3º British: Tourism case studies

As promised, here you have two good examples of how tourism can affect different areas (and how those problems can be fixed).

First, we are going to study a MEDC: Lake District National Park (UK). Beautiful, isn’t it?

Look at the following map_ the green areas show the National Parks in UK and inside the red circle is the one we are studying today, Lake District National Park (founded in 1951):

But, what is a National Park?

National Parks are areas of outstanding natural beauty which have been preserved for the people of the future. National Park has two aims:

1.To preserve and enhance an area’s natural beauty

2.To promote people’s enjoyment of the countryside

It is not easy to achieve these aims while dealing with tourists (actually, the parks main problems are pressure from an excess of visitors). Because of that, rules and regulations are often set out to avoid any problems.

National Parks are close to densely populated areas (in the specifical case of Lake District, it is very well communicated thanks to the M6 highway). This leads to large percentages of visitor numbers during peak times, which in turn increase litter, footpath erosion, congestion and pollution. There is also often conflict between tourists and local people living in the national park. Over 42.000 people live in the Lake District area and deal with over 40 million tourist each year, wow!. That’s why it is called a honeypot.

But why has Lake District become so popular? The park’s authorities run a survey years ago and these were the answers:

Read the following doc: How do people reduce impacts of Tourism in Lake District?. And to finish with this part, watch this official VideoScribe Lake District Vision where everything is very well explained and detailed (10 minutes in English)

  

Now we are stuying a similar case but in a LEDC: Masai Mara National Park (Kenya). Impressive, really:

Kenya’s flagship park, the Masai Mara National Reserve, is one of Africa’s finest wildlife destinations where quintessential safari landscapes of vast acacia-dotted savannas teem with animals. The stellar highlight of the Masai Mara is, without a doubt, the Great Migration, an annual movement of millions of wildebeest, gazelle and zebra migrating between neighbouring Tanzania and the Kenyan park. Look at the map:

Tourism brings very important income to Kenya and gives tourists a greater understanding of the area's animals and plants. But tourism need to be managed carefully to ensure that the natural environment isn't damaged for future generations.

The Kenyan government has set up very strict rules about how hotels can ensure they balance the needs of the tourist and the needs of the local community. Ecotourism can play a large part in helping to ensure that there are many social and economic positives coming from ecotourism. Again, to finish the explanation watch this final video: Masai Mara (2 minutes in English).

Now, as usual, some questions (few and easy, as this week you have to finish the monthly work) to be answered before Monday, 11 May:

1.Look again at the map above. Describe the distribution of the UK’s National Parks (about 3-5 lines).

2. You are an influencer! Choose a photo and write a catchy IG message for it describing the attractions of Lake District as a holiday destination. :)

3.From the Kenyan government rules for ecoturism, which one do you think is the most important? Why?

4.Why is ecotourism specially important in LEDCs?

5.Would you like to visit Masai Mara? Why? List and explain 3 reasons.

And that’s all! As usual, any question or doubt, don’t hesitate to ask me. I’m here any time you need me!