
Sustainability Aspects of Whale Shark Tourism: A Perspective from Tourist Blogs
This study explored tourists’ blogs to identify sustainability challenges and opportunities to inform best-practice management of the whale shark tourism industry worldwide. Few researchers have investigated blogs in the context of swim‐with whale shark experiences as recounted
from the tourist perspective. This research was based on a content analysis of a sample of 58 tourist blogs, amounting to 31,509 words of content. The findings explored common sustainability themes within the whale shark tourist experience including proximity of the encounter, nature of the
interaction, and whale shark tourist behavior. By comparing three whale shark tourism destinations–Mexico, the Philippines, and Australia–several sustainability challenges and opportunities were identified. The findings contribute to previous knowledge by advancing our understanding
of whale shark tourists’ perception of critical aspects during their swim-with whale shark experience, which guided recommendations for improved and sustainable management.
Keywords: AUSTRALIA; EMIC; MEXICO; QUALITATIVE; SUSTAINABILITY; THE PHILIPPINES; TOURIST BLOGS; WHALE SHARK
Document Type: Research Article
Affiliations: 1: School of Business and Law, Central Queensland University, Cairns, QLD, Australia 2: Learning Design and Innovation Directorate, Central Queensland University, Cairns, QLD, Australia
Publication date: July 15, 2024
This article was made available online on February 28, 2024 as a Fast Track article with title: "Sustainability Aspects of Whale Shark Tourism: A Perspective from Tourist Blogs".
- Tourism in Marine Environments is an interdisciplinary journal dealing with a variety of management issues in marine settings. It is a scientific journal that draws upon the expertise of academics and practitioners from various disciplines related to the marine environment, including tourism, marine science, geography, social sciences, psychology, environmental studies, economics, marketing, and many more.
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