Hosting the guest : changing local attitudes and behaviour

Abstract

Sustainability in many cases has been treated as the optimal trade-off between economic development and the environment, and an examination of the ways in which the boundaries of that trade-off may be extended. In tourism, it is necessary to add a third dimension, one which incorporates the social aspirations of the community and host-guest relationships. The subject matter of this chapter is customer care, particularly the Wales Tourist Board's Welcome Host programme, which is aimed at changing local attitudes and behaviour towards tourists. It is about generating an awareness and understanding of tourism within the community, especially to those who may not necessarily see themselves as part of the tourist product, and about improving the quality of the visitor experience in the encounter situation, whether through a chance meeting, a polite enquiry or the service relationship.