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feature of the elite of many countries. Examples
include the royal summer residence of Balmoral
Castle in Scotland and Vanderbilt's `Breakers' in
New England. Numbers of second homes increased
rapidly in the twentieth century, especially
in North America where rural scenic land was
cheap and available. Second homes now range
from palaces to shacks, used from a few days each
year to semi-permanent retirement dwellings. As
numbers of second homes increased drastically
with the democratisation of leisure and increased
affluence, the scale of most new second homes
shrank, and in North America they were appropriately
called summer cottages. However, they
still remained for the most part `purpose-built for
an inessential purpose'.
Many properties formerly used only in the
summer season have been converted for leisure use
on a year-round basis, reflecting the rise in
popularity of winter sports. Traditionally located
in relatively remote areas and often in a waterfront
setting, second homes are now found in a great
variety of environments, corresponding to changing
leisure tastes and preferences. They have
become more widespread and are now found
integrated into golf course developments, conventional
resorts, winter sports areas and even urban
centres. In the last two decades, variations on the
traditional second home have included boats,
hobby farms, canal barges, apartments and
condominiums, some in the form of timeshare
units. Single-purpose second home communities
have been established, often in conjunction with
other leisure facilities such as golf and water sports
developments, especially in North America and the
Mediterranean. Air travel and improved accessibility
generally have allowed second homes to be
located a long distance from the owner's permanent
residence.
Acquisition of conventional residences for use
as second homes has caused negative reactions in
many rural areas, particularly in Western Europe
where there is competition for housing in high
amenity areas. In some jurisdictions, legislation
has been passed to prevent non-residents acquiring
property for use as a second home, and limits
have been placed on the amount of use of second
homes to prevent them being used on a
permanent basis, often with political implications
and reactions.
security
security 523
RICHARD BUTLER, UK
Security refers to a perceived and/or actual
invulnerability of tourists considering visiting a
given destination. It deals with manmade
potential or actual activities that risk the lives of
tourists and/or their possessions. Activities that
might jeopardise tourists may include crime,
social or political unrest, terrorist activity and/or
warfare. Security in tourism has been regarded as
one of the major concerns of both tourists and
industry. Examination of the relationship between
this and security encompasses four basic aspects:
crime committed against tourists and safety
measures to prevent or minimise it; evaluation of
the risk involved in visiting destinations affected by
security problems, namely terrorism and war;
monitoring the impact security situations could
have on global, national and regional patterns of
tourist flows; and defining market strategies to deal
with the short-term and long-term consequences
that emerge in the wake of a given security
situation.
Crime and terrorism aimed against tourists are
causing the most evident concern to all concerned
parties. Terrorist activities are aimed at attracting
the public's attention to certain political and/or
ideological interests. In pursuit of such goals,
terrorists attack targets that either symbolise
opposing interests or can dramatically damage
the basic interests of a given regime. By attacking
tourists, terrorist groups achieve immediate,
dramatic and wide-range media coverage while
disrupting an important economic resource.
Sporadic and infrequent attacks normally cause a
minimal damage to the industry, as tourists'
memory tends to fade after a while. An instance
of such terrorist activities against tourists and
tourism installations is the infrequent Irish Republican
Army bombings in the West End of London.
On the other hand, frequent waves of terror create
a long-lasting image that causes many tourists to
avoid such troubled areas altogether.