Chapter 18: The Role of Edu-Tourism in Bridging Racial Divides in South Africa

The tourism industry in South Africa today faces the dual challenges of finding ways to extend tourism spending into previously marginalised communities and to redress the imbalances in cultural representations of those communities. The legacy of formal racial segregation is extremely difficult to reverse. The study investigated the potential of Edu-tourism to fundamentally change tourism dynamics. This approach targets young, intelligent, ‘new tourists’ who choose different types of visitor experiences and contribute to changing the way South Africans value and use their own cultures. The method used included requiring students to design tourist packages, in consultation with tour guides, visitors and local community members. The outcomes provide stimulation for new research, widely distributed income generation and building bridges between divided communities.