ABSTRACT
Overthelastfifteenyears,theconceptofsustainabletourismdevelopmenthas becomealmostuniversallyacceptedasadesirableandpoliticallyappropriate approachto,andgoalof,tourismdevelopment.Ithasachieved'virtualglobal endorsementasthenew[tourism]industryparadigm'(Godfrey,1996:60)and, fromthelocaltointernationallevel,innumerablesectoralanddestinational organisationswithinthetourismindustryhaveproducedsustainabletourism developmentplansandpolicies.Tourismacademicshave,likewise,devotedmuch attentiontothesubjectofsustainabletourismfrombothanoperationaland definitionalpointofview.Indeed,ithasbeenobservedthatthe1990sare particularlymemorableforthevolumeofliteraturerelatedtothetopic(Yeoman, 2000)whilst'definingsustainabledevelopmentinthecontextoftourismhas becomesomethingofacottageindustry'(GarrodandFyall,1998).
