobson, 2006;Norlund & Garvill, 2002; Poortinga, Steg, & Vlek, 2004).

Finally, given the concerns raised and evidence presented inthese books, do academic researchers and members of the tourismpolicy making community not have a clear obligation to try to mini-mise the organisation of conferences, meetings and summits thatencourage international air travel in particular? Who else are we

expecting to take the lead here? Shouldn’t we be taking a lead?Hopefully, in the not too distant future, and where the use ofremote conferencing technology proves impossible for some,conference fees will be graded according to the mode of O/D trans-port used by the delegate, and evidence of contribution to certaintypes of carbon offset scheme (albeit whilst accepting the latteras probably inadequate over the longer term).

References

Ajzen, I. (1991). The theory of planned behaviour. Organisational Behaviour andHuman Decision Processes, 50, 179–211.

Becken, S. (2008). Developing indicators for managing tourism in the face of peakoil. Tourism Management, 29, 695–705.

Corraliza, J., & Berenguer, J. (2000). Environmental values, beliefs and actions: a situ-ational approach. Environment and Behaviour, 32(6), 832–848.

Gatersleben, B., Steg, L., & Vlek, C. (2002). Measurement and determinants of envi-ronmentally significant consumer behaviour. Environment and Behaviour, 34(3),335–362.

Hobson, K. (2006). Environmental psychology and the geographies of ethical andsustainable consumption: aligning, triangulation, challenging? Area, 38(5),292–300.

Norlund, A., & Garvill, J. (2002). Value structures behind proenvironmental behav-iour. Environment and Behaviour, 34(6), 740–756.

Poortinga, W., Steg, L., & Vlek, C. (2004). Values, environmental concern and envi-ronmentally significant behaviour: a study into household energy use. Environ-ment and Behaviour, 36(1), 70–93.

Yeoman, I., Lennon, J., Blake, A., Galt, M., Greenwood, C., & McMahon-Beattie, U.(2007). Oil depletion: what does this mean for Scottish tourism? TourismManagement, 28, 1354–1365.

Colin HunterGeography and Environment, School of Geosciences, University of

Aberdeen, Aberdeen, Scotland AB24 3UF, UKE-mail address: geo341@abdn.ac.uk

doi:10.1016/j.tourman.2008.07.002