Flooded with risks or opportunities: Exploring flooding impacts on tourist accommodation

• Main Authors: Mercia Patricia Southon, Dr Clinton D. van der Merwe
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Published: AfricaJournals 2018-01-01
• Series: African Journal of Hospitality, Tourism and Leisure
• Subjects: tourist accommodation; flooding impacts; risks and opportunities; flood recovery; flood mapping; flood management plans
• Online Access: https://www.ajhtl.com/uploads/7/1/6/3/7163688/article_36_vol_7__1__2018.pdf

Climate and weather-related impacts have become widespread particularly affecting the tourism industry. Flooding has gained research attention over the past decade, since the destruction creates many challenges for tourism businesses. Floods are a growing global problem, increasing in terms of frequency of occurrence, property damages, business economic losses, and fatalities. The study aimed to explore the perceived flooding impacts on different types of tourist accommodation. Thus, to determine if floods hindered any tourist bookings, offerings, and tourist length of stay. The exploration verified the possible flood risks to vulnerable accommodation and no adequate adaptation plans. A purposeful sample of 145 tourist accommodation businesses located across three flood-prone regions of the Limpopo Province of South Africa were selected to answer a semi-structured questionnaire combined with telephonic interviews and email responses to put across their flooding experiences from a management perspective. Coherent theme development within the theoretical framework was achieved through content analysis and allowed for the critical discussion of deductive and inductive themes found in the results. Floods during peak-seasons threaten and affect tourist accommodation, leaving them behind in business. Those not affected benefit with increased tourist demand and new opportunities in the hospitality industry. Alongside the destruction of tourism in the Province, were concerns of the provision of flood mapping and flood management plans for tourism businesses. Wider flooding impacts on the environment and the surrounding local communities demonstrates a growing problem for the future