Publications
Visitor Management as a Pathway to Sustainable Heritage Tourism: Lessons from Fasil Ghebbi
Effective visitor management is identified as a critical pathway to sustainable heritage tourism, particularly for UNESCO World Heritage Sites facing rapid tourist growth. The study highlights that without proper strategies, mass tourism can lead to unsustainable practices and adverse impacts on cultural heritage, such as Fasil Ghebbi in Ethiopia's Gondar Region. It emphasizes the need for tools and frameworks that balance tourism growth with preservation efforts, drawing lessons from global trends where tourism has outpaced sustainable management. The research focuses on analyzing challenges and strategies for visitor management, advocating for proactive measures to mitigate negative effects while ensuring long-term sustainability.
Practices and challenges of visitor management implementation for sustainable tourism development in Fasil Ghebbi, Ethiopia
A study on Fasil Ghebbi, Ethiopia, reveals significant gaps in visitor management practices that hinder sustainable tourism development. Despite its potential as a UNESCO World Heritage Site, the site faces challenges such as low implementation levels, limited stakeholder involvement, insufficient budget and attention, lack of skilled personnel, basic visitor facilities, and negligible responsibility awareness. These issues contribute to poor visitor management, which could otherwise mitigate negative impacts on the site. The research employed a mixed-methods approach, combining surveys with 246 visitors, interviews with six key informants, and observational data. Quantitative data were analyzed using SPSS version 25, while qualitative data were thematically analyzed. The findings underscore the urgent need for improved visitor management strategies to ensure the preservation and sustainable development of Fasil Ghebbi.
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