CompanyChapter 1: Introduction to Slum Tourism
Research Background and Rationale
Everyone has a role to play in preserving the heritage and image of their country. This is similar to slum tourism, where it’s likely that not everyone will perceive this form of tourism as ethical; some tourists will avoid it because it goes against their moral rights. Therefore, the issue is to establish the number of those who believe that slum tourism is unethical and those who believe it is just business. Through this it would be possible to strike a balance and incline the benefits of tourism to the majority. It’s important to establish the reasons why slum tourism is viewed as unethical or just business by its supporters. By combining these reasons it would be possible to establish if the activity should be encouraged or not. This is after determining whether the benefits outweigh the moral judgment or vice versa.
Research Aims and Objectives
Aim – “To analyze the phenomenon of slum tourism in Mumbai from a niche tourism and community development point of view and consider the ethicality of exposing individuals to poor standards of living as a form of tourism”
Objectives -
- To determine whether slum tourism has any economic benefits to the slum dwellers, the government in the form of revenues, and to the tour operators.
- To profile the reasons why slum tourism may be termed as unethical
- To categorize the key players involved in slum tourism facilitation
- To find out whether the presence of slum tourism supports the growth of slums instead of rehabilitation and regeneration.
- To establish government involvement in slum tourism issues.
Chapter 2: Literature Review
Slum tourism is a niche touristic concept that has experienced tremendous growth globally. This sector has attracted controversies due to its nature. By the United Nations definition (2007), a slum means a run-down section of a town featuring poor security, housing, and general livelihood. Slum tourism entails touring these regions for different reasons and varied motivations. Slum tourism is distinguishable from development tourism as a niche segment in the sense that development tourism is broad enough to include tourism to any region that is currently being developed. This concept was first experienced in Brazil’s city of Rio de Janeiro. Crouch and Jackson (2005) developed an encouraging link between business growth and media efforts to expose this niche segment. The largest slum tour operator in Mumbai (India) called ‘Reality Tours’ depicted a 25% in trade after the release of ‘The Slum Dog Millionaire’ movie (Weiner 2009). However, some of the tourists who embark on these travels have self-enrichment goals, yet they come dressed in charity-oriented clothes. The uncertainty raised by these two controversies is worth a researching to discover the hidden truth
Concept of Slum Tourism
The concept of slum tourism has been attracting attention not only within the travel industry but also as a topic of academic research. There have been controversial discussions on tourism and poverty eradication, ethics, and taking advantage (Frenzel 2012). Slum tourism focuses on less fortunate societies, making it a great concept of anti-poverty tourism. Its objective is to unlock economically viable ventures for the less fortunate to facilitate their lifestyle (Ashley and Roe 2001).
The important part of this niche segment is touring the most segregated parts of the towns known as slums, organized as guided tourism (Rolfers 2009). According to Armstrong (2005), tour companies have realized that slums are an attraction and are planning slum travels which are gradually becoming a popular phenomenon.
Dharavi is the largest slum in Asia where tour guides are organized for tourists. They go around explaining what the lifestyle of the habitats is (Linke 2012). A package for this is developed where online booking is made and bookings are made online and payments effected upon arrival. This slum attains a yearly turnover of 700 million pounds. It also facilitates the lives of many through income generated from the sale of products like clay pots, clothing, and tour guide ventures (Lennon 2002). These funds are taken to non-governmental organizations for slum rehabilitation. Other funds are used for running schools and dispensaries (Hannam 2006). Due to increased travel, residents have experienced an improvement in their way of life (Mylan 2007). Tourists are not just interested in seeing the pathetic sights but are also involved in restoring the poor lifestyles of the residents (Mylan 2007).
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Contact UsChapter 3: Research Methodology
This chapter provides information about the methods and approach for the research, sampling methods, methods for examining the primary data, research paradigm, limitations, and ethical considerations. Research methodology provides guidelines for the researcher in collecting and analyzing the data for deriving a relevant and valid outcome (Kuada, 2012). Primary data is collected using a survey. It includes various questions that help gain insights from respondents on the benefits of slum tourism.
Research Aims and Objectives
Aim – “To analyze the phenomenon of slum tourism in Mumbai from a niche tourism and community development point of view and consider the ethicality of exposing individuals to poor standards of living as a form of tourism attraction”
Objectives -
- To determine whether slum tourism has any economic benefits to the slum dwellers, the government in the form of revenues, and to the tour operators.
- To profile the reasons why slum tourism may be termed as unethical
- To categorize the key players involved in slum tourism facilitation
- To find out whether the presence of slum tourism supports the growth of slums instead of rehabilitation and regeneration.
- To establish government involvement in slum tourism issues.
Conclusion
The present report provides several novel insights into the ethics and morality of slum tourism. This research focused on examining the phenomenon of slum tourism, (otherwise known as poor tourism) in Mumbai from a niche tourism and community development point of view as well as considering the ethicality of exposing individuals to poor standards of living as a form of tourism value. Everyone has a role to play in preserving the heritage, and image of their country. This is similar to slum tourism, where it’s likely that not everyone will perceive this type of tourism as ethical; others will avoid it because it goes against their moral rights. Therefore, the issue is to establish the number of those who believe that slum tourism is unethical and those who believe it is just business. Through this, it would be possible to strike a balance and incline the implications of tourism to the majority. It’s important to establish the reasons why slum tourism is viewed as unethical or just business by its supporters. By combining these reasons it would be possible to establish if the activity should be encouraged or not. This is after determining whether the benefits outweigh the moral judgment or vice versa. Dharavi is a large slum area in Asia where tour guides are organized for tourists.
References
- Bergh,D. D. and Ketchen, J. D., 2009. Research Methodology in Strategy and Management. Emerald Group Publishing.
- City: Routledge, 2005. Moroney, “‘Poorism’ Comes to Mumbai” (The Wall Street Journal) Mar. 15, 2007;
- Cohen, L., Manion, L. and Morrison, K., 2007. Research Methods in Education. Routledge.
- Crouch R., Rhona, D., n.d. The Media & The Tourist Imagination. NewYork
- Crouch, D., 2007. ‘The Power of the Tourist Encounter’. In: A. Church and T. Coles (eds) Tourism
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