Threats to Sustainable Tourism in National Parks: Case Studies from Indonesia and South Africa

Abstract

This study reviews the environmental threats to sustainable tourism of national parks, as shown through five case studies of national parks in Indonesia and South Africa. A qualitative approach with the literature study method is employed in this study. The national parks selected are related to the similarity in the ecosystem, position, and age relative to other national parks. The study results show ten threats to sustainable tourism: biodiversity loss, invasive species, outward invasion, infrastructure development, behavioral change, climate change, water scarcity, forest fire, diseases, and poaching. Issues unique to Indonesia are outward invasion, infrastructure development, and behavioral change, while issues unique to South Africa are water scarcity, diseases, and forest fire. Older national parks tend to have problems with invasive species, while boundary-based national parks have more problems with illegal hunting (poaching). Savannah-based national parks are faced with biodiversity loss. National parks need to focus more on these physical threats to improve their sustainable tourism agenda. This research contributes to the Life Cycle Model of sustainable national parks tourism by highlighting possible paths in the model followed by national parks in Indonesia and South Africa.

Keywords

• sustainable tourism
• national park
• indonesia
• south africa