Cruise Tourism in Polar Regions

Cruises are the primary form of tourism in the Polar Regions and cruise ship tourism in both the Arctic and Antarctic is expanding rapidly. The industry has moved beyond its infancy, and is now entering a maturing phase with increased numbers and types of vessels, more demanding routes, and more regular and predictable patterns of activity. The increase in cruise activities, and the associated risks of accidents, as well as the potential and actual impacts of the large numbers of tourists in the polar regions bring with it management challenges for sustainable use of these regions. This book discusses critically the issues around environmental and social sustainability of the cruise industry in Polar Regions. Authors from Canada, USA, Europe, Australia and New Zealand are experts in their respective fields and take an innovative, critical and at times controversial approach to the subject.

Michael Luck is an Associate Professor and Head of Department (Tourism & Events) in the School of Hospitality and Tourism, and Associate Director for the coastal and marine tourism research program area at the New Zealand Tourism Research Institute, both at AUT University in Auckland, New Zealand. Patrick T. Maher is an Associate Professor in the Outdoor Recreation and Tourism Management Program at the University of Northern British Columbia, Canada. Emma J. Stewart is a Senior Lecturer in Tourism and Parks at Lincoln University, NZ and is a Research Associate at the Arctic Institute of North America (AINA).

Foreword Norman Douglas & Ngaire Douglas. 1. Setting the Scene: Polar Cruise Tourism in the 21st Century. Part 1: Market Dimensions. 2. Polar Yacht Cruising. 3. Cruising to the North Pole aboard a Nuclear Icebreaker. 4. Selling the Adventure of a Lifetime: An Ethnographic Report on Cruising in the Antarctic. Part 2: Human Dimensions. 5. Cruises and Bruises: Safety, Security, and Social Issues on Polar Cruises. 6. Exploring the Ethical Standards of Alaska Cruise Ship Tourists and the Role they Inadvertently Play in the Unsustainable Practices of the Cruise Ship Industry. 7. Students on Ice - Learning in the Greatest Classrooms on Earth. Part 3: Environmental Dimensions. 8. Environmental Impacts of Polar Cruises. 9. Monitoring Patterns of Cruise Tourism across Arctic Canada 10. Climate Change and its Implications for Cruise Tourism in the Polar Regions. Part 4: Policy and Governance Dimensions. 11. Stakeholder Perspectives on the Governance of Antarctic Cruise Tourism. 12. Port Readiness Planning in the Arctic: Building Community Support. 13. Beyond the Cruise: Navigating Sustainable Policy and Practice in Alaska's Inland Passage. Part 5: Conclusions. 14. Moving Forward. Index.