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578 thanatourism
about the disease, but sex tourism has sought to
deal with the challenge by bringing poor women
from the hills, refugees from Burma and younger
girls into the industry. Beyond its AIDS education
campaign, the government has taken several steps
to enhance safety and a quality tourism experience
for tourists. The country is making a
concerted marketing effort to attract more families
and female tourists, so that Thailand's image as a
sex destination is diluted by images of the nation's
culture and scenic attractions.
Moreover, since crime and corruption are also
associated with tourism, Thailand has established a
separate tourism police to control problems
threatening its most important industry. Finally,
the government passed in 1992, and amended in
1993, a bill which enforces tough standards on
tourism companies and their guides. It requires
annual permits and imposes substantial fines for
non-compliance. This bill brings Thai tourism into
line with the types of consumer protection
commonplace in most of the developed world.
Further reading
Cohen, E. �1983) `Hill tribe tourism,' in J.
McKinnon and W. Bhruksasri �eds), Highlanders
of Thailand, Kuala Lumpur: Oxford University
Press, 307±25. �This and some other articles by
Cohen offer an anthropological perspective on
Thai tourism.)
Elliott, J. �1983), `Politics, power and tourism in
Thailand,' Annals of Tourism Research 10: 377±93.
�Provides an introduction to the political environment
of Thai tourism.)
Richter, L.K. �1989) The Politics of Tourism in Asia,
Honolulu, HA: University of Hawaii. �Chapter 4
discusses the evolution of Thai tourism policy.)
thanatourism
LINDAK.RICHTER,USA
Thanatourism or `dark tourism' is travel to
locations associated with death and disaster. It
includes visits to battlefields, murder and atrocity
sites, places where the famous died, graveyards and
war memorials, relics and reconstructions of
death. Thanatourism is an old, widespread and
often controversial form of tourism which was, in
the winter of 1996, the subject of a special issue of
the International Journal of Heritage.
theme park
A.V. SEATON, UK
Theme parks are capital intensive, highly developed,
self-contained recreational spaces which
invariably charge admission. The entertainment,
rides, speciality foods and park buildings are
usually organised around themes or unifying ideas
such as a specific period in history or a particular
geographic region. These themes are crucial to
the operation of the parks as they create a feeling of
involvement in a setting which is in stark contrast
to daily life. A distinction can be drawn between
commercial theme parks, which are well described
by the theming and entertainment elements
mentioned, and outdoor museums or historic
theme parks, which may be less commercial in
emphasis and have goals in heritage preservation
and public education. Zoological gardens,
while sharing some of the characteristics of theme
parks, usually have important conservation and
species breeding goals and should be studied and
understood separately from theme parks. The scale
of the theme park phenomenon in global tourism is
impressive. Most North American cities of over
1 million population have a theme park, and many
have two. Several new theme parks are being built
in Asia, and while some are closely modelled on
North American ventures, a number of distinctive
Asian influences and styles in architecture, food
and style of entertainment are emerging.
The best-known and most successful theme
parks are those operated by the Disney corporation
in Orlando, Los Angeles and France. There are
significant chains of theme parks such as the Six
Flags parks as well as variations of the Sea World
concept in several states of the United States and
Australia. Theme parks dependent on or related to
movie themes are widespread as are those built on
produce and food themes. Theme parks evolved
from the earlier widespread amusement parks,
essentially collections of rides associated with fairs