The Economic Geography of Remote Tourism: The Problem of Connection Seeking

Abstract

The current literature on peripheral tourism appears conceptually weak for its inability to distinguish between different types of “peripheral” destinations. This review article argues that “remote” destinations have intrinsically different characteristics compared to peripheral ones and require different theoretical approaches to better explain the dynamics of tourism in remote areas. The review builds on theoretical models from the fields of economic geography and political economy, which have been largely absent from peripheral research in Tourism Studies in the past. In particular, the Canadian “staples thesis” is seen by these authors to offer some valuable insights into the unique patterns of economic development and core–periphery relationships in remote areas. They argue that while peripheral areas usually have entrenched relationships with a clearly defined core, remote areas are characterized by “disconnectedness” and face substantial challenges in establishing viable connections with other places. This review article thereby suggests that understanding the processes and implications of connection seeking is critical if tourism is to provide an effective tool for economic development in remote areas.

What are the enablers of economic participation in remote and very remote Australia, and how can we identify them?

“…In short, our research demonstrates the ways remote Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander tourism operators are taking up the call made in the broad tourism literature (e.g. Feser & Isserman, 2009;Schmallegger, Carson & Tremblay, 2010) that for remote tourism to forge ahead; the drive, inspiration and know-how must come from within remote Australia itself.…”

Tourism enterprises beyond the margins: the relational practices of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander SMEs in remote Australia

“…Foran, 2007;Stafford-Smith, Moran, & Seemann, 2008;Taylor, Ffowcs-Williams, & Crowe, 2008) and remote area tourism (e.g. Cartan & Carson, 2009;Pesämaa & Hair, 2008;Schmallegger, Carson, & Tremblay, 2010). Many sources argue for the need to match remote SME operational activity with external contexts, especially to adopt strategies that break down geographical isolation.…”

“…For example, Schmallegger et al (2010) argue that remote areas like Central Australia are characterised by "disconnectedness", where enterprises face challenges to establish viable economic connections with other places. Remote areas are prone to externally imposed government policies and becoming dominated by large external companies reliant on imported labour and practices that increase economic leakage (Schmallegger et al, 2010;Young, 2006).…”

“…For example, Schmallegger et al (2010) argue that remote areas like Central Australia are characterised by "disconnectedness", where enterprises face challenges to establish viable economic connections with other places. Remote areas are prone to externally imposed government policies and becoming dominated by large external companies reliant on imported labour and practices that increase economic leakage (Schmallegger et al, 2010;Young, 2006). An over-representation of external capital and labour (Schmallegger et al, 2010) reflects that the local tourism sector in many remote areas is often made up of a few SMEs dispersed throughout a broad region (Foley & O'Connor, 2013).…”

“…Remote areas are prone to externally imposed government policies and becoming dominated by large external companies reliant on imported labour and practices that increase economic leakage (Schmallegger et al, 2010;Young, 2006). An over-representation of external capital and labour (Schmallegger et al, 2010) reflects that the local tourism sector in many remote areas is often made up of a few SMEs dispersed throughout a broad region (Foley & O'Connor, 2013). But even with the realities of geographical distance, locally driven economic development is vital and requires expanding the capability base of local communities (Schmallegger et al, 2010), nurturing grass roots solutions (Greiner, 2010;Pavlovich, 2014), linking to the broader economy (Feser & Isserman, 2009), focusing on the unique drivers of local populations (Stafford-Smith et al, 2008) and taking a "whole of region" approach to development (Blackman et al, 2004).…”