ABSTRACT
The observation that ‘tourism is caught in a paradox whereby its success can destroy it’ has become a commonplace. As the industry grows ever larger, it seeks to make places simultaneously interesting to visitors as well as safe and comfortable. Competition among cities to become destinations for travellers forces them to develop facilities that are increasingly indistinguishable from one another, causing the weary traveller to wake up and wonder if she is in Brussels or New York. Luxury hotels, convention centres, sports venues, concert halls, museums and shopping malls have a sameness not easily overcome by architectural embellishment, winning teams or fancy shop windows.
