This online resource was derived from the Christchurch and Banks Peninsula Case Study reports of the Tourism Recreation Research and Education Centre (Lincoln University, New Zealand). It relates to the Level 3 NCEA Geography syllabus – Analyse a Cultural Process - as well as aspects of planning and decision making.
The research from which this resource is derived was funded by the Public Good Science Fund. This case study is the last in a series of four (which includes Kaikoura, Rotorua and Westland), and was led by David G. Simmons, Professor of Tourism in the Environment Society and Design Division, Lincoln University, and Dr John R. Fairweather, Principal Research Sociologist, Agribusiness and Economic Research Unit, Lincoln (University).
The main reason for this research is to provide planning guidelines to make tourism sustainable. Tourism is forecasted to grow rapidly in Christchurch and Canterbury over the next five years, and this rapid growth has major implications for the attractions of the area, as well as the region’s infrastructure and acceptance levels of the local people. For example, if through the constant pressure of visitors, locals begin to resent the tourists and the quality of the attractions deteriorates, people will choose to go elsewhere.
Christchurch is located in the province of Canterbury on the east coast of the South Island of New Zealand. The City's location is relevant to its function as either a gateway city to the South Island or exit out of New Zealand. Recently, however, a great deal of effort has gone into trying to overturn that impression and to position the city as a destination in its own right. As a destination, Canterbury attracts approximately 735,000 international visitors per year (3.3 million bed nights) and 2.3 million domestic visitors per year (7 million visitor nights). Taken together, the above visitor categories amount to over 10 million visitor nights per year in Canterbury.
Tourism is also a sizeable part of the Christchurch economy, where it contributes 12 per cent of all jobs. Tourism spending is estimated at $1,103 million annually in the city and, when flow-on effects are considered, generates an additional $832 million (or a total of $1,935 million in benefits) to the city's economy. Tourism is also a significant part of the Akaroa economy, where annual spending of $17.3 million generates approximately 50 per cent of all jobs.
Tourist flows
Tourism is driven by the decisions of individual tourists as they move about a destination, collecting experiences, purchasing goods and services, and largely assembling their own 'tourist product'. When their resultant itineraries are aggregated they can be represented as tourist flows. While often unnoticed on a daily basis, when taken together, these flows can be quite large.
Tourist flows throughout New Zealand are shown in Figure 2. International tourist flows within a destination originate from a Gateway City, such as Christchurch, with an international airport. These tourists then travel to destinations with natural or cultural attractions. Domestic tourists travel from their origin area to any number of destinations and may also ‘stopover’ in a number of locations during the journey to their main destination.
When a destination area begins to develop a number of attractions to stimulate tourism growth, the increased levels of tourist visitation that may result from such development stimulates even greater levels of development and visitation. The outcome of this ever-increasing cycle of tourism development and visitation is the development of a Tourist Generator region.
Source: Adapted from Forer and Oberdries (1995).
References
Cullen, R., Dakers, A., McNicol, J., Meyer-Hubbert, G., Simmons, D.G. and Fairweather, J.R. (2003). Tourism: Waste and Water in Akaroa. Tourism Recreation Research and Education Centre (TRREC), Lincoln University, Report No. 38.
Dempsey, M., Lucas, M., Wright, M. and Henderson, G. (1990). Tourism as a Cultural Process.
Simmons, D.G., Fairweather, J.R. and Shone, M.C. (2003). Tourism in Christchurch and Akaroa: Challenges for Planning and Recommendations for Management. Tourism Recreation Research and Education Centre (TRREC), Lincoln University, Report No. 39.
Learning activities
- Research the full definitions for the terms in bold above.
- Use tourism maps of New Zealand in your school atlases to locate and name the gateways, attractions, stopovers and generators on Figure 2.
- Name one major tourism flow in both the North and South Islands from Figure 2.
- Describe the tourist flows for Christchurch (as shown in Figure 2).