Page 196 - sustainable tourism-- Dr.Aya

The small and medium enterprises (SME) play

an important role in ensuring the supply of

tourist facilities. In the process they maintain

the cultural integrity of the area where they are

located by offering local cuisines and

showcasing tradition and culture of the place.

Participation in sustainable tourism practices

helps such SMEs to gain competitive

advantage, helps them in image improvement,

ensures resource optimization and saving of

costs and last but not the least enables them to

influence the decisions taken by government

(local, regional), larger corporations, etc.

which would otherwise not have been possible

for them. Sustainable development of tourism

can be explored through multi-stakeholder

partnerships and it is important for all the

stakeholders to share the fundamental regard

for the environment for successful

achievement of sustainability. This is easier

said than done as the different partners may

have conflicting goals, false expectations

and/or short-term thinking. The various

stakeholders are the tourism enterprises that

provide the tourism experience to the

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