Regenerative Tourism: A Case Study of the Resort Town Yulara

Abstract

Ecotourism is a burgeoning sector of the tourism industry offering a relatively guilt-free environment in which to satisfy the desire for travel and adventure. The discourse is firmly entrenched within the dominant conception of sustainability where nature is seen as a privileged ‘other’, untouched by humans. This ideology is also prevalent in the design of ecotourism facilities, which are generally predicated on a model of minimal intervention. This low-impact approach is not problematic in itself, but it misses the opportunity to engage in a more productive and ‘regenerative’ relationship with place. Conversely, Philip Cox Richardson Taylor's design for the resort town of Yulara in central Australia sought a more constructive relationship with place and questioned the conventional notion of ‘resort’. Although this resort, constructed in 1984, predates the current ecotourism industry and certification programs, it remains an early exemplar of innovations in this area and offers the benefits of hindsight. Through an exploration of the ideals and realities of the design and subsequent occupation of Yulara, this paper questions the potential challenges and opportunities of the design of ecotourism facilities to engage in a more ‘regenerative’ agenda. In particular, it identifies the social context and consideration of spatial practice as a key area of opportunity for the built environment to contribute to the ecotourism goal of interpretation and education through a more reflexive form of environmental awareness.

Untitled

“…The paper employs a simple multiple case study approach and offers four cameo case studies to illustrate the characteristics of a range of regenerative tourism initiatives in the UK. Rowley (2002) that argued 'case studies have often been viewed as a useful tool for the preliminary exploratory stage of a research project', and a case study approach has been used previously in examining regenerative tourism in the resort town of Yulara in Northern territories, Australia (Owen 2007). The material for the cameo case studies was generated by an Internet search, conducted in April 2024, using the single search term regenerative tourism initiatives in the UK.…”

Regenerative Tourism: Opportunities and Challenges

“…Not many of them provide empirical evidence. The challenges and opportunities for engaging and converting the overarching principles into practices in a regenerative program therefore remain unanswered or are hypothetical (Owen, 2007). Although the concept of regenerative tourism is not new, knowledge about tourism stakeholders' unique contributions towards the creation of practices that advance generative principles and well-being for all is still sporadic and scarce (Ateljevic, 2020;Cave & Dredge, 2020;Mathisen et al, 2022).…”

Linking Regenerative Travel and Residents’ Support for Tourism Development in Kaua’i Island (Hawaii): Moderating-Mediating Effects of Travel-Shaming and Foreign Tourist Attractiveness

“…), residents will potentially develop emotional solidarity with the tourists, which can in return positively contribute to residents' tourist perceptions (Woosnam 2011b(Woosnam , 2012. Also, regenerative travel substantially augments the residents' perceived benefits because it aims to generate and maximize positive impacts rather than narrowly minimizing the negative consequences of tourism (Town and Owen 2005). Based on the theoretical lens of SET, regenerative travel behavior can showcase holistic and positive developments in social, economic, and cultural environments at host destinations that can ultimately enhance residents' perception toward tourism as well as the tourist (Erul and Woosnam 2021).…”

“…In scholarly definition, regenerative tourism addresses the inherent inadequacies of the concept of sustainability as the former proposes inherently self-renewing systems to accelerate the revitalization of cultural and natural environments through tourism (Arfwedson 1994; Dowling 2000; Lyle 1996). To that end, regenerative tourism diverges from the traditional sense of sustainable tourism as it focuses on actively enhancing the positive impact of tourism rather than minimizing the negative impacts (Town and Owen 2005). Therefore, in regenerative travel, the focus is not on the sustainability of tourism per se but on how tourism can be utilized to enhance local well-being, and promote sustainability and revitalization of destinations (Duxbury et al 2020).…”