Analysis of International Tourism: Victoria Peak as a Tourist Destination

This paper analyzes Victoria Peak as a tourist destination in Hong Kong, including factors that make it attractive, issues related to tourism and destination development, and the positive and negative impacts of tourism on the host community.

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Analysis of International Tourism
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Table Contents
Title Page………………………………………………………………………………...1
Table of Contents…………………………………………………………………….......2
1. Introduction……………………………………………..................................3
2. Analysis of tourist visitation of Victoria Peak……………………………......3
3. Factors that make Victoria Peak Attractive……………………………..…....4
4. Issues Related to Tourism and Destination Development at Victoria
Peak…………………………………………………………………………...5
5. Analysis of Negative and Positive Impacts of Tourism Activity on Victoria Peak’s
host Community……………………………………………………….………8
1. Positive Impacts………………………………………..…8
2. Negative Impacts…………………………………………..9
6. Policy Implications………………………………………………………….....10
7. Conclusion……………………………………………………………………..11
8. Reference List……………………………………………………………….…12

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1. Introduction
Hong Kong is one of the countries known for its tourist attraction destinations
including the Victoria Peak. According to Gössling (2015, pp.233-244)’s statistics, Victoria
Peak is the most popular tourist destination in Hong Kong both to locals and internationally.
Victoria Peak or The Peak has it is popularly known covers the island found in the centre of
Hong Kong, from Lung Fu Shan County Park to Dragons Back and extend to the east of the
island. The Peak is where most telecommunication transmitters are located. The paper herein
discusses the main issues for tourism destination which include transportation, security,
service quality, hotels and lodgings.
2. Analysis of tourist visitation of Victoria Peak
Victoria Peak being the most popular tourist destination in Hong Kong it has been
doing well for years according to the research done by (Munar & Jacobsen 2014, pp.46-54).
Last year Victoria Peak led in number of tourists visiting the tourist destinations in Hong
Kong, because of its various serene and tourist attraction sites. Victoria Peak has the best
shopping centres, hotels to get safe and quality food and security in the area is perfect.
According to Gössling, Scott & Hall (2015) Victoria Peak enjoys many tourist all the year
because it is not seasonal (pp.203-212). The mountain is there all the time and anybody who
wants to view Hong Kong can do so at any time. The Peak Tram at Victoria Peak has also
contributes to more tourist visiting the destination. Gössling, Scott and Hall (2015, pp.203-
212) reported that the Peak Tram has a historical gallery that contains the history and the
heritage of Hong Kong dating back to many years ago, therefore, many tourist visit the Peak
Tram Historical Gallery to learn the history of Hong Kong (Alazaizeh et al. 2016, p. 149).
The Victoria Peak’s astonishing hotels and lodgings have also contributed to the good
visitation records of the destination. Tourists love good hotels and lodging where they can get
safe and quality food. They also love where there are quality lodgings where they can rest

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after a long day walking through Victoria Peak. The security at Victoria Peak also
contributes to the good record of tourists visiting the destination. The government of Hong
Kong has ensured that Victoria Peak is well secured and nothing can interfere with the tourist
touring the region. Government also employed qualified tourist managers who apply
excellent strategies when advertising the destination hence more tourist learn of the place.
According to Munar and Jacobsen (2014, pp.46-54)’s analysis the shopping centres around
Victoria Peak are also contributes of good turnout of tourist at the destination. There are very
many shopping centres around Victoria Peak which sell different kind of goods and artefacts
that represent the history of Hong Kong.
Victoria Peak
Victoria Central Business District
Star Fery
Wong Tai Sin Temple
Tsim Sha Tsui
Avenue of stars
Ocean Peak
Big Buddha
Tai O Fishing Village
Dragon's Back Hike
0
2
4
6
8
10
12
Number of tourist in the year
2017
Figure1. Shows the number of tourists received in 2017 by 10 destinations in Hong Kong
(Gössling 2015, pp.233-244)
3. Factors that make Victoria Peak Attractive
A tourist destination must have the beautiful and attractive factors that can make tourists
like it. When a tourist destination is attractive, it receives many tourists all over the world.

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Victoria Peak tourist destination attracts many people all over the world due to the following
factors one, the history, and heritage of the destination. Victoria Peak has rich history and
heritage of Hong Kong. The Victoria Peak Gallery that was installed at the destination has
artefacts and portraits that show history of Hong Kong that date back to up to the year 1600
(Han & Hyun 2015, pp.20-29). The second factor that makes Victoria Peak attractive is the
beautiful hotels and lodgings found in the destination.
Tourists get attracted to beautifully constructed hotels and lodgings where they can get
quality food and good rest like those found in Victoria Peak (Sharpley 2014, pp.37-49). The
shopping centres in Victoria Peak have added to the serenity of the destination. Many Hong
Kong citizens have built beautiful shopping centres which sell beautiful artefacts and other
commodities that can interest tourists. The shopping centres have also been pimped with
colourful light which make the environment attractive at night. Victoria Peak has beautiful
nature and serene air. The natural environment of the destination is very beautiful and so
attractive. If a tourist stands on the Victoria Peak he/she can see almost all the city of Hong
Kong (Benur & Bramwell 2015, pp.213-224).
4. Issues Related to Tourism and Destination Development at Victoria Peak
Tourism is compound department that is can be affected with multiple factors ranging
from political, economic, to social factors (Benur & Bramwell 2015, pp.213-224). The study
herein analyses the following issues that relate to tourism and destination development at
Victoria Peak. The factors are economic, social, and political and they include, security, the
infrastructure that is transport system, availability of quality hotels and lodging, the behaviour
of the community towards the tourists, and the service quality that the destination provides.
Tourists go to places where these factors mentioned above are at their highest quality
(Sharpley 2014, pp.37-49).

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First the first and very significant factor is security. Tourists can never go to any
tourist destination that has poor security. Poor security can be due to unstable government
and political war between the political leaders. Victoria Peak enjoys a lot of tourists year in
year out because of the stable government of Hong Kong (Han & Hyun 2015, pp.20-29). The
government of Hong Kong has ensured that security at the Victoria Peak is stable and the
tourists feel safe whenever they visit the destination. The government of Hong Kong have
installed a low enforcement agency at the destination to patrol and ensure that the tourists are
safe. Another form of security that Hong Kong government has put in place is in the
immigration department. All people who come into the country and say that they are tourists
are authenticated to ensure that right and good people are brought in as tourists. The
mechanisms the government of Hong Kong have put in place ensure that criminals and
terrorists are not allowed into the country to disturb the peace of tourists. People go for
tourism because they want to relax, amuse themselves and entertain themselves. That is not
possible if the security of the country is at risk. Victoria Peak has enjoyed visitation of many
tourist because of its secure environment (Tang & Tan 2015, pp.158-163).
The second issue is the infrastructure that support tourism in the region that roads and
other form of transport. Transport is very essential for development of tourism destination
that includes Victoria Peak (Baum 2015, pp.204-212). Victoria Peak has good transport
system that includes trains, buses and bikes. The trains take the tourists around the peak at an
affordable cost of around 30 Hong Kong Dollars. The buses also transport the tourists at
around 10 Hong Kong Dollars. There also tour guides with the government vehicles who
transport tourists for free after the tourists have paid the tourism department. The roads
around Victoria Peak are so nice and beautiful and there are any vessels of transport that can
carry the tourists. Some tourists also decide to travel around the Peak by foot because there
are also foot paths for pedestrians. Good transport is factors that can make a tourist

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destination grow faster because the tourists will not find it hard to commute from one place to
another (Tang & Tan 2015, pp.158-163).
The third issue is service quality. Many tourists love places where the quality of
services provided to them is high (Benur & Bramwell 2015, pp.213-224). Hong Kong have
schools that train tourism managers who qualified and provide quality services to tourists.
Victoria Peak has many qualified people who provide quality services to tourists they include
tour guides, security personnel, and tourist managers. The fourth issue is the availability of
quality lodging and hotels around the destination. Tourists cannot visit a destination that does
not have quality hotels for foods and drinks and lodging where they can rest and sleep after a
long tour. Victoria Peak has many excellent hotels that prepare nice food from variety of
cultures that include Chinese, American, British, and African (Tang & Tan 2015, pp.158-
163). The hotels around the destinations have checked and verified by the government of
Hong Kong to provide food and drinks to tourists. The lodgings are also there and provide
lodging services at an affordable price and are of good quality.
The last issue is the behaviour of the community around the destination towards the
tourists. If the community around a tourist destination is hostile to the tourists, then the
destination cannot develop because no tourist will come to tour the place (Tang & Tan 2015,
pp.158-163). Victoria Peak is has a very friendly community around it. The Hong Kong
citizens living around the peak know the importance of tourists to their country and them
therefore, they have learnt to be welcoming to the tourists. Evidences to show that Victoria
Peak has friendly environment, the residence there have constructed hotels, lodgings and
shopping centres for the tourists to use. Some of the residents also perform the Hong Kong
traditional dances to the tourists who pay them after the entertainment (Benur & Bramwell
2015, pp.213-224).

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5. Analysis of Negative and Positive Impacts of Tourism Activity on Victoria Peak’s
host Community
Positive Impacts
The first positive impact of tourism on the people living around Victoria Peak is job
creation. Tourism in Victoria Peak has created a lot of job opportunities for the residents
around and even other people from other parts of Hong Kong (Nieves & Segarra-Ciprés
2015, pp.51-58). The economic report reported by Gössling, Scott and Hall (2015, pp.203-
212)concluded that tourism in Victoria Peak creates around three out of ten jobs in Hong
Kong. Victoria Peak has improved the economic state of Hong Kong where the government
gets money from taxing the hotels, shopping malls, and the transport systems delivering
services to tourists. Jobs have also been created by people working in the hotels, shops and
transport systems. Secondly, tourism has benefited Victoria Peak community
environmentally in that the people around have not cultivated the lands around the mountain
and have left them for tourist activities. According to Gössling, Scott and Hall (2015, pp.203-
212), the protection of the mountain by the government of Hong Kong has benefited the
community in that the trees in the mountains generate rainfall for crops and other commercial
plants. Victoria Peak Department has a rule that tourist should take only pictures and leave
only footprint help in maintaining the environment (Fang et al. 2016, pp.498-506).
Third, the Victoria Peak tourist attraction can benefit the community by attracting
mega events like royal weddings, Olympics which in turn will attract global attention towards
the Victoria Peak destination. The big event can lead to development of very important
infrastructures including the airports, roads, schools, and sports field (Kim, Woo & Uysal
2015, pp.465-476). There is an air strip around Victoria Peak are where residence and can fly
to and from. The roads build to support tourism in the area has also developed transport
system for the community around Victoria Peak. The fourth benefit of tourism for people

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around Victoria Peak social according to Gössling, Scott and Hall (2015, pp.203-212)
tourism in an area brings peace among the people leaving in that place. The argument can be
backed up with the security system that the government of Hong Kong has directed to
Victoria Peak location to protect the tourists. The residence around Victoria Peak also benefit
from the security system installed to protect the tourists (Fang et al. 2016, pp.498-506). There
is also exchange of different culture knowledge. The Victoria Peak receives many foreign
visitors every year and these tourists intermingle with the residence and exchange positive
cultures which benefit both the community and the tourists.
Negative Impacts
Other than benefiting the community around it, Victoria Peak also has some negative
impacts towards the area (Getz & Page 2016, pp.593-631). First, in terms of economic
conditions, the community around Victoria Peak majorly depend majorly on tourism.
Therefore, if anything happens to the tourism sector, the community can suffer a major loss
which can take long to recover. Factors like political war, natural disaster, terrorism and any
activity that affect the peace of a country will affect the tourism sector (Eide et al. 2017,
pp.452-463). Tourists cannot visit a county that is under attack either from terrorists or
political instability. Therefore, Victoria Peak can be affected in a big way if any of the
mentioned happens and tourism goes down. Secondly, tourism can affect the community
around Victoria Peak environmentally. Too many visitors in Victoria Peak can lead to
negative effects on the quality lives of the residents. The phenomenon is known as over-
tourism where the tourists create a burden on the living standards of the residents because
they are overcrowded. The tourist can outnumber the residents of Victoria Peak and can even
litter the environment with things like bottle water and food cans. If the government does not
check the health of the tourists, they can infect the residents with the diseases. The

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overpopulation of tourists can cause the commodities in the area to increase in price hence
residence will have hard time buying the goods.
Third, the mega events that Victoria Peak can attract can hurt the residence more that
they can benefit them. The living standards will increase because the business men will want
to satisfy the tourists not the residents (Hudson et al. 2015, 68-76). Hence, the economic life
may be too high. Overpopulation of visitors who have come for the mega events my cause
environmental havoc and disease may be transmitted easily. The fourth impact is social.
Tourism one activity that has helped Victoria Peak residence preserves their culture of Hong
Kong. However, tourism can also led to watering of the cultures and residence may adopt
new culture brought by the tourists. Victoria Peak receives many people from all over the
world every year, these people can turn the residence of Victoria Peak to forget the culture
and follow the foreigners (Molina-Azorín et al. 2015, p.41).
6. Policy Implications
Although Hong Kong enjoys vast number of tourists every year about 50 million
people, the government should sit with the state holders and draft good policies that will
improve the tourism sector in Hong Kong (Komppula 2014, p. 361). The following four
policies should be implemented by the government of Hong Kong and private tourism
business to ensure growth of tourism in the country. First, the government of Hong Kong and
the private sectors should ensure that there is quality training of qualified managers in
tourism sector. When there are qualified people in field of tourism, the tourists will enjoy
coming and interact with them (Nunkoo 2015, p. 623). Secondly, the government should
educate the communities within the tourist attraction area on the importance of tourism.
Third, the government should create laws that protect Victoria Peak as a tourist attraction site.
Tourist attraction destinations must be protected so that they do not get destroyed. The fourth
policy is that the government should investigate, monitor and authenticate organisations that

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want to venture into tourism business (Tang 2015, p. 12). The government should levy
affordable taxes on the private tourists attraction sites.
Conclusion
Most of the countries in the world both developing and developed depend on tourism
to improve its economic status making tourism a healthy topic to analyse (Xu Buhalis &
Weber 2017, pp.244-256. The paper herein analysed the tourism destination of Hong Kong
known as Victoria Peak. The paper looked at its location and then the factors that make the
destination attractive. The paper also analysed the visitation rate of Victoria Peak and looked
at issue that affect the tourism development. The paper also analysed the impacts of tourism
on Victoria Peak community, both positive and negative and lastly, the paper looked at the
policies that can improve tourism. Data was gathered electronically though Google Search by
searching key words “Victoria Peak, Tourism, Tourism policies, factors affecting tourism”.

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International Tourism 13
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