A case study investigation of the factors responsible for limiting the marketing exposure of small-scale village-based tourism schemes in Fiji

Tourism stands as a major contributor to the economy of Pacific Island nations, in particular, Fiji. Despite the numerous benefits derived from mass tourism, it is associated with problems such as leakage, foreign ownership and the deterioration of the host community's physical and socio-cultural values. As a result, tourism researchers emphasise the need for the diversification of different types of 'appropriate' tourism: A type of alternative tourism that incorporates societal values to accommodate the emergence of new consumer needs whilst also maximising tourism's returns to Fiji. This study attempts to explore the potential of small-scale village-based tourism schemes in this light. This research work reviews the potential contributions of small-scale village-based tourism schemes in Fiji in view of the benefits they offer such as being conducive to maintaining the social, cultural and physical values of the host environment and offering the local people the ability to own and control tourism enterprises at the village level. Despite village tourism being a viable rural development tool, a major constraint on the development of village-based tourism is the lack of marketing exposure to the potential market. This study is based on a literature review of small-scale tourism and three case studies in Fiji. A cultural methodology was also utilised to gather rich and accurate information. The findings of this research conclude that small-scale village-based tourism can provide a viable option for the diversification of rural economies. However, with limited expertise in marketing the village product and inadequate assistance (financial, material, services) from government agencies, the maximum contribution of village-based tourism schemes to the economy will not be achieved. A number of main findings were: the cultural methodology increases the richness of data and responsiveness; managers lacked awareness of competition; managers lacked skill and knowledge in marketing the scheme; managers had a very narrow understanding of the concept of marketing and have little to no knowledge of marketing research and marketing plan, in addition to this the schemes lacked finance and therefore the marketing strategies used were inefficient; the schemes lacked know ledge of customer preferences and the push and pull factors for tourists; lack of reliable and consistent transportation to connect the village scheme with the tourist market; communal obligations limited the managers ability to operate the scheme; and managers are not aware of how to acquire assistance and the procedure of requesting for assistance. This research recommends possible strategies such as to provide training In basic business management and marketing with accreditation as a form of incentive for tourism schemes to train their managers; there should be provision of tourism extension workers to facilitate training programmes and workshops; government assistance in promoting the village schemes to NGO's; government support through mandatory licensing to safeguard the tourist as well as the Fiji Tourist Industry should be increased; Government should educate the landowners about alternative non-traditional land uses and find equitable means to compensate owners of land; a small-scale village-based tourism scheme association should be established; a coherent plan for tourism areas should be formulated which would identify which projects are to be carried out in which areas; and given the contribution that tourism makes to Fiji's GDP, the development of tourism should become a priority in the process of fixing the national budget. The extent to which this research serves as a basis for further research in the area of small-scale village-based tourism is also discussed.