ABSTRACT
This chapter describes key policy decisions affecting tourism and aims to compare South-East Asian nations in terms of the ways they have made such tourism policy decisions. These policies proved to be useful when applied to South Asia as indicators of the course tourism would take. The chapter focuses on key policy areas in which decisions will need to be made. Most nations turn to tourism as a means of economic development, though a few leaders see it as a personal political tool or as a means of encouraging political integration or social change. The chapter argues that the issues of the near future remain largely ignored by the industry and the tourism establishment, but that they will play a crucial role in the contribution tourism can make to national well-being. Tourism in and of itself and tourism as a government-encouraged activity have always evoked mixed reactions.
