Ningaloo Collaboration Cluster: Socio-economics of Tourism

The economy of the Ningaloo coastal region, and in particular Exmouth and Coral Bay, relies on nature based tourism. Land use conflicts are frequent, and the region has seen hotly debated disputes over resort developments, marine sanctuaries, and World Heritage nomination. This project addresses land use planning issues by capturing the complexity of the tourism system using the Ningaloo Destination Model (NDM). This project involved three major componentsof research: 1) Determining the current status of tourism in the region; 2) A process for consulting and developing a model of tourism in the region; and 3) Evaluating different tourism futures using a tourism destination model linked to an ecological model. Doctoral research has added value to the project through the detailed analysis of four significant features of tourism to the Ningaloo Coast: research uptake, coastal camping, repeat visitation, and whale shark tourism.