Conservation & tourism : the influences of heritage tourism planning on heritage conservation in Hong Kong

Abstract

With the growing attention towards the introduction of the idea of heritage tourism in Hong Kong, heritage tourism planning has become one of the motives in encouraging the conservation of heritage places in Hong Kong. There is a clear research gap in the context of Hong Kong in analysing the relationship between heritage tourism and heritage conservation. In this paper, in addition to reviewing and understanding the heritage tourism policies in Hong Kong, three case references are discussed. Based on two local cases, namely 1881 Heritage and Tai Kwun, analysis on the local execution of heritage tourism development reveals how heritage tourism planning influences how and what is conserved in post-handover Hong Kong, as these two cases were carried out in the 2000s and 2010s respectively. Meanwhile, a case study of Stonehenge in the United Kingdom provides insight on how the motive of heritage tourism planning can be a blessing in not only encouraging heritage tourism development, but also better protecting the heritage site itself, based on public attention and the initiatives undertaken by the government and other Non-Governmental Organizations. Recommendations on how heritage tourism can be adopted as a tool for motivating and encouraging the conservation of heritage places in Hong Kong are made. This includes both the tangible and intangible aspects, in supplement to and in cooperation with the other heritage policies in Hong Kong, such as the Revitalizing Historic Buildings through Partnership Scheme.