The Singapore River thematic zone: sustainable tourism in an urban context

Abstract

This paper explores the concept of sustainable tourism and how it applies to urban destinations such as Singapore. As tourism is an important industry in Singapore, in terms of employment, business activity and an income generator, the Singapore Tourism Board is continuously looking at potential avenues to make Singapore a competitive destination. We examine the use of thematic zones in Singapore as a strategy to achieve its ambition of becoming a tourism capital of the world. By focusing on a case study of the Singapore River thematic zone (one of the 11 thematic zones identified by the Singapore Tourism Board), we assess the viability of thematic zones in ensuring sustainable urban tourism. The paper closes with some theoretical reflections and policy implications arising from our key findings.

Riverside Tourism in an Urban Area – How Can It Work?

“…The urban tourism development should, therefore, seek a more productive and harmonious relationship among visitors, host communities and the environment (Savage, Huang, Chang, 2004). Page (1995) stated that many European cities improved their centers by creating pedestrian zones, establishing parks and cycling routes, by investing in modern shopping centers and developing the city's marketing around a specific theme.…”

Technical frames of affect: Design-work and brand-work in a shopping mall

“…This project was carried out in response to a government report, ''Tourism 21: A Vision of a Tourism Capital'', released after the Asian financial crisis of 1996. It proposed a new strategy which moved away from the previous model of producing enclosed pockets of exotic themed environments to a model that conceived of open attractions in different parts of the city (Chang, 2010;Savage et al, 2004). By overlaying onto the stream of everyday life a thematic map for touristic consumption, this model of embedded tourism conceived of exoticized local culture as lived and continuous, rather than suspended and segregated.…”

Innovation for sustainable urban tourism: some thoughts on best practice

“…The notion of SUT also implies a desire to seek a more productive and harmonious relationship among visitors, host communities and the environment (Savage et al, 2004), whether natural or in urban settings. A number of characteristics of SUT have been discussed above, and based on this discussion, it has been suggested that in an urban setting both 'front room' and 'back room' sustainability be encouraged in order to move towards sustainability.…”