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Tourism Destination Development An Application of Butler’s (1980) Tourism

Area Life Cycle Model to Hammamet, Tunisia.

Thesis · May 2020

DOI: 10.13140/RG.2.2.26359.55209

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 Bachelor Thesis

Tourism Destination Development

An Application of Butler’s (1980) Tourism Area Life
Cycle Model to Hammamet, Tunisia.

Rhine-Waal University of Applied Sciences

B.A. International Business and Social Sciences

1st Supervisor: Prof. Dr. Dirk Reiser

2nd Supervisor: Prof. John Henry Dingfelder Stone

Elyes Sahli (19544)

Due Date: 09/03/2020
1
 Bachelor Thesis

Tourism Destination Development

An Application of Butler’s (1980) Tourism Area Life
Cycle Model to Hammamet, Tunisia.

Rhine-Waal University of Applied Sciences

B.A. International Business and Social Sciences

1st Supervisor: Prof. Dr. Dirk Reiser

2nd Supervisor: Prof. John Henry Dingfelder Stone

Elyes Sahli (19544)

Due Date: 09/03/2020

2
Abstract

Butler’s (1980) Tourism Area Life Cycle (TALC) is a widely used model to study the
evolution of a particular tourism destination. The model suggests that a tourism area
evolves through six predictable different stages, namely, exploration, involvement,
development, consolidation, stagnation and decline or rejuvenation. In each stage of the
life cycle, the destination undergoes a series of changes defined by the author. The
purpose of this study is to apply the TALC model to the tourism destination Hammamet
(Tunisia), in order to determine the current stage of development of the latter. A case
study research design has been adopted and the application of the model has been
essentially based on secondary data. Interviews have been conducted to verify the
results of the analysis. It is found that the destination Hammamet is in a post-stagnation
phase and that considerable efforts and viable strategies are required to avoid long-term
decline.

Keywords: Tourism Destination, Tourism Area, Life Cycle, Hammamet, Tunisia

i
Table of Contents

1. Introduction ............................................................................................................... 1
2. Literature Review ...................................................................................................... 2
2.1 Tourism Destination ............................................................................................ 2
2.2 The Tourism Area Life Cycle Model ..................................................................... 3
2.2.1 Origins and Characteristics of the TALC Model ............................................. 3
2.2.2 Critics of the TALC model ............................................................................. 6
2.3 The Tunisian Tourism Industry .......................................................................... 11
3. The Study Area ....................................................................................................... 16
3.1 The City of Hammamet...................................................................................... 16
3.2 Tourism in Hammamet ...................................................................................... 18
3.2.1 Origins and Start of Tourism in Hammamet ................................................ 18
3.2.2 Development of Tourism in Hammamet ...................................................... 19
3.2.3 Yasmine-Hammamet .................................................................................. 22
4. Methodology ........................................................................................................... 23
4.1 Research Design ............................................................................................... 23
4.2 Data Collection and Analysis ............................................................................. 24
4.2.1 Secondary Data .......................................................................................... 24
4.2.2 Primary Data ............................................................................................... 25
4.3 Data Limitations ................................................................................................ 27
4.3.1 Secondary Data Limitations ........................................................................ 27
4.3.2 Primary Data Limitations ............................................................................. 28
5. Results and Discussion ........................................................................................... 28
5.1 The Original Tourism Area of Hammamet ......................................................... 29
5.1.1 The Exploration and Involvement Stages .................................................... 31
5.1.2 The Development Stage ............................................................................. 32
5.1.3 The Consolidation Stage ............................................................................. 36
5.1.4 The Stagnation Stage ................................................................................. 37
5.1.5 The Decline/Rejuvenation Stage ................................................................. 39
5.1.6 Summary of the TALC Model Application to the Original Tourism Area of
Hammamet .......................................................................................................... 42
5.2 The Tourism Area Yasmine-Hammamet ........................................................... 45
5.2.1 The Development and Consolidation Stages .............................................. 46
5.2.2 The Stagnation Stage ................................................................................. 48
5.2.3 The Decline/Rejuvenation Stage ................................................................. 48
5.3 Summary of Results .......................................................................................... 50

ii
 5.4 Future Development of the Destination Hammamet .......................................... 52
5.4.1 Economic Development .............................................................................. 52
5.4.2 Marketing and Information .......................................................................... 53
5.4.3 Shared Governance .................................................................................... 54
5.4.4 Summary of Recommendations .................................................................. 55
6. General Conclusion ................................................................................................ 55
6.1 The Stage of Development of the Destination Hammamet ................................ 56
6.2 Current Challenges and Recommendations ...................................................... 56
7. References ............................................................................................................. 58
8. Annexes .................................................................................................................. 65
9. Declaration of Authenticity ...................................................................................... 83

List of Figures
Figure 1: Richard Butler’s Tourism Area Life Cycle Model (Butler, 1980, p.7) ............... 4
Figure 2: TALC Model Displayed with Different Market Segments (Haywood, 1986,
p.156) ........................................................................................................................... 7
Figure 3: Alternative Tourist Area Cycle Patterns (Haywood, 1986, p.157) ................... 8
Figure 4: Haywood’s Approach to Identify TALC Stages (Haywood, 1986, p.158) ........ 9
Figure 5: Modification of the Tourist Area Life Cycle Model by Agarwal (Butler, 2011,
p.12) ........................................................................................................................... 10
Figure 6: Arrivals in Hotels of Europeans, Maghrebi and Total Number of Visitors in
Tunisia, 2009-2018 (ONTT) ........................................................................................ 12
Figure 7: Number of Beds Operated per Touristic Region in 2014 (Souissi, 2016, p.55)
................................................................................................................................... 13
Figure 8: Revenues Generated by the Tunisian Tourism Sector in Dinars and Euros
(ONTT; CBT, 2020) .................................................................................................... 14
Figure 9: Location of the Cap Bon Peninsula and The City of Hammamet (Oueslati,
2015, p.119) ............................................................................................................... 17
Figure 10: The City of Hammamet (Google Maps, 2020) ............................................ 18
Figure 11: Tourist Facilities in Hammamet Established between 1959 and 1970 (Gabsi,
2001, p.127) ............................................................................................................... 20
Figure 12: Tourist Facilities in Hammamet Established between 1959 and 1998 (Gabsi,
2001, p.129) ............................................................................................................... 21
Figure 13: Plan of the Touristic Station Yasmine-Hammamet (Bounouh, 2010) .......... 22
Figure 14: Evolution of the Arrivals in Hotels of Non-Residents in Hammamet-Nabeul
(1975-2018) (ONTT) ................................................................................................... 29
Figure 15: Evolution of Arrivals in Hotels of Non-Residents in Tunisia (1965-2018)
(ONTT) ....................................................................................................................... 30
Figure 16: Evolution of the Available and Operational Capacity in Beds in the Tourism
Region Hammamet-Nabeul (1975-2018) (ONTT) ....................................................... 31
Figure 17: Evolution of the Occupancy Rate in Hammamet-Nabeul (1975-2018)
(ONTT) ....................................................................................................................... 39
iii
Figure 18: Evolution of Resident and Non-Resident Arrivals in Hotels in Hammamet-
Nabeul (ONTT) ........................................................................................................... 40
Figure 19: Summary of Results: Application of the TALC Model to the Original Tourism
Area of Hammamet..................................................................................................... 44
Figure 20: Evolution of Non-Resident Arrivals in Hotels in Yasmine-Hammamet (2002-
2018) (ONTT) ............................................................................................................. 45
Figure 21: Evolution of the Available and Operational Capacity in the Tourism Area
Yasmine-Hammamet (ONTT) ..................................................................................... 46
Figure 22: Evolution of Non-Resident and Resident Arrivals in Hotels In Yasmine-
Hammamet (2002-2018) (ONTT) ................................................................................ 47
Figure 23: Evolution of the Occupancy Rate in Yasmine-Hammamet (ONTT) ............ 48
Figure 24: Evolution of the Arrivals of European, Maghrebi and Resident Tourists in
Hotels in Yasmine-Hammamet (ONTT) ...................................................................... 50

List of Tables
Table 1: Key Figures of the Evolution of Tourism in Tunisia (ONTT, 2018) ................. 12
Table 2: Average Tourist Expenditure per Stay per Country in 2007 by the UNWTO
(Weigert, 2012, p.23) .................................................................................................. 15
Table 3: Information about the Interviews: Qualification of the Interviewee, Number of
Interviews, Date and Duration of the Interview ............................................................ 26
Table 4: Infrastructure Investments in the City of Hammamet between 1974 and 1979
(Gabsi, 1985, p.128) ................................................................................................... 33
Table 5: Evolution of Hotel Capacity Available per Category in Hammamet-Nabeul
(ONTT) ....................................................................................................................... 36
Table 6: Arrivals per Nationality in Hotels in Hammamet-Nabeul (ONTT) ................... 42
Table 7: Evolution of the Tourist Capacity per Category in Yasmine-Hammamet (2002-
2018) (ONTT) ............................................................................................................. 47
Table 8: Arrivals per Nationality in Hotels in Yasmine-Hammamet (ONTT) ................. 49
Table 9: Strategic Objectives and Actions for Further Development of the Tourism
Activity in the Destination Hammamet......................................................................... 55

iv
 1. Introduction

New tourism destinations are constantly developing while others are struggling to
compete and sustain their growth. Many academics have attempted to provide a
theoretical approach to describe the development process of tourism destinations, how
they emerged, developed and in some cases declined. Among them Walter Christaller
(1964), Jean Marie Miossec (1977) and Richard Butler (1980) (Howie, 2003; Watts,
2013). According to Agarwal (2002), it is Butler’s (1980) Tourism Area Life Cycle (TALC)
model that caught most attention.

The tourism area life cycle model, is a model that describes the development process of
a tourism destination through different recognizable stages. The model suggests that, as
the tourism activity develops and the number of visitors increase, environmental and
social problems will arise and will considerably reduce the attractivity of the destination
which will ultimately lead to its decline.

The city of Hammamet, one of the major tourism destinations in Tunisia, could be
considered as the cradle of Tunisian tourism. Given its geographic, historical and climatic
attributes, Hammamet has been chosen in the late 50s by the government as a priority
zone to develop the Tunisian tourism activity (Gabsi, 2001). According to multiple
publications (Gafsi and Ben Hadj, 2010; Travel Foundation, 2012 and Hellal, 2015), the
tourism destination has been facing rising economic, social and environmental issues
related to its tourism activity. Moreover, the Jasmine Revolution in 2011 and terrorist
attacks in 2015, have negatively affected the image of the country and led to an important
decrease in terms of international arrivals in the destination (ONTT, 2011 and 2015;
Johnstone, 2018).

The aim of this thesis will be to investigate, using the framework and concepts of Butler’s
(1980) Tourism Area Life Cycle (TALC) model, the destination Hammamet in order to
identify its current status. The main research question that this thesis will aim to answer
is: “Is the tourism destination Hammamet in decline?”

This thesis will also intend to answer the following questions:

• In which development stage can the tourism destination Hammamet be categorized

according to the TALC model?
• What are the main issues and challenges faced by the destination?
• Which recommendations could be proposed to ensure a sustainable tourism
development and avoid the decline of the tourism destination?

1
The study will start with a literature review which will essentially focus on the tourism
area life cycle model and the Tunisian tourism industry.

2. Literature Review

The literature review will be divided into three sections. The first will define the term
tourism destination from different perspectives to introduce the concept of Butler‘s (1980)
Tourism Area Life Cycle (TALC), which origins, characteristics and limitations will be
addressed in the second section. Finally, the chapter will review the Tunisian tourism
industry in order to understand its specificities and prepare for the application of the
TALC model to the destination Hammamet, Tunisia.

2.1 Tourism Destination

According to the UNWTO (2002), tourism destinations are the fundamental units of
analysis in tourism. However, although it is one of the most commonly used terms in
tourism studies, there is no widely accepted definition or even an approach to this term
(Zemla, 2016). Tourism destination is a complex concept that can be specified from
multiple approaches and perspectives (Manente, 2008). Originally, the term tourism
destination is a geographical term and describes a geographical space, which is visible
in the classical spatial approach when defining a tourism destination (Zemla, 2016).
Within the classical approach, Goeldner and Ritchie (2003, p.466) define a tourism
destination as a “particular geographic region within which the visitor enjoys various type
of travel experiences.”

However, economic geographers often perceive a tourism destination not only as

geographical space but also as a key element of the tourism market, a tourism
destination can then be described from an economic perspective with supply and
demand features (Zemla, 2016). Thus, two main perspectives for the definition of tourist
destinations are recognized within the economic approach: the demand approach and
the supply approach. Manente (2008, p.6), defines tourist destination from the two
perspectives, from the demand perspective as a “tourist place, where tourist activities
have been developed and then tourist products are produced and consumed”; and from
the supply perspective, as a “tourist product and then as a specific supply involving a set
of resources, activities and actors of a territory as well as the local community.”

2
Another approach to define a tourism destination within the economic sciences is the
managerial approach. Seaton and Bennett (1997) state that a destination is not only a
place where tourism products are offered but also as the central product that drives other
products. Following the idea that tourism destinations might be considered as products,
it could be expected that the development of tourism destination follows the traditional
business product life cycle (Annex A). This was the initial argument for the geographer
Richard Butler in the conception of his Tourism Area Life Cycle (TALC) model in 1980
(Butler, 2006a).

Combining the spatial and economic definitions of tourism destination more modern
approaches emerged, namely the systems approach and the networking approach
(Zemla, 2016). According to the author, these approaches understand tourism
destinations as a place where a system of actors co-operate in order to supply an
integrated tourism product.

In this research, particular attention is given to the managerial definition of a tourism

destination. The TALC model will be used to examine a specific tourism area, thus,
literature relevant to the said model will be reviewed in the next section.

2.2 The Tourism Area Life Cycle Model

The Tourism Area Life Cycle (TALC) model, published by the Canadian geographer
Richard Butler in 1980, describes a recognizable cycle of tourism areas development,
divided into six specific stages (Butler, 1980). The following sections will discuss its
origins and characteristics, and will review the major criticism it has engendered.

2.2.1 Origins and Characteristics of the TALC Model

As mentioned in the previous sub-chapter, The TALC’s origins are based on the idea
that “resorts are essentially products, i.e. they have normally been developed and
modified to meet the need of specific markets (holidaymakers) in a similar way to the
production of other goods and services” (Butler, 2011, p.4). Thus, the author made the
assumption that resorts would follow a generally similar pattern of development to that
of most other products. The said pattern here is based on the Product Life Cycle (PLC)
model (Annex A), where the sales history of a product follows an S-shaped asymptotic
curve over time. Similarly, the development of a tourist area takes the shape of the same
curve than the PLC model as shown in the figure below (Figure 1), where the sales are
replaced by the number of tourists. The TALC model covers six stages of evolution of a
tourism area, namely: exploration, involvement, development, consolidation, stagnation
3
and decline or rejuvenation (Butler, 1980). In addition, to the number of tourists the
author indentifies a set of characteristics including spatial and economic features to allow
the distinction between the different stages. These characteristics and features are
based essentially on the 1970s literature of pioneering tourism researchers such as
Christaller (1963), Cohen (1972), Plog (1974) and Doxey (1974) (Butler, 2011).

Figure 1: Richard Butler’s Tourism Area Life Cycle Model (Butler, 1980, p.7)

The TALC stages are described as follows according to Butler (1980):

• The exploration stage: this initial stage is characterized by a few adventurous

tourists which discover the destination attracted by natural or cultural aspects.
There are no specific facilities provided for tourists and the interaction with locals
is likely to be high. At this stage, the social and economic impact of the visitors is
of relatively little significance.
• The involvement stage: as the number of visitors increases and achieves some
regularity, local residents start providing facilities for tourists. As this stage
progresses, some advertisement to attract potential visitors can be anticipated
and a basic initial market area for visitors can be defined. Some level of
organization in tourist travel arrangements can be expected and the first
pressures put upon governments and public agencies to provide or improve
transport and other facilities for visitors.
4
• The development stage: this stage reflects a well-defined tourist market area
with an important increase of the number of tourists which may exceed the local
population. The local involvement and control over the accommodation services
rapidly declines and external organizations start providing more sophisticated
tourism facilities and attractions. In this stage, changes in the physical
appearance of the tourist destination will be noticeable which can be expected to
irritate the local population.
• The consolidation stage: at this stage, tourism becomes tied to the area’s
economy. The rate of increase in number of visitors slows down but the total
number of tourists exceeds the local population. Major tourism chains and
franchises are represented. In this stage, opposition and discontent of local
residents can be expected toward the tourism activity especially for the ones not
involved in the tourist industry.
• The stagnation stage: the carrying capacity of the destination is reached or
exceeded and negative environmental, social and economic impacts are
observed. The destination’s image is well-established but runs out of fashion. A
heavy reliance on repeat visitation will be observed and strenuous efforts will be
required to maintain the level of visitation. Imported artificial attractions are likely
to replace natural and cultural attractions and the resort image becomes divorced
from its geographical environment. New development of the tourism activity will
be peripheral to the original tourism area and a frequent change of ownership of
proprieties is likely to occur.
• The decline stage: This stage is characterized by a heavy decrease in the
number of visitors as the destination is unable to compete with newer attractions.
A frequent closure of touristic facilities transformed to non-tourist related
structures will be observed. The destination could attract weekend and day
trippers if it has a large infrastructure and is accessible to a large number of
people. Local residents are likely to get involved in the tourism activity at this time
by acquiring tourist facilities which become more affordable.
• or the rejuvenation stage: a destination can avoid the decline stage and enter
the rejuvenation stage. This could be realised by developing artificial
attractiveness such as casinos or by using a previously unused natural resources
and creating a new tourist market.

5
 2.2.2 Critics of the TALC Model

Since its publication in 1980, the TALC model development scheme was discovered in
many parts of the world and is largely documented concept in the tourism studies
(Szromek, 2019). In the same time, it has been criticized on numerous occasions and its
applicability was often questioned, mainly due to its simplicity which makes it difficult to
distinguish between the different above-mentioned stages (Haywood, 1986; Agarwal,
1997; Johnson and Snepenger, 1993). In addition, the concept of carrying capacity which
is critical in determining a destination’s stage of development has also been criticized
and often judged as unprecise and vague as it depends on what is being examined and
could refer to the physical capacity (accommodation and number of beds), the
environmental or psychological capacities of a destination (Berry, 2000).

Butler, two decades after the publication of his model, started addressing the critics
emitted toward his model, in his book “The Tourism Area Life Cycle Vol. 1” published in
2006, the author collected most of works of other researchers that have used his original
model between 1980 and 2002 in order to reference the weaknesses and strengths of
his model (Szromek, 2019). Many academics such as Haywood (1986), Choy (1992)
and Agarwal (1994) have made recommendations to make the TALC model more
applicable and are cited by Butler (2006a). According to Butler (2006a), Haywood’s
(1986) work, “Can the Tourist Area Life cycle be made operational?”, one of the most
cited critics of the TALC model, “has likely done the most to make the [..] model an
operational research concept” (Butler, 2006a p.39). Haywood (1986) raised six issues
important for the usefulness of the model:

1. Unit of analysis: Haywood (1986) states that before applying the TALC model
the tourist area must be clearly defined. Whether the tourist area is a specific
region, a city or a town or a designated area within the city or town, is not the
issue, the selection of the unit of analysis should be based on need and intended
use of information.

2. Relevant market: According to Haywood (1986), the TALC model suppose that
the tourist market is homogenous, however, the total number of tourists may
represent different markets (e.g. international tourists and domestic tourists), he
points out that it might be more appropriate to represent the number of tourists
by different market segments as shown in figure 2. The argument behind this
reasoning is that different markets may interact with the specific area differently.
In this sense, Suchet (2015) claims that it is the tourism product, such as ski
tourism or beach tourism, that undergo the life cycle pattern rather than the
destination or the area itself.
6
Figure 2: TALC Model Displayed with Different Market Segments (Haywood, 1986, p.156)

3. Pattern and stages of the TALC: Haywood (1986) suggests looking at other
evolutionary curves in addition to the S-shaped curve proposed in the TALC
model and affirms that there is a variety of possible curves based on previous
applications of the TALC model as displayed in figure 3.

4. Identification of the area’s shape in the life cycle: Haywood (1986) states that
it is extremely difficult to determine when a tourist area moves from one stage to
another by simply observing the historical pattern of the number of tourists. The
author proposes one possible approach based on the possible change in the
number of tourists from one year to another. “These changes can then be plotted
as a normal distribution with zero mean” (Haywood, 1986 p.156) as shown in
figure 4.

5. Determination of the unit of measurement: The use of the number of tourists

to determine if the carrying capacity or saturation level of a tourist area is
exceeded is questioned by Haywood (1986), as well as whether a variable that
represents the carrying capacity exists. Haywood (1986) shares Hovinen (1981)
point of view who states, after applying the TALC model to Lancaster County in
Pennsylvania, that ‘a single carrying capacity threshold clearly does not exist;
instead the area’s capacity consists of different cultural and natural elements
which vary both within the county and temporally through the year’ (Hovinen,
1981 p.). Haywood (1986) affirms the need for a clear unit of measurement of the
carrying capacity.
7
6. Determination of the relevant time unit: Haywood (1986) also points out that
in some cases it might be more appropriate to use quarterly or monthly data
instead of using the annual number of tourists which will make it possible to
highlight any seasonal fluctuations.

Figure 3: Alternative Tourist Area Cycle Patterns (Haywood, 1986, p.157)

8
 Figure 4: Haywood’s Approach to Identify TALC Stages (Haywood, 1986, p.158)

As mentioned previously Haywood (1986) was not the only researcher to criticize Butler’s
(1980) model and other authors, such as Agarwal (1994, 1997, 2002), Baum (1998),
Russel and Faulkner (2004), Mclennan et al. (2012), Ma and Hassink (2014) and Sanz-
Ibáñez and Clavé (2014), have made contributions to modify and extend the model.
Agarwal (1994) suggests adding an additional stage, the re-orientation stage (Figure 5),
to represent the restructuring efforts made before the decline stage (Butler, 2011). She
argues that total decline is unlikely to occur as stakeholders will put tremendous efforts
to maintain the tourism activity, these efforts in her opinion, are generally constant and
gradual, therefore, the necessity of the re-orientation stage to be added (Sanz-Ibáñez,
2017). Moreover, Agarwal (2002) points out that it is necessary to study the destination
in its global context and that it is important to examine the endogenous and exogenous
factors that have stimulated the touristic development of the area (Haine, 2010).
Haywood (2006) and Butler (2004) himself go in this sense and suggest that, in order to
understand the causes and effects of tourism destination evolution, “the analysis needs
to be improved by introducing context specificities of the destination” (Sanz-Ibáñez,
2017, p.72).

9
 Figure 5: Modification of the Tourist Area Life Cycle Model by Agarwal (Butler, 2011, p.12)

However, despite all the criticism and suggestions to change the model, Prosser (1997)
made the observation back in 1997, that the original version remains largely intact and
that the extensive criticism addressed to the model shows no signs dissuading
researchers to use it as a framework for their research. Butler (2006a, p.289) stresses
the fact that the TALC model is “a generalized simplistic model and would not fit perfectly,
or even closely, all the many specific and unique cases.”

The TALC model remains widely used (Solomon (2015), Kruczek et al. (2018),
Heuwinkel & Venter (2018), Ly (2018)). It has proven to be a useful tool in interpreting
the stage of evolution of already established destinations and provides a valuable
conceptual framework to decision making (Piuchan, 2018). Page (2007) states that the
model provides a starting point for a destination’s analysis. Moreover, according to Berry
(2000, p.80), the TALC model is the main “diagnosis aid” and is relevant as the first “port
of call” for any serious analysis of a particular tourist area. He also notes that the majority
of applicants of the TALC model recognize a significant compliance between the model
and the real world.

This study aims to evaluate the tourism destination Hammamet, situated in the north-
east of Tunisia, using the TALC model. The next sub-chapter will review the literature
relevant to tourism in Tunisia in order to understand the general and global context that
stimulated the tourism development in the studied area, as suggested by Agarwal (2002).

10
 2.3 The Tunisian Tourism Industry

In the late 50s, European tourism was booming and the seaside tourism offer of Italy and
the Côte d’Azur were saturated. In this context, visits of the few first Tunisian tourism
facilities, established in the early 50s, increased greatly (Weigert, 2012). The Tunisian
government, after its independence from France in 1956, identified the tourism activity
as a key sector in the economic development of the country (Poirier, 1995; Bleasdale &
Tapsell, 1999). In 1959, the SHTT (‘Société Hôtelière et Touristique de Tunisie’ –
National Society of Hotels and Tourism) responsible for the construction and
management of tourist facilities has been created; a decennial plan (1962-1971) to
develop the tourism activity has been established and four major touristic zones, mainly
seaside areas, have been identified: the zone of Tunis, Hammamet-Nabeul, Sousse-
Monastir and Zarzis-Djerba (Belhedi, 1999; Weigert, 2012). Between 1962 and 1968,
around 15 million of Dinars (Tunisian local currency) have been invested by the
government through the SHTT, 35 000 beds have been operational, the number of
tourists was multiplied by eight (from 50 000 to 400 000) and 15 000 jobs were created
(Souissi, 2007, p.86). The initial decennial objectives were largely exceeded according
to Belhedi (1999).

Starting from 1966, the Tunisian government decided to progressively include the private
sector in the tourism development by adopting more liberal laws and providing incentives
and aid policies to encourage the construction of tourist facilities and investment in the
tourism industry (Dribek, 2012). According to the same author, the previously mentioned
SHTT was dissolved in 1986, and the tourism activity become essentially controlled by
the private sector. Two governmental institutions have been created to monitor the
development of the tourism activity in Tunisia. The ONTT (‘l’Office National du Tourisme
Tunisien’ – National Office of the Tunisian Tourism) created in 1971, which
responsibilities include: elaborating the national tourism strategy and the advertisement
of tourism products; and the AFT (‘Agence Foncière Touristique’ – Tourism Real Estate
Agency) created in 1973, in charge of the development and planning of tourism resorts
(Hellal, 2015).

In 1970, the success of the affordable package tour among the European middle-class
and the development of charter flights have greatly influenced the “touristic structuring
model” of the country according to Weigert (2012, p.8) and the orientation of Tunisia as
a mass tourism destination. The author states that for three decades (1970-2000), the
majority of the tourism investments were designated to expand the seaside tourism
capacity commercialized through travel packages by tour operators to a European
clientele.

11
 1963 1973 1987 2000 2010 2018

Capacity
(number of beds) 5 743 35 297 100 456 197 453 241 528 237 618

Revenues
(in millions of dinars) 3 700 31 600 568 900 2 095 100 3 522 500 4 093 200

Touristic entries
(non-resident) 104 731 410 749 1 874 734 5 057 193 6 902 749 6 921 243

Direct jobs
(created by tourism) 2 997 14 119 40 182 78 981 96 611 95 047

Table 1: Key Figures of the Evolution of Tourism in Tunisia (ONTT, 2018)

From 1987 to 2010, the tourism industry developed rapidly as shown in Table 1 and
becomes a key sector in terms of revenue generation and employment creation.
However, the Jasmine Revolution 1 in 2011 and the terrorist attacks of 2015 2 have
negatively affected the country’s image especially in terms of safety and security
(Johnstone, 2018). The number of tourists, especially European visitors, has witnessed
a significant drop (Figure 6).

8 000 000

7 000 000

6 000 000

5 000 000

4 000 000

3 000 000

2 000 000

1 000 000

0
2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 2016 2017 2018

Europeans Maghrebians Total

Figure 6: Arrivals in Hotels of Europeans, Maghrebi and Total Number of Visitors in Tunisia,
2009-2018 (ONTT)

1 Jasmine Revolution: A popular uprising against the former president “Ben Ali” (El-May, 2011).
2 Terrorist attacks of 2015: “One at the Bardo Museum in Tunis killed 22 people, and another three months
later killed 38 people in the coastal city of Sousse” (Belaid, 2018)
12
Multiple studies (Weigert, 2012; Dribek, 2012; Sahli, 2013; The World Bank, 2015;
Souissi, 2016) suggest that the above-mentioned events aggravated already existing
issues of Tunisian tourism and state that the sector’s crisis is essentially due to structural
flaws which are limiting its development and its future economic potential. In fact,
according to Weigert (2012), since the year 2000, Tunisia is among the south and east
Mediterranean countries with the lowest growth rate in terms of international arrivals and
where the average expenditure per tourist is the lowest. Moreover, the World Bank
(2015, p.135) points out that the Tunisian tourism sector is enclosed in a “monoculture
tourism” essentially providing “3S” (Sun-Sand-Sea) vacation packages with a low added
value to European visitors which remain the main target group. In this sense, Belhedi
(1999) notes that tourism planning and development have been essentially based on the
said sun-sand-sea model and that efforts to diversify the Tunisian tourism products only
started in 1980 with the development of desert tourism in Gafsa-Tozeur and mountain
tourism in Tabarka-AinDrahem (Figure 7). However, figure 7, which represents the
number of beds per touristic region in 2014, clearly illustrates the focus of the tourism
industry in Tunisia on the seaside part of the country. This focus has led to a high
seasonality of the tourism activity with main pic levels of visitations reached between
May and October (Roland Berger, 2010).

Figure 7: Number of Beds Operated per Touristic Region in 2014 (Souissi, 2016, p.55)

13
In addition to the lack of product diversification, the World Bank (2015) highlights the fact
that the tourism sector is highly dependent on European tour operators. Tour operators
“commercialized over 70 percent of the Tunisian offer and ensure around 90 percent of
the overnight stays in 2010” and are the major chain of distribution in Tunisia (Souissi,
2016, p.52). This dependency followed up with the centralisation of the European
operating tours into a handful of dominant corporate groups in the mid-90s (Leidner,
2004) as well as the increasing international competition has led to the fall of prices of
the Tunisian offer which provoked the degradation of the quality of the services provided
(Sahli, 2013). Moreover, according to Souissi (2016), the majority of the tour operators
operating in Tunisia, such as TUI Group, have established subsidiaries which are
horizontally and vertically integrated and have their own airline, travel agencies and
hotels operating in the country.

Furthermore, Sahli (2013) stresses the fact in his book, ‘Révolutionner le Tourisme
Tunisien - Revolutionize Tunisian Tourism’, that in the year 2001 and 2010, the tourism
activity has generated almost the same amount of revenues in Euros (Figure 8) while
the capacity and the number of visitors significantly increased as shown in table 1. In
fact, according to Sahli (2013), the contribution of the tourism industry in generating
foreign exchange currency is not as important as it used especially when considering the
investments made for the development of the tourism industry.

4 500
4 000
3 500
3 000
2 500
2 000
1 500
1 000
500
0

Revenues in million of Dinars Revenues converted in Euros

Figure 8: Revenues Generated by the Tunisian Tourism Sector in Dinars and Euros (ONTT;
CBT, 2020)

14
This important decrease in the profitability is due to multiple factors, according to Weigert
(2012), mainly the foreign tour operator dependency, the lack of the product
diversification, the aerial transport restriction and a fiercer competition. In his paper the
author also draws attention to the considerable difference of the average tourist
expenditure in Tunisia and its main competitors (Morocco, Egypt, Greece and Turkey)
as displayed in table 2. According to Souissi (2016, p.52), the average receipt per visitor
in Tunisia further declined and represented 260 Euros in 2010.

Tunisia 275 euros

Morocco 725 euros
Egypt 700 euros
Greece 710 euros
Turkey 710 euros

Table 2: Average Tourist Expenditure per Stay per Country in 2007 by the UNWTO (Weigert,
2012, p.23)

In addition to the above-mentioned issues with Tunisian tourism, the World Bank (2015,
p.135) states that the policies encouraging tourism investments has often subsidized
“unqualified investors” with a considerable lack of experience in the tourism industry
creating a chronic and generalized “non-performing loan” problem as well as serious
environmental issues due to poor planning.

In 2010, the Tunisian Ministry of Tourism published a study (Roland Berger, 2010)
conducted with the consultancy group Roland Berger Strategy Consultants in order to
address the problems of the tourism industry. The recommendations made by the
consultancy group include: a diversification and innovation of the tourism product,
development of country specific marketing strategies and the digitalization of the tourism
organizations. More recently, in 2016, the Tunisian Ministry of Environment and
Sustainable Development (TMESD) published a decennial action plan (2016-2025). The
report highlights the fact that the Tunisian tourism is highly dominant by coastal tourism
which is characterized by a low sustainability: low prices, a high seasonality, a clientele
with low consumption of local product, a low contribution in the development of inner
regions of the country, an overexploitation of resources and negative environmental
impacts (TMESD, 2016, p.15). Three strategic axes have been identified in the report:

15
 • Ensure the sustainability of coastal tourism and its adaptation to climate change
• Develop natural and cultural tourism
• Develop region specific marketing strategies

After describing Butler’s (1980) TALC model and identifying the general specificities of
the Tunisian tourism industry, this paper will focus on the tourism destination
Hammamet. The purpose of this research is to determine the stage of development of
the destination based on the TALC model. The next chapter will describe the
geographical setting of the area as well as the evolution of its tourism activity.

3. The Study Area

Haywood (1986) states that when attempting to use the TALC model defining and
delineating the tourism area is the first and most crucial step. This study will examine the
city of Hammamet and its two tourist zones: the traditional or original tourist zone and
the new tourist zone Yasmine-Hammamet (Figure 10). The aim of this chapter is to
provide information about the city of Hammamet and its history as a tourism destination
to facilitate the application of the TALC model to the tourism area.

3.1 The City of Hammamet

Hammamet is a seaside touristic Tunisian city of 131 square kilometres and a population
of 73,236 inhabitants, located at a 64 km distance of the capital Tunis (INS, 2014; The
Governorate of Nabeul, 2016). It belongs to the governorate of Nabeul and is positioned
at the southern end of the Cap Bon peninsula (Figure 9), a region heavily reliant on the
tourism industry (Gafsi and Ben Hadj, 2010). According to the same author, the city offers
a variety of landscapes: an extensive coastline of approximately 20 kilometres, a plain
with urban an agricultural space, essentially citrus orchards, a series of hills which height
does not exceed 250 meters and a forest of 1820 acres situated in the Jebel El Faoura3
(Figure 10).

Before it becomes an internationally renowned tourism destination, Hammamet was

rather defined as a village, relying essentially on agriculture and fishing, which origins
can be traced back to the classical antiquity according to Boukraa (2008). Several

3Jebel El Fouara: Jebel El Fouara is a mountain which groups a series of hills located in
Hammamet (Figure 10).
16
civilizations and nations have settled in Hammamet, such as the Punic, the Roman, the
Arab, the Spanish, the Ottoman and the French and have left their mark in the city
(Mansouri, 2000). Among the most important cultural monuments still visible in the city,
the fort of Hammamet and the archeologic site Pupput4 can be named.

The fort protecting the Medina5 of Hammamet was built between the years 893-914 by
the Arabs according to Mansouri (2000). The archeologic site Pupput consists of Roman
ruins which have been discovered during the construction of hotels in the beginning of
the 60s (Ben Abed & Griesheimer, 2001).

Figure 9: Location of the Cap Bon Peninsula and The City of Hammamet (Oueslati, 2015,
p.119)

4 Pupput: A Roman colony established by the Roman emperor Commodus in the second century, situated
a few kilometres away of the current city centre of Hammamet (Ben Abed, 2006).
5
Medina: Old native quarter of a North African city (Collins Dictionary, 2020).

17
 Figure 10: The City of Hammamet (Google Maps, 2020)

3.2 Tourism in Hammamet

The tourism facilities of the city of Hammamet are dispersed in two administratively and
physically different tourist zones: the touristic zone Hammamet-Nabeul and the touristic
zone Yasmine-Hammamet, which englobes a major part of the Cap Bon’s coastline
(Gafsi and Ben Hadj, 2010). In this research, it is intended to determine the status of the
destination Hammamet as whole, both tourist areas will be considered and will represent
the study area. In the following sections, the evolution of the destination’s tourism activity
will be briefly discussed and the area of Yasmine-Hammamet will be defined. The
objective of this sub-chapter is to lay the ground for the TALC model application to the
studied area.

3.2.1 Origins and Start of Tourism in Hammamet

While the construction of tourist facilities in Hammamet and in Tunisia in general (in the
main touristic zones mentioned in the Section 2.3) essentially started in the 60s, some
signs of tourism in Hammamet can be observed in the beginnings of the 20th century. At
that time, when Hammamet was a small village, several artists and celebrities, such as
Paul Klee and August Macke, visited the destination attracted by physical characteristics
of Hammamet and essentially, according to Boukraa (2008), the coast and the gulf, the
landscapes of the orchards and the luminosity. Later on, several wealthy individuals (e.g.
Georges Sebastian, Porter Woodruff, Jean Henson, Hoyningen-Huene) established
18
secondary homes or even settled in Hammamet. Boukraa (2008, p72), in his book
“Hammamet: Etude d’anthropologie touristique – Hammamet: Study of tourism
anthropology” describes this period as a period of “romantic residential tourism”. These
newcomers have contributed greatly in making the destination popular among the artistic
world and the French and European elite (Saidane 2010).

Although a few small hotels existed in Hammamet established in the end of the 19th
century and beginning of 20th century by the French (e.g. Hotel de France et de la Plage,
Hotel du Golfe), the Hotel Miramar is considered as the first Tunisian hotel in Hammamet
(Saidane, 2010) the hotel was opened in 1959, after the independence from France, by
the SHTT (Section 2.3), who established another tourist facility in the destination shortly
after, Hotel Tanit (Hellal, 2015). As mentioned previously (Section 2.3), the government
has identified Hammamet as a priority zone for the development of tourism in the country.
Later on, in the beginning of the 60s, with the initiative of local entrepreneurs and support
of the SHTT and the government, additional hotels were inaugurated. The involvement
of the local residents in the tourism activity was initiated by the Fourati and Khechine
families, who initially come from Kairouan (Tunisian city) to work in the newly established
Hotel Miramar, and are considered among the pioneers of Hammamet’s tourism industry
(Bergaoui, 2003; Saidane, 2010; Hellal, 2015). Chedly Fourati and his family have
established several hotels: “El Fourati”, “El Bousten” and “Parc Plage”. Later on,
Abdelhamide Khechine moved out from the carpet selling business and opened his first
hotel, “Les Orangers”, in 1965 (Saidane, 2010, p.136).

3.2.2 Development of Tourism in Hammamet

The number of units rapidly increased, in 1970 the city counted 18 tourist facilities with
a total capacity of 7189 beds (Gabsi, 1985). Hellal (2015, p.84) points out the “laissez
faire” policy of the Tunisian government between 1960 and 1974, and the lack of urban
planning with hotel buildings overflowing on the coast and on the archaeological site
Pupput. In fact, it was only in 1975 that the “Plan d’Amenagement Touristique – Touristic
Development Plan” (PAT) was elaborated (Official Journal of the Tunisian Republic,
1975, p.2611). With the increasing demand from tour operators, additional tourist
facilities were built. Figures 11 and 12 demonstrate the evolution of the number of tourist
facilities from 1959 to 1998. Hammamet total tourist capacity developed from 12,047
beds in 1980 to 29,510 beds available for tourists in 1998, representing the majority of
the 36,167 available in the region Hammamet-Nabeul (Gabsi, 2001, p.118). Most of the
hotels were built linearly on the beachfront which soon become saturated (Figure 12). In
order to give a second breath to the city of Hammamet and to continue extending the

19
tourist capacity, the government decided to create a new tourist zone Yasmine-
Hammamet (Hellal, 2015).

Figure 11: Tourist Facilities in Hammamet Established between 1959 and 1970 (Gabsi, 2001,
p.127)

20
Figure 12: Tourist Facilities in Hammamet Established between 1959 and 1998 (Gabsi, 2001,
p.129)

21
 3.2.3 Yasmine-Hammamet

In the late 80s, facing a growing Mediterranean competition and in order to keep its
market share, the Tunisian government identified the strategy to double its national bed
capacity available for tourists to reach 200 000 beds in the year 2000 (Sahli, 2013). In
addition, the ONTT spotted out several tourism products to be developed: nautical
tourism, golf tourism, casino tourism and congress tourism; in order to reduce the
seasonality of the tourism activity in the country and attract higher expenditure tourists
(Hellal, 2015). In this context, several new tourist zones were planned across the country
and identified as priority zones to integrate the new tourism products.

As the city of Hammamet had a solid reputation in the country as a tourism destination
and an important contribution in the national touristic revenues, the government decided
to establish the tourist zone, ‘station touristique intégrée Yasmine-Hammamet -
integrated touristic station Yasmine-Hammamet’, initially named ‘station touristique
intégrée Hammamet-Sud - integrated touristic station Hammamet-South’, and extend the
tourism area of Hammamet (Hellal, 2015) as visible in figure 12 (Zone Hammamet-Sud).
According to the same author, a seaside salty land, unexploitable for agricultural
activities, located on the south of the city was chosen for the project. The construction of
Yasmine-Hammamet started in 1991 and the station officially opened in 2002 (Barthel,
2004).

The integrated tourist station Yasmine-Hammamet could be described as a resort area,

i.e. a touristic area providing a wide range set of services and equipment, the most
important include: a marina (small harbour used for recreational purposes), high standing
tourist facilities (hotels and apartments), restaurants, a theme park and a man-made
Medina (Figure 13). The resort covers 278-hectare area with a seafront of approximately
4 kilometres situated at around 7 kilometres away of Hammamet’s city centre (Barthel,
2004).

Figure 13: Plan of the Touristic Station Yasmine-Hammamet (Bounouh, 2010)

22
The tourism resort had the following objectives according to Hellal (2015):

• Increase the capacity (with 25 000 additional beds)

• Upgrade the quality of services with higher category hotels
• Diversify the tourism product with new attractions (Marina, casinos, theme parks
etc.)
• Meet the needs of a more heterogenous higher expenditure demand
(international and national)
• Reduce the urban and environmental pressure on Hammamet-Nabeul

According to Gabsi (2001, p.122), the new resort was also aimed to strengthen the image
and avoid the “banalization” of Hammamet as a tourism destination.

Yasmine-Hammamet instantly become an important tourism destination in Tunisia, the

station counted since its opening in 2002, around 12,000 beds which accommodated
more than 300,000 international and national visitors (ONTT, 2002).

The purpose of this paper is to evaluate, using the framework and concepts of Butler’s
Tourism Area Life Cycle model, the stage of development of destination Hammamet with
its two tourist areas, the original tourist area of Hammamet (Figure 12) and the station
Yasmine-Hammamet (Figure 13). The next chapter will present the methodology
adopted in this research.

4. Methodology

This chapter presents the general research design of this study, the type of data collected
and the methods adopted to gather and analyse it, in order to apply the TALC model to
the destination Hammamet and meet the predefined objectives of this thesis.

4.1 Research Design

The research design adopted in this thesis is a case study research. A case study is
defined by Yin (1984, p.23) as “an empirical inquiry that investigates a contemporary
phenomenon within its real-world context; and in which multiple sources of evidence are
used”. The definition fits the situation of this research which will attempt to determine and
evaluate the stage of evolution of the tourism destination Hammamet. Yin (2009),
differentiates between three types of case study approaches: exploratory, descriptive

23
and explanatory. This thesis aims to describe and explain the evolution of the tourism
activity in Hammamet using Butler’s (1980) TALC model and determine whether the
destination is in decline according to the latter. Thus, this research can be described as
a mixed case study research.

According to Tellis (1997), a common criticism of case study research is its dependency
on a single case, making it difficult draw scientific generalizations, which is, in this case,
irrelevant as the objectives of this study are strictly concerned with the tourism
destination Hammamet.

Yin (2009) states that there are six commonly used sources of evidence in case studies:
documentation, archival records, physical artefacts, direct-observation, participant
observation and interviews. Most of these sources have been used for this study. The
next section will describe the type of data gathered and the methods adopted to collect
and analyse it.

4.2 Data Collection and Analysis

In this research both primary and secondary data has been collected and analysed.
Primary data refer to original data collected for a specific research addressing a problem
at hand, while secondary data are data which have been already collected for purposes
other than the problem at hand.

4.2.1 Secondary Data

Given the extensive information available about the studied area and the model used in
this research, the latter has been essentially based on secondary data, retrieved from
books (Gabsi, 2001; Miossec, 2001; Bergaoui, 2003; Butler, 2006a; Boukraa, 2008;
Sahli, 2013; Oxford Business Group 2016), academic papers and publications (Butler
1980; Gabsi, 1985; Haywood, 1986; Saidane, 2010; Dribek, 2012; Weigert, 2012; Hellal,
2015; Souissi, 2016) as well as statistical reports of the Tunisian tourism office (ONTT).

The statistical data gathered has been analysed with Microsoft Excel. Graphs
representing the evolution of the number of tourists, the capacity available and
operational, the category of hotels, as well as other variables have been realized in order
to map the development of the tourism activity in the studied area. This was followed by
a stage by stage analysis of Butler’s (1980) TALC model, and the data obtained from
books and academic publications was used to determine criteria specific to each stage
described by the model.

24
 4.2.2 Primary Data

The primary data, gathered via field observation and semi-structured interviews, has
been used as complementary information to provide a more concrete and realistic view
of the destination studied. The data has been collected during the visit of the destination
(from 30/12/2019 to 06/03/2020). The purpose of this visit was to investigate and identify
potential decline signs described by Butler (1980), such as the closure and reconversion
of tourist facilities and attractions, as the analysis of the secondary data suggested that
the destination was at an advanced stage of its life cycle based on the TALC model.

Semi-structured interviews of 8 hoteliers were conducted during the visit. The purpose
of these interviews was to get an impression of professionals of the sector about the
current situation and find out whether the conclusions drawn from the analysis are
accurate. Moreover, the interviews were also designated to highlight the current
challenges faced by the hoteliers and come up with potential recommendations to ensure
the further development of the destination.

A semi-structured interview is an interview “organized around a set of predetermined

open-ended questions, with other questions emerging from the dialogue between
interviewer and interviewee/s” (DiCicco-Bloom and Crabtree, 2006, p.315). It includes a
short list of questions supplemented by follow-up questions dependant on the
interviewee’s response (De Jonckheere & Vaughn, 2019). Based on the research needs
an interview guide has been designed (Annex B) which includes the following questions:

• How would you assess the current situation of the destination Hammamet?
• What are the current challenges of the destination?
• What recommendations would you provide to ensure the sustainability of the
tourism activity?

According to Lavarkas (2008), face to face or personal interviews are an effective way
to minimize non-response rate and ensure the quality of data collected. Thus, this
method has been chosen. The participants have been selected based on their relevant
experience in the tourism activity in the studied destination and their willingness to
participate in the study, as suggested by De Jonckheere & Vaughn (2019). Initially 12
respondents were identified and approached, however, from the fifth interview, the
information collected become redundant of the previously gathered data. According to
Grady (1998, p.26), “when the researcher begins to hear the same comments again and
again, data saturation is being reached.” Three additional interviews were conducted to
ensure that data saturation has been reached.

25
The following table provides information about the interviews conducted:

Respondent Qualification Interview

Number Date Duration
Respondent 1 Hotel owner & manager 2 20/01/2020 30 min.
26/02/2020 40 min.
Respondent 2 Hotel owner & manager 1 25/02/2020 42 min.
Respondent 3 Hotel manager 1 25/02/2020 46 min.
Respondent 4 Hotel owner & manager 1 28/02/2020 60 min.
Respondent 5 Hotel manager 1 28/02/2020 45 min.
Respondent 6 Hotel manager 1 29/02/2020 40 min.
Respondent 7 Hotel manager 1 29/02/2020 35 min.
Respondent 8 Hotel manager 1 29/02/2020 32 min.

Table 3: Information about the Interviews: Qualification of the Interviewee, Number of

Interviews, Date and Duration of the Interview

As it can be seen from the table 3, two interviews were carried out with the first
respondent (respondent 1). The interview conducted on the 20th of January 2020, had
for objective to test the interview guide and identify potential participants. Several
adjustments were made to the interview guide, then, the interviews were planned via
phone calls and were conducted on the work premises of the respondents.

The interviews were carried out from the 26th to the 29th of February, in the last phase of
the research. This was necessary as the objective of the interviews was to gather
complementary data to the analysis of the destination Hammamet based on the TALC
model.

The technique used to analyse the data collected from the interviews was content
analysis. Content analysis is defined by Haggarty (1996, p.99) as a “research method
which allows the qualitative data collected in research to be analysed systematically and
reliably so that generalizations can be made from them in relation to the categories of
interest to the researcher”. The notes taken during the interviews were summarized and
organized into different categories and similarities between the results have been
identified, as suggested by Erlingsson and Brysiewicz (2017), to generalize hoteliers’
perception of the current situation and the challenges faced by the studied destination
and formulate recommendations.

26
 4.3 Data Limitations

This section will examine the limitations encountered during the collection of secondary
and primary data for the research.

4.3.1 Secondary Data Limitations

The limitations in collecting the secondary data have been essentially concerned with
the statistical data gathered to establish the TALC curve used in the application of
Butler’s (1980) model. As stated by Haywood (1986), the unit of analysis of the TALC
model which represent the number of tourists in a particular destination, has its
limitations (Section 2.2.2). The limitations in collecting the data encountered are
summarized as follows:

• Unavailability of data specific to the original tourism area of Hammamet

• Unavailability of data prior to 1975 for the studied area
• Unavailability of the arrivals of domestic tourists prior to 1992
• Frequent Fluctuations of the number of arrivals of non-residents

In order to overcome the limitations above, it was decided to focus on non-resident

arrivals in hotels in the touristic region of Hammamet-Nabeul which groups the city of
Hammamet (original tourism area), and the cities of Nabeul, Kelibia, El Haouaria and
Soliman. This variable has been chosen given its availability and the fact that the original
tourism area of Hammamet represents an important proportion of the capacity available
for tourists, 71 percent according to Gabsi (2001, p.133), and the majority of overnight
stays recorded in the region. According to Gafsi and Ben Hadj (2010, p.50), the original
tourism area of Hammamet assured, in 2008, around 85 percent of the overnight stays
in hotels of the whole tourism region.

No complications were faced during the collection of data relevant to the tourism area of
Yasmine-Hammamet as it is considered as an individual tourism region and statistics
specific to the latter are available.

It was decided to separate Yasmine-Hammamet from the original tourism area of

Hammamet as the areas presented several differences such as the type of hotels and
tourists, and given the relatively recent date of establishment of Yasmine-Hammamet.

In order to estimate the number of visitors in the destination prior to 1975 and understand
the causes of the fluctuations observed in the TALC curve, a graph representing the
national number of non-resident arrivals in hotels has been created. Other variables such

27
as the evolution of available and operational have been integrated to support the
analysis.

4.3.2 Primary Data Limitations

According to Opdenakker (2006), one limitation of data collection via personal, semi-
structured interviews is the synchronous nature of the communication where the
interviewer must concentrate on the answer of the respondent and on the same time on
the next question to be asked. This difficulty was experienced especially in the first
interviews, however, greatly diminished with practice and adaptation of the interview
guide. Another limitation of personal interviews, especially when studying a tourism
destination according to Brotherton (2008), is that the answers given by respondents
when asked about their destination might tend to be overly optimistic. In order to
minimize this risk, respondents have been well informed about the study’s aims and
intentions, and were assured of confidentiality and anonymity of their answers.

The next chapter will present the results of the TALC model application on the tourism
destination Hammamet and will attempt to identify the current status of the destination
as well as the challenges and potential recommendations for the future development of
the tourism activity in the destination.

5. Results and Discussion

This chapter will examine the tourism destination Hammamet using Butler’s (1980)
tourism area life cycle model. The goal of this chapter is not to retrace the development
of the tourism destination as completed in Section 3.2, but to determine the destination
status using the model. The destination is composed of two different tourism areas: the
original tourist area of Hammamet and the tourist station Yasmine-Hammamet. It was
found that each tourist area has its own life cycle. The findings will be then presented
separately in two different sections, which will be followed by a summary and a
discussion of the future of the destination.

28
 5.1 The Original Tourism Area of Hammamet

By the original tourism area of Hammamet it is referred to the original or older tourism
area located in the city of Hammamet (Figure 12), excluding the resort Yasmine-
Hammamet. This area belongs to the tourism region Hammamet-Nabeul, defined by the
ONTT, which groups several cities of the Cap Bon, such as Hammamet, Nabeul, Korba,
Kelibia, El Haouaria and Soliman. Given the fact that statistical data specific to the
original area of Hammamet is not available and that the area accommodates the large
majority of tourist arrivals of the Hammamet-Nabeul region, statistical data of the latter
will be used to examine the area’s status according to the TALC model (Section 4.3.1).

In his model Butler (1980) uses the number of visitors over an extended period of time
to establish the TALC curve for a specific tourism area. The following graph (Figure 14)
displays the evolution of the number of visitors, more precisely the number of arrivals in
tourist facilities of non-residents (international tourists), in the tourism region Hammamet-
Nabeul from 1975 to 2018.

1 000 000

900 000

800 000

700 000

600 000

500 000

400 000

300 000

200 000

100 000

Figure 14: Evolution of the Arrivals in Hotels of Non-Residents in Hammamet-Nabeul (1975-2018) (ONTT)

Given the fact that the data prior to 1975 is not available and in order to have an idea
about the number of visitors in this period, one can refer to the number of visitors at a
national level (Figure 15).

29
 6 000 000

5 000 000

4 000 000

3 000 000

2 000 000

1 000 000

0
1975

2005
1965
1967
1969
1971
1973

1977
1979
1981
1983
1985
1987
1989
1991
1993
1995
1997
1999
2001
2003

2007
2009
2011
2013
2015
2017
Figure 15: Evolution of Arrivals in Hotels of Non-Residents in Tunisia (1965-2018) (ONTT)

When looking at both figures (14 and 15), it can be observed that the curve representing
the evolution of the number of visitors staying in hotels in the destination Hammamet
have a quite similar shape than the one representing the same variable on a national
level. It can be then concluded that the declines of the number of visitors recorded in the
area in the years: 1991, 2002, 2003, 2011 and 2015, are due to factors not specific to
the destination. Among the events that probably caused the drop of the number of visitors
(Weigert, 2013; Souissi, 2016):

• The Gulf War in 1991

• 11 September 2001
• The terrorist attack in Djerba in 2002
• The invasion of Iraq in 2003
• The Jasmin Revolution in 2011
• The terrorist attacks in Sousse and Bardo in 2015

As pointed out by Agarwal (1997) and Haywood (2006), Butler’s (1980) model does not
consider exogenous and endogenous factors while the evolution of the number of visitors
is an extremely sensitive variable as shown in the figures above. Less sensitive variables
are selected which consist of the total and operational bed capacity in the area as shown
in figure 16. With the support of these figures (14, 15 and 16), the different stage of the
TALC model will be discussed in the next sub-sections.

30
 50 000
45 000
40 000
35 000
30 000
25 000
20 000
15 000
10 000
5 000
0

Cap. Available Cap. Operational

Figure 16: Evolution of the Available and Operational Capacity in Beds in the Tourism Region Hammamet-
Nabeul (1975-2018) (ONTT)

5.1.1 The Exploration and Involvement Stages

During the colonial regime (1881-1956), several small tourist facilities existed such as
Hotel de France et de la Plage, the hotel Chez Jean and Hotel Abassa (Hellal, 2015),
according to Butler (1980), this is a sign of the involvement stage where the local
residents start providing tourist facilities for visitors as their number achieve some level
of regularity. As the number of visitors in this period is not available, it is not possible to
determine when the involvement starts. Moreover, several artists and celebrities
attracted by natural aspects of the destination Hammamet visited the destination in the
beginning of the 20th century (Section 3.2.1). This type of visitors corresponds to Butler’s
(1980) exploration stage of a destination’s development, where a few adventurous
tourists visit the destination attracted by natural and cultural features. It might be that the
exploration and involvement described by the TALC model overlap in the studied area
during the colonial regime.

After the independence from France, the government identified the tourism sector as a
vital sector for the economic development of the country. Butler’s (1980) criteria specific
to the involvement stage are visible in the early years following the independence of the
country: some level of organisation in the tourist travel arrangements, evidence of
advertisement efforts by the government to attract visitors and the SHTT, governmental
agency responsible for the construction and management of tourist facilities, establishes
two tourist facilities in the studied area (Section 3.2.2). From 1959 to 1970, several hotels
31
are created as shown in figure 11. In 1970, Hammamet counts 18 tourist facilities with a
total capacity of 7189 beds (Gabsi, 1985), a number which will rapidly increase as the
destination enters the development stage.

5.1.2 The Development Stage

In the 70s, the original area of Hammamet enters the development stage described by
Butler (1980) as the number of visitors significantly increases and important
advertisement efforts are made by the ONTT, created in 1976 to control and promote
Tunisian tourism, by establishing tourism offices abroad, essentially in Europe (Hellal,
2015). Moreover, from 1973 to 1986, private investments in the tourism sector increased
drastically in the studied area as well as in the other popular Tunisian tourist zones; such
as Djerba-Zarzis and Sousse-Monastir (Dribek, 2012).

Butler (1980, p.8) suggests that as a destination progresses in the development stage,
“local involvement and control of development will decline rapidly. Some locally provided
facilities will have disappeared, being superseded by larger, more elaborate, and more
up-to-date facilities provided by external organizations, particularly for visitor
accommodation. Natural and cultural attractions will be developed and marketed
specifically, and these original attractions will be supplemented by man-made imported
facilities. Changes in the physical appearance of the area will be noticeable, and it can
be expected that not all of them will be welcomed or approved by all of the local
population. Regional and national involvement in the planning and provision of facilities
will almost certainly be necessary and, again, may not be completely in keeping with
local preferences. As this stage unfolds, imported labour will be utilized and auxiliary
facilities for the tourist industry (such as laundries) will make their appearance. The type
of tourist will also have changed, as a wider market is drawn upon, representing the mid-
centrics of Plog's classification, or Cohen's institutionalized tourist”. Although not all of
Butler’s (1980) criteria specific to the development stage occur in the destination at this
stage, an important degree of compliance is observed. The criteria described by Butler
(1980) found in the tourism area are summarized in the following sub-sections.

5.1.2.1 National and Regional Involvement in the Planning and Provision

of Facilities

The national involvement in the tourism activity of the area occurred in the early life cycle
of the tourism destination, specifically in the involvement stage, with the provision of two
hotels in the 60s (Section 3.2.1). As predicted by Butler (1980), the planning of tourist
facilities construction by national and regional authorities occurred in this stage. In 1975,
the PAT (‘Plan d’Aménagement Touristique’ - Touristic Development Plan) was created.

32
In addition, heavy investments were made by the government between 1974 and 1979
according to Gabsi (1985) to upgrade the city’s infrastructure. A large proportion of these
investments were made by the Tunisian National Tourism Office (ONTT) as shown in the
following table:

Investor Investment (in millions of dinars) Percentage

Tunisian National Tourism
Office (ONTT) 2 436 37 %
National Sanitation Office
(ONAS) 2 230 34 %
Tunisian Company of
Electricity and Gas (STEG) 1 749 26.6 %

Ministry of Culture 80 1.2 %

The Municipality of
Hammamet 54 0.8 %

National College of
20 0.4 %
Archaeology

Total investment
6 569 100 %

Table 4: Infrastructure Investments in the City of Hammamet between 1974 and 1979 (Gabsi, 1985,
p.128)

5.1.2.2 Imported Labour and Auxiliary industries start to appear

With the development of tourism in Hammamet several businesses emerged in the city.
According to Gabsi (2001), the major activities driven by tourism include: Handcrafts,
transport (taxi drivers), catering services (restaurants), tourism services (tourism
agencies), financial services (Banks). Imported labour has been utilized since the 60s,
however, the number of immigrants grew rapidly with the increasing number of hotels. In
fact, the demographic growth rate of the city Hammamet, between 1966 and 1975, was
5.3 percent, while the national average was equal to 3 percent (Sethom and Kassab,
1981, p.371). In the 80s, 40 percent of the workers in Hammamet’s tourism sector come
from other Tunisian cities according to a study conducted by Gabsi (1985, p.130).

5.1.2.3 Changes in the Physical Appearance of the Area

With the growth of imported labour, Hammamet witnessed a rapid urbanisation of the
inner parts of the city, namely, Barraket Sahel and Bir Bouregba, according to Miossec

33
(2001) (Annex C). Moreover, Hellal (2015), highlights the fact that, the majority of tourist
facilities built in the original area of Hammamet are located on the coastline as shown in
figure 12, which considerably changed the physical aspect of the city and its littoral. He
stresses the fact that the PAT, elaborated in 1975, essentially focused on providing the
necessary space on the coastline for the construction of tourism facilities without
assessing their potential impacts on the city. The author also points out that the “Plan
d’Aménagement Urbain” - Urban Development Plan (PAU) of the city of Hammamet was
created after the PAT, in 1977, which led to an uncontrolled urbanization and anarchic
constructions.

5.1.2.4 Change of Visitors’ Type

Butler (1980, p.8) predicts that in the development stage, a change in the type of tourist
will occur “representing the mid-centrics of Plog's classification, or Cohen's
institutionalized tourist”. Identifying the psychological profile of tourists as described by
Plog (1974) is hardly feasible for this period. Cohen (1972) model of tourist types,
however proposes a simpler approach, in the scope of this study, he differentiates
between non-institutionalized and institutionalized tourists; the latter described by the
author as less adventurous individual or organized mass tourists, purchasing essentially
ready-made package tours and having little contact with local people and culture
(Woodside & Martin, 2008). This type of tourists characterises the majority of Tunisia’s
tourists according to Aisner and Plüss (1983), who report that, in 1976, 70 percent of the
French tourists as well as 90 percent of the German and UK visitors come to the country
on organized trips offered by European tour operators.

5.1.2.5 Decline of Local Tourism Control

Tour Operators (T.O) have a crucial role in the commercialization of the Tunisian touristic
offer, especially in Europe, which is since the 60s, one of the main touristic market not
only for the studied area but for most the tourism areas of the country (Sahli, 2013).
Since the success of the package tour, offered by the tour operators, in the 70s, most of
the investments made in the country were designated to offer accommodation units
marketable through this offer (Weigert, 2012, p.8). Local involvement progressively
declined with the growing control of tour operators. This trend is clearly visible in original
tourism area of Hammamet. According to Dribek (2012), in the late 90s, contracts of
different types between hotel owners and tour operators increased, mainly rent contracts
and management contracts. A rent contract allowed the T.O to operate the hotel on its
own, against a fixed or variable fee, while the management contract consisted of the
management of the tourist facility on behalf of the owner against a percentage on the net
profit generated (Dribek, 2012). The author reports that in 1999, 15 percent of the tourist

34
facilities located in Hammamet-Nabeul were rented and 31 percent were managed by
foreign tour operators (Annex D).

5.1.2.6 More Elaborated Facilities Replace Some Locally Provided

Accommodation

In addition to the decline in the local involvement and control of the tourism activity, Butler
(1980) predicts that, in the development stage, some locally provided accommodation
units will have disappeared, being replaced by larger and more up-to-date facilities
provided by external organizations. Based on the filed observation, it is found that most
of the early established tourist facilities, created between 1959 and 1970 represented in
figure 12 (p.21) are closed (e.g. the hotels: Miramar, El Bosten, Tanit, Aladin, Yasmina
and Parc Plage, Beau Rivage, Baie de Soleil). When exactly the tourist facilities closed
and whether their closure is due to the opening of new more elaborated facilities cannot
be affirmed. Nevertheless, according to Gabsi (2001, p.122), in the late 80s, many of the
established hotels in Hammamet were old and in need of renovation. The author reports
that the destination was at “a mature phase of its touristic development” and several
investments were made to develop more sophisticated and luxurious 4- and 5- star
hotels, in order to diversify Hammamet’s tourism product and meet higher quality
standards. The table below, which represents the evolution of the capacity in
Hammamet-Nabeul per category, demonstrates the rapid development of high standing
hotels from 1990 and 2002. It can also be observed that very few high standing hotels
were added from 2002 to 2012, and the total number of tourist facilities decreased from
137 to 113 tourist facility. This indicates that the original tourism area of Hammamet is
no longer in its development stage.

35
 H.V. Total
(Holiday
Year 5-star 4-star 3-star 2-star 1-star Village) Others Capacity

Bed Cap. 0 1 263 8 473 4 467 1 019 6 168 801 22 191

Hotel
1980 nbr. 0 3 21 11 7 10 10 62

Bed Cap. 1 043 2 628 16 365 7 466 667 3 722 314 32 205
Hotel
1990 nbr. 2 5 32 22 7 6 12 86

Bed Cap. 1 946 9 987 18 815 8 181 851 4 102 576 44 458
Hotel
2002 nbr. 5 22 44 31 4 6 25 137

Bed Cap. 2 826 13 244 14 235 6 484 1 461 2 136 1 089 41 475
Hotel
2012 nbr. 6 24 27 19 14 4 19 113

Bed Cap. 4 215 12 410 10 641 4 868 1 914 2 136 4 982 41 166
Hotel
2018 nbr. 8 21 20 17 14 4 40 124

Table 5: Evolution of Hotel Capacity Available per Category in Hammamet-Nabeul (ONTT)

5.1.3 The Consolidation Stage

According to Butler (1980, p.8), in the consolidation stage, the growth rate of the number
of tourists will decline and a major part of the area's economy will be tied to tourism.
Efforts to extend the tourism season and market reach will increase and major hotel
franchises will be established. However, the large number of tourists and tourist facilities
can be expected to trigger some opposition and discontent among permanent residents.

Multiple of the above-mentioned characteristics are visible in the original tourism area of
Hammamet from the late 80s, especially the increasing efforts to extend the tourism
season as the area’s economy becomes tied to the tourism activity (Gabsi, 2001; Hellal,
2015). In this period, the plan to develop a new touristic zone, Yasmine-Hammamet, was
created, in addition, two golf courses were created and more sophisticated tourist
facilities have been established.

Moreover, one key concept of the TALC model in order to identify the consolidation and
stagnation stage is the concept of carrying capacity (Butler, 2011). The author suggests
that at the consolidation stage, “critical range of elements of capacity will be exceeded”
(Figure 1, p.5) and states that “the rate of increase in visitor numbers will decline as
levels of carrying capacity are reached. These may be identified in terms of
36
environmental factors (e.g. land scarcity, water quality, air quality), of physical plant (e.g.
transportation, accommodation, other services), or of social factors (e.g. crowding,
resentment by the local population)” (Butler, 1980, p.6).

The World Tourism Organization (UNWTO) defines the tourism carrying capacity of a
destination as “the maximum number of people that may visit a tourist destination at the
same time, without causing destruction of the physical, economic, and sociocultural
environment and an unacceptable decrease in the quality of visitors’ satisfaction”
(UNWTO et al., 2018, p.5). Although, this number of visitors cannot be determined, local
discontent and concern of civil society in the destination started in the beginning of the
90s with the announcement of the Yasmine-Hammamet project (Hellal, 2015). In 1991,
the ATPNE (Association Tunisienne de Protection de la Nature et de l’Environment –
Tunisian Association for the Protection of Nature and the Environment) of Hammamet,
organises a seminar about tourism impact on the environment in the city of Hammamet
(Annex E.1). The seminar pointed out several negative spatial and environmental
impacts of the seaside tourism and the potential impacts of the new tourist zone
Yasmine-Hammamet, which construction started on that year. The topics covered during
the seminar include: the impact of tourism on Hammamet’s littoral and natural spaces,
anarchic construction and uncontrolled urbanization in Hammamet and on the periphery
of the new tourism zone Yasmine-Hammamet, and impacts of the tourism industry on
the agricultural sector in the Cap Bon. According to Hellal (2015), multiple seminars and
newspapers articles followed and even a petition was signed to demonstrate against the
privatisation of public beaches in 1994 (Annex E). The growing concern of the local
population might indicate that the said carrying capacity has been reached.

5.1.4 The Stagnation Stage

Butler (1980, p.8-9) suggests that a tourism area enters the stagnation stage after the
peak number of visitors has been attained. Environmental, social and economic
problems will arise as the carrying capacity has been reached or exceeded and the
destination will be no longer be in fashion. There will be a heavy reliance on repeat
visitation and surplus bed capacity will be available. Intensive efforts will be needed to
maintain level of visitation. New development will be peripheral to the original tourist area
and existing properties are likely to experience frequent change of ownership. Moreover,
the type of visitors can be expected to change to Cohen (1972) mass organized tourists.

Multiple characteristics of the stagnation stage, identified by the author, are found in the
original tourist area of Hammamet, such as the intensification of environmental and
social problems already observed in the previous stages, the decreasing profitability and
the peripheral development of the tourism activity.
37
 5.1.4.1 Environmental Issues

One of the major environmental issues faced by the original tourism area of Hammamet
is coastal erosion. A recent study (Amrouni et al., 2019) conducted on the phenomenon
concluded that from 1887 to 2018, shoreline retreat rates were severe and abnormal
compared to the average (Annex F) and were primarily caused by anthropogenic drivers,
namely, the rapid urban growth that the city faced. Several hotels built on the coastline
are directly affected by coastal erosion as the beach, one of the major assets of most
hotels in Hammamet, shrank, and sometimes parts of the tourist facilities were even
destroyed by waves (Boukraa, 2008).

In addition to coastal erosion, the city of Hammamet undergoes a series of other

environmental issues directly linked to the tourism industry according to Travel
Foundation (2012), which include:

• High natural resources consumption: especially in terms of water which is

considered as scarce resource in Tunisia and is vital for the agricultural sector in
the Cap Bon (Gafsi and Ben Haj, 2010).
• Waste management: recycling facilities are ineffective, particularly those dealing
with harmful waste which is negatively impacting visitors experience (Travel
Foundation, 2012).

5.1.4.2 Social Issues

According to the report of Travel Foundation (2012), a large proportion of the hotels
situated in Hammamet are located in designated tourist-zones, managed by
international-owned companies and a vast number of these hotels are all-inclusive
hotels, which considerably reduces the interaction of tourists with local people and local
businesses, isolating the tourism industry from the local community. stakeholders of
Hammamet’s tourism industry suggest, that there is a “growing resentment toward
tourists who it is felt do not have respect for the local culture and customs, and tourists
increasingly report feeling hassled by local business owners” (Travel Foundation, 2012,
p.4 and 5).

5.1.4.3 Economic Issues

The difference between the total available capacity and total exploited capacity grew
continuously between 2005 and 2015 (Figure 16), which indicates that several tourist
facilities were closed. In fact, some hotels and tourist attractions including hotels,
restaurants and bars are closed or even abandoned in the original area of Hammamet
(Annex G). Surplus bed capacity increased as shown by the decreasing rate of
occupancy (Figure 17). This might indicate that the profitability of the tourism activity
38
declined. Moreover, a large proportion of Hammamet’s population are working in the
tourism industry, an industry characterized by high seasonality (Annex J) which led to
employment instability and tourism professionals changing professions or migrating
abroad to ensure year-round employment (Travel Foundation, 2012).

70,0

60,0

50,0

40,0

30,0

20,0

10,0

0,0

Figure 17: Evolution of the Occupancy Rate in Hammamet-Nabeul (1975-2018) (ONTT)

5.1.4.2 Organized Mass Tourists

As mentioned previously (Section 5.1.2.4, p.34), a change in visitors type to the

institutionalized organized tourist is already observed in the development stage of the
studied area, a phenomenon intensified in the different coastal tourism areas of the
country with the development of package tours (Weigert, 2012). According to Poirier and
Wright (1993, p.154), 80 percent of Tunisia’s visitors were organized tourists in the late
80s. Promoting the country as sun, sea and sand destination and considerably
increasing the total capacity available for tourists, favourited the domination of mass
tourism and the creation of tourism enclaves in Tunisia’s coastal tourism areas such as
Hammamet and Sousse (Jeffery & Bleasdale, 2017).

5.1.5 The Decline/Rejuvenation Stage

According to Butler (1980, p.9), in the decline stage, “the area will no longer appeal to
vacationers and will be increasingly used for weekend or day trips, property turnover will
be high and tourist facilities are often replaced by non-tourist activities, the destination
will be no longer able to compete with the competition, the viability of other tourist
39
facilities will become questionable, thus, local involvement is likely to increase as local
residents purchase facilities and significantly lower prices”.

A few signs of the decline stage are observed in the original tourism area of Hammamet,
namely, the closure and reconversion of few tourist facilities and the increasing use of
the area as weekend destination by locals (Table 5). As visible in the figure below, the
number of resident arrivals in hotels has been continuously increasing since 2009, while
the number of non-resident arrivals dropped in 2011. For the years 2015, 2016 and 2017,
the number of domestic tourists in hotels were superior to the number of international
tourists. To adapt to this change, a decree was issued by the Tunisian government in
2016, allowing hotels to convert a maximum of 30 percent of their total capacity for the
establishment of residential units which can be sold (Official Journal of the Tunisian
Republic, 2016).

1 000 000
900 000
800 000
700 000
600 000
500 000
400 000
300 000
200 000
100 000
0
1996
1992
1993
1994
1995

1997
1998
1999
2000
2001
2002
2003
2004
2005
2006
2007
2008
2009
2010
2011
2012
2013
2014
2015
2016
2017
2018
Non-Resident Resident

Figure 18: Evolution of Resident and Non-Resident Arrivals in Hotels in Hammamet-Nabeul

(ONTT)

The TALC model suggests that, in the decline stage, the number of visitors will fall as
the area is no longer attractive, because of the overuse and the negative impacts of
visitor, however, in the case of the destination Hammamet and its original tourism area,
this is not the main reason for the decline of the number of visitors, which is essentially
due to external factors specific to the country, namely, the Tunisian revolution in 2011
and the terrorist attacks in 2015. Such events significantly impacted the image of the
country in terms of safety and security and led to the fall of the number of European
visitors nationally (Section 2.3, p.13). Consequently, hotel prices decreased and it
became more attractive for Tunisian tourists to stay in hotels. The TALC model does not

40
consider socio-political events and terrorism impacts on the number of visitors; thus, it
cannot be concluded that the tourism area is in the decline stage.

Moreover, according to the model, in the decline stage, a tourism area will no longer
appeal to vacationers. This is not the case for the studied area, although the traditional
European market and especially the number of French, German, Italians visitors
importantly decreased when comparing the number of visitors in 2010 and 2018, the
number of Russian and Algerian visitors considerably developed as highlighted in table
5. This trend, observed not only in the original tourism area of Hammamet but on a
national level (Annex H), could be interpreted as the entering into the “re-orientation”
stage proposed by Agarwal (1994) (Section 2.2.2). The author suggests adding an
additional stage, the ‘re-orientation stage’ (Figure 5), to represent the restructuring efforts
made before the decline stage (Butler, 2011). She argues that total decline is unlikely to
occur as stakeholders will put tremendous efforts to maintain the tourism activity, these
efforts in her opinion, are generally constant and gradual, therefore, the necessity of this
stage to be added (Sanz-Ibáñez, 2017).

41
 Average
Stay in
Nationality 2000 2005 2010 2015 2018 Hotels
in 2018
French 292 201 247 247 245 629 33 829 67 774 5.9

German 217 775 116 483 98 831 44 428 50 845 8.7

English 96 706 73 827 63 569 42 994 68 908 6.5

Italian 71 440 74 827 53 249 5 251 9 306 3.6

Russian 4 625 19 996 43 185 17 561 125 376 7.9

Others 206 767 176 487 167 114 22 795 50 646 -

Total Europeans
Arrivals 889 514 708 867 671 577 166 858 372 855 7.1
Algerian 15 619 25 868 41 784 47 227 104 425 3.5

Libyan 1 865 2 661 6 126 8 400 5 836 2.3

Moroccan 1 172 787 596 570 1 197 2.7

Total Maghrebi
Arrivals 18 647 29 316 48 506 56 330 111 555 3.2
Others (Non-
Resident) 25 956 20 593 26 740 22 693 27 813 -
Total Non-Resident
Arrivals 934 117 758 776 746 823 245 881 512 223 -
Total Resident
Arrivals 192 091 182 022 228 856 340 623 385 303 2.3

Table 6: Arrivals per Nationality in Hotels in Hammamet-Nabeul (ONTT)

5.1.6 Summary of the TALC Model Application to the Original

Tourism Area of Hammamet

The original tourism area of Hammamet demonstrates a certain degree of compliance

with the TALC model through its different stages from the beginning of the tourism
industry in 1960 to the year 2010. It is found, based on the model, that the original tourism
area of Hammamet is in the stagnation stage from the early years of 21th century. This
stagnation is particularly observed in the traditional European market (French, German,
English and Italian, which number of arrivals has been decreasing since the year 2000.
From 2011 to 2018, several decline signs described by the model are observed,
42
however, they are essentially due to non-tourism related events (Tunisian revolution and
terrorist attacks) which are not taken into account by the model. Thus, based on the
latter, the current status of the tourism area cannot be determined. Nevertheless, the
dominance of relatively new markets observed in 2018, namely the Russian and Algerian
market, suggests an adaptation or a change in the national tourism strategy. This might
indicate signs of the re-orientation stage proposed by Agarwal (1994).

A summary of the TALC model application on the original tourism area of Hammamet is
represented in the following graph (Figure 19). The next section will present the results
of the analysis of the tourism area Yasmine-Hammamet based on the TALC model.

43
Figure 19: Summary of Results: Application of the TALC Model to the Original Tourism Area of
Hammamet

44
 5.2 The Tourism Area Yasmine-Hammamet

The tourism area Yasmine-Hammamet was planned as an instant resort on a salty land
unexploitable for agriculture with the goal to increase and upgrade the capacity available
for tourists, diversify the tourism offer of the destination Hammamet and relieve some of
the urban and environmental pressure from the original tourist area of Hammamet
(Section 3.2.3). An instant resort is described by Hernandez et al. (1996) as a self-
contained resort, often located outside urban areas developed specifically for tourists,
where the tourism industry would emerge fully grown instead of gradually developing.
Butler (1980, p.10) admits that not all tourist areas will experience the stages of his model
and gives as example the instant resort Cancun in Mexico. He states that for this type of
tourism areas, the exploration and involvement stage are of minimal significance if
present at all, the development stage becomes then the real commencement of the
tourism area life cycle.

It can be seen in the figure below that from the first year of the official opening of the
resort in 2002, more than 200,000 non-resident tourists visited the area, a number which
more than doubled in 2007, which could indicate that the tourism area is in its
development stage.

450 000

400 000

350 000

300 000

250 000

200 000

150 000

100 000

50 000

Figure 20: Evolution of Non-Resident Arrivals in Hotels in Yasmine-Hammamet (2002-2018) (ONTT)

45
 5.2.1 The Development and Consolidation Stages

The resort Yasmine-Hammamet which is described previously as an instant resort due

to the fact that the majority of the tourist facilities and attractions such as the marina were
designed and planned prior to its opening. However, the “Yasmine complex” one of the
major attractions of the tourism area consisting of an artificial, man-made Medina and
the theme-park “Carthage Land” (Annex I), opened in 2004 (Hellal, 2015), which can be
interpreted as a development sign based on the TALC model (Section 5.1.3). Shortly
after, in 2005 the growth rate of the number of visitors decreased which could indicate
that the tourism area enters the consolidation stage of the TALC model. However, as the
number of the total available capacity further increased in 2006 and 2007 (Figure 21), it
might be that the development and consolidation stages overlap during this period.

25 000

20 000

15 000

10 000

5 000

0
2002

2003

2004

2005

2006

2007

2008

2009

2010

2011

2012

2013

2014

2015

2016

2017

2018
Cap. Available Cap. Operational

Figure 21: Evolution of the Available and Operational Capacity in the Tourism Area Yasmine-
Hammamet (ONTT)

Moreover, Hellal (2015) states that important national advertisement efforts were made
by the government upon the opening of the new touristic station to attract upper- and
middle-class Tunisian tourists. In fact, as mentioned in Section 3.2.3, one of the
objectives of the resort was to decrease the seasonality of the overall destination
Hammamet and meet the needs of a more heterogenous demand including national
tourists. It can be observed from figure 22, that the number of resident arrivals represent
an important proportion of the total arrivals since the opening of Yasmine-Hammamet.

46
 500 000
450 000
400 000
350 000
300 000
250 000
200 000
150 000
100 000
50 000
0

Non-Resident Arrivals Resident Arrivals

Figure 22: Evolution of Non-Resident and Resident Arrivals in Hotels In Yasmine-Hammamet

(2002-2018) (ONTT)

The strategy of the resort Yasmine-Hammamet to attract a high expenditure clientele is

clearly visible when looking at the category of the tourist facilities established. As shown
in the table below, the majority of tourist facilities, in 2002, consist of 4- and 5- star hotels.
The number of total tourist capacity increased from 2002 to 2012, and many 3-star hotels
were added. However, from 2012 to 2018, the number of tourist facilities remain
unchanged. Parallelly, the number of non-resident arrivals decreased which indicate that
the area is no longer in the development or consolidation stage.

Total
Year Variable 5-star 4-star 3-star 2-star 1-star Others Capacity

Bed Cap. 4 963 6 464 730 0 0 0 12 157

2002 Hotel nbr. 10 19 2 0 0 0 31

Bed Cap. 5 324 8 082 3 564 60 0 1 832 18 862

2012 Hotel nbr. 10 17 10 2 0 5 44

Bed Cap. 5 324 7 780 3 598 60 0 2 840 19 602

2018 Hotel nbr. 10 16 9 1 0 8 44

Table 7: Evolution of the Tourist Capacity per Category in Yasmine-Hammamet (2002-2018)

(ONTT)

47
 5.2.2 The Stagnation Stage

The Marina built in the resort provoked the accumulation of seaweed on the beach of
Yasmine-Hammamet, which alarmed both hotel owners and locals (Annex E.5; Hellal,
2015). According to the same author, locals, who initially were sceptical about the new
resort creation, manifested their concern about the environmental and social impacts of
the new touristic station and several journal articles were published. Moreover, the
number of non-resident arrivals slightly decreased from 2008 to 2010 (Figure 22).
Parallelly, surplus bed capacity increased as shown by the figure below. According to
Butler (1980), these are signs of the stagnation stage described by the TALC model.

70,0

60,0

50,0

40,0

30,0

20,0

10,0

0,0
2002

2003

2004

2005

2006

2007

2008

2009

2010

2011

2012

2013

2014

2015

2016

2017

2018
Figure 23: Evolution of the Occupancy Rate in Yasmine-Hammamet (ONTT)

5.2.3 The Decline/Rejuvenation Stage

In 2015, as for the original tourism area, the number of European arrivals fell sharply and
the number of Tunisian and Algerian visitors rapidly increased (Table 8). The increasing
number of short stay visitors and declining number of vacationers is considered as a sign
of the decline stage based on the TALC model. As for the original tourism area this is
essentially attributable to the events of 2011 and 2015 which significantly impacted the
image of the destination and country as a whole and led to the decrease of the number
of European visitors, which, similarly to the original tourism area, resulted in an important
decline of the profitability of the tourism industry. Thus, given the rather short life cycle
of the tourism area and the heavy influence of unpredictable events not considered by
the TALC model, it cannot be concluded that the tourism area Yasmine-Hammamet is in
decline based on the model.

48
 Average
2005 2010 2015 2018 Stay in
Hotels in
2018
French 66 995 72 345 17 347 49 451 5.9
German 41 878 30 949 20 584 22 326 8.7
English 18 046 37 280 28 330 10 195 6.5
Italian 39 636 20 349 4 214 5 957 3.6
Russian 14 073 15 386 4 914 32 998 7.9
Others 154 600 124 590 20 643 26 627 -
Total Europeans Arrivals 335 228 300 899 96 032 147 554 7.1
Algerian 16 701 37 320 84 447 139 712 3.5
Libyan 1 960 4 395 12 848 10 051 2.3
Moroccan 727 861 640 1 119 2.7
Total Maghrebi Arrivals 19 388 42 576 97 935 150 882 3.2
Others (Non-Resident) 22 674 40 523 23 672 36 259 -
Total Non-Resident 377 290 383 998 217 639 334 695 -
Arrivals
Total Resident Arrivals 125 104 192 456 362 744 450 931 2.3

Table 8: Arrivals per Nationality in Hotels in Yasmine-Hammamet (ONTT)

Nevertheless, it must be mentioned that, according to Hellal (2015), the station Yasmine-
Hammamet failed to attain its initial objectives (attracting high spending clientele and
decrease the seasonality of the tourism activity), although more recent and luxurious, the
hotels situated in the resort charged lower prices than the ones situated in the original
tourism area. The author states that, even though the station provided modern attractions
(Marina, Medina, theme park and casinos) it did not attract an international clientele and
becomes the first touristic station in the country specialized in domestic tourism. As
displayed in the figure below, domestic tourists constitute the large majority of arrivals in
hotels, representing more than the triple of European visitors. The tourism station is
essentially used as a weekend or short-trip destination (Table 8).

49
 500 000
450 000
400 000
350 000
300 000
250 000
200 000
150 000
100 000
50 000
0
2005 2010 2015 2018

Total Europeans Arrivals Total Maghrebi Arrivals Total Resident Arrivals

Figure 24: Evolution of the Arrivals of European, Maghrebi and Resident Tourists in Hotels in
Yasmine-Hammamet (ONTT)

5.3 Summary of Results

The destination Hammamet, is composed of two physically and administratively different

tourism areas, the original tourism area of Hammamet and the resort Yasmine-
Hammamet, and each has its own tourism life cycle. The destination tests positive, in
both areas, for certain decline stage criteria, such as the declining profitability of the
tourism industry demonstrated by the closure or reconversion of some tourist facilities
and attractions and the decreasing number of vacationers coupled with the increasing
number of short stay visitors. The latter is more visible in the relatively new tourism area
Yasmine-Hammamet, which is essentially used by short stay domestic tourists
representing around 60 percent of arrivals in hotels, while European tourists only
represent 20 percent of the arrivals. The original tourism area of Hammamet has also
witnessed an important increase in the number of domestic tourists, representing around
45 percent of arrivals in hotels, however the number of European tourists has been
recovering and represent 42 percent of the total arrivals in hotels (Table 6 and 8). Thus,
based on the TALC model, it appears that the situation of Yasmine-Hammamet is more
alarming and its attractivity among the European market heavily decreased.

Nevertheless, external factors specific to the country have greatly affected the number
of visitors in the destination which are not taken into consideration by the model. Thus,
it cannot be concluded that the destination is in decline based on the TALC model as the
latter does not take into consideration endogenous and exogenous factors. According to
Souissi (2016), among the external factors that influenced the crisis of the tourism activity
50
on a national level and limited the number of international arrivals, in addition to the
safety concerns of tourists, the aerial restriction policies and the absence of low-cost
companies. This observation could not be highlighted during the application of the TALC
model. Several other limitations to the model are spotted, in addition to the lack of
consideration of external factors, the model does not take into account the seasonality
of the tourism activity (Annex J) and the heterogeneity of the tourism market, as pointed
out by Haywood (1986).

However, from the beginning of the tourism industry in the 60s to 2010, the model is
found to be highly applicable to the tourism destination and particularly to the original
tourism where a high degree of compliance with Butler’s TALC evolutionary stages is
observed. On the other hand, the model is found less applicable to the tourism resort
Yasmine-Hammamet. Nonetheless, both areas present signs of the stagnation stage
described by the model, such as, the increasing surplus bed capacity as well as the
environmental, social and economic negative issues. This supports the arguments of
Weigert (2012), Dribek (2012), Sahli (2013), the World Bank (2015) and Souissi (2016)
which state that the Tunisian tourism sector has been in crisis prior to the events of 2011
due to structural flaws (Section 2.3).

The results of the interviews conducted with hoteliers in the destination Hammamet
confirm this statement. The respondents agree that the tourism sector, not only in
Hammamet but on a national level, is in crisis which essentially due to lack of vision and
strategical planning. Respondents (1;3;4;6 and 7) explain that the situation must be
analysed from a broader perspective, they affirm that international tourism trends
changed and that coastal tourism marketed via tour operators is out-dated. They claim
that with the technological progress and democratization of low-cost flights, tourists
become more independent and package tours are no longer attractive. Respondents 1
and 4 state that Tunisia, unlike its competitors (Morocco, Egypt and Turkey), did not
adapt its offer to this rising trend as demonstrated by its aerial restriction policies and
lack of innovation in its tourism product.

According to Respondents (2;3;5 and 8), the strategy of the tourism authorities, since
the 90s, focused essentially on providing accommodation for tourists and neglected the
travel experience of the tourist, the image of the overall destination and the specificities
of each region, providing essentially a standardized affordable offer which is easily
substitutable. Respondents (2;3;4 and 7) point out that, although the initial idea and
objectives of the project Yasmine-Hammamet were relevant at the time, between the
planification in 1989 and the opening of the station in 2002, the demand for package
tours in the destination Hammamet did not increase. The respondents (3;4 and 6) used
51
the term vicious circle to describe the evolution of the tourism activity in the destination
Hammamet since the establishment of Yasmine-Hammamet in 2002. They argue that
the addition of unnecessary capacity by the tourism area Yasmine-Hammamet
considerably raised the level of completion and price pressures from tour operators,
which led to the deterioration of quality of services, consequently, customer satisfaction
dropped and the overall image of the destination declined especially among the French,
German and Italian clientele.

From 2016 to 2018, the number of tourists rapidly increased in both tourism areas which
indicates that the destination is recovering from the negative impacts of the events of
2015. It could be that the destination is in a restructuring phase or the re-orientation stage
described by Agarwal (1994). The development of relatively new markets such as the
Russian and Algerian supports this idea. According to the majority of respondents the
growing number of Algerians and Russians tourists saved many tourist facilities from
going bankrupt.

The totality of respondents agrees that the tourism activity in the destination Hammamet
is slowly recovering, however, they stress the urgent need for complementary actions,
which will be discussed in the next section.

5.4 Future Development of the Destination Hammamet

This section will highlight the major challenges that must be addressed to ensure the
development of the tourism destination Hammamet, based on the interviews conducted
and the report of Fosse and Le Tellier (2017), discussing sustainable tourism in the
Mediterranean region.

5.4.1 Economic Development

According to Fosse and Le Tellier (2017, p.31) the 3S model, which is characterized by
low margins, high volume and poor quality of services, is still widely used in the
Mediterranean tourism industry. The authors state that the increasing competition and
the security turbulence in some regions made this product (3S) unattractive. They state
that tourism “need to become more diverse, innovative, individualized, and quality
based”. In this context, the totality of respondents underlines the importance of the quality
of service and customer satisfaction. Respondents (1 and 4) claim that efforts in this
sense are increasing and that the FTH (Tunisian Federation of Hoteliers) is currently
working with the ONTT to update the hotel classification methods and conditions.
Respondents (4 and 6) state that hoteliers must not knuckle under price pressures from
52
Tour Operators and adopt a pricing strategy that will allow proper maintenance and
renovation.

Product diversification has been mentioned in previous studies as a strategy to adopt for
the Tunisian tourism (Roland Berger, 2010; TMESD, 2016), however, respondents (3;5
and 6) argue that the few previously made diversification efforts such as golf tourism,
failed, essentially due to the lack of strategic planification to meet the specific demands
of golf tourists. The respondents affirm that in the short-term, given the actual context of
the destination, tourism actors must focus on the existing product by consolidating the
Russian and Algerian markets and developing emerging markets in Eastern European
and Asian countries. Nevertheless, the majority of the respondents affirms that many
opportunities exist and several niche markets can be developed, such as wellness
tourism, gastronomic tourism, agricultural tourism. Respondents (5 and 6) state that the
MICE (Meetings, Incentives, Conferences and Events) sector is growing among the
domestic market, however, not among the international market. The totality of
respondents insists that the current settings of the Tunisian tourism industry, specifically,
the aerial transport restriction, the lack of digitalization and innovation in the
commercialization practices and the actual governance, are greatly limiting the existing
opportunities and need to be addressed.

5.4.2 Marketing and Information

Another issue highlighted by respondents (1;2;4 and 5) is the lack of access to

information for tourists in terms of transport, cultural attractions, events and activities.
Respondent (4) stresses the urgent need for the digitalization of the information and
services relative to the tourism sector and points out that almost only accommodation
and aerial transportation can be booked online. The need for the digitalization of tourism
services has been already pointed out by the study carried out by the consultancy group
Roland Berger in 2010 (Roland Berger, 2010), however, according to respondent (4),
the problem is still actual.

Respondents (1;2;5 and 7) state that the destination Hammamet is crucially missing
para-touristic activities (events, festivals, etc.) and that the cultural sites available are not
valorised. Hammamet dispose of two major cultural attraction: the fort and the
archaeological site Pupput, the latter record extremely low number of visitors (Annex K).
Moreover, several annual festivals and events exist such as the festival of citrus, festival
of flowers, festival of traditional clothing, respondent (2) states that the destination
Hammamet needs more frequent cultural events to animate the city.

53
 5.4.3 Shared Governance

Fosse and Le Tellier (2017) call out for a shared governance by creating collaborative
partnerships and multi-stakeholder partnerships to foster the dialogue between different
stakeholders (public, private, local and national), and for the decentralizing of decision-
making process to ensure a sustainable tourism activity. The need for a shared
governance has been already highlighted, in the specific case of Hammamet, by Miossec
(2001) and Hellal (2015), who noted the lack of collaboration between local and national
actors. Nevertheless, the law issued in 2016, “Loi organique n° 2018-29 du 9 mai 2018,
relative au code des collectivités locales” – Organic Law n° 2018-29 of the 9th of May
2018, relative to the code of local collectivities, strengthen municipalities’ role in the
decision-making process (MLAE, 2018). Moreover, the recent sustainability tourism
chart signed by the Tunisian Minister of Tourism and Handcrafts, the municipality of
Hammamet as well as other actors in collaboration with the government of the United
Kingdom (GOV.UK, 2019), demonstrates that the different stakeholders of the tourism
activity are aware that formal collaboration frameworks are essential. The chart includes
the following objectives: reduce single use plastic in hotels, enhance responsible waste
disposal and recycling, and to promote local involvement in the tourism industry. The city
of Hammamet, with its two tourism areas, has been chosen as a pilot destination before
expanding the project nationally (GOV.UK, 2019).

However, based on the interviews conducted and field observation it appears that, in
practice, there is little collaboration and even certain frictions between the municipality
of Hammamet and the hoteliers (Annex L). According to Fosse and Le Tellier (2017),
environmental and social challenges cannot be addressed without the collaboration of
the totality of stakeholders, hence the necessity of promoting shared governance in the
destination.

54
 5.4.4 Summary of Recommendations

The following table provides a summary of the previously discussed recommendations

formulated by the respondents and based on the work of Fosse and Le Tellier (2017).

Short-Term Objectives: Recovering and restructuring

Objectives Actions
Ensure quality of services and update hotel classification
schemes

Consolidate the current offer Consolidate the Algerian and Russian markets and develop
emerging markets (Eastern European and Asian) by participating
in relevant fairs and establishing partnerships
Promote the creation of local multi-stakeholder partnerships and

Promote shared governance enhance transparent dialogue between the different actors in
order to identify adequate solution for rising environmental and
social issues
Long-Term Objectives: Adapt to individual tourists and reinvent the image of
the destination Hammamet
Facilitate access to
information and services Digitalize tourism services and relevant information

Quality of services Create quality labels and develop quality control

Diversify and innovate the Valorise cultural sites and the specifies of Hammamet, create

tourism offer more frequent social and cultural events and develop niche
markets
Transportation Address aerial transportation issues

Table 9: Strategic Objectives and Actions for Further Development of the Tourism Activity in the
Destination Hammamet

6. General Conclusion

This research has been concerned with the determination of the development stage of
the tourism destination Hammamet and to identify if the latter was in decline. The study
had for intention to answer the following questions:

• Is the tourism destination Hammamet in decline?

• In which development stage can Hammamet be categorized according to the
TALC model?
• What are the main issues and challenges faced by the destination?
55
 • Which recommendations could be proposed to ensure a sustainable tourism
development and avoid the decline of the tourism destination?

The conclusions reached concerning the above objectives will be considered in the
following sub-sections.

6.1 The Stage of Development of the Destination Hammamet

Butler’s (1980) TALC model has been a useful tool in interpreting the situation of the
tourism destination Hammamet. The latter is found, based on the model, on the
stagnation stage from the beginning of the century to 2010. Although, Yasmine-
Hammamet was designed to strengthen the image of the destination, it failed to meet its
initial objectives. Several decline stage characteristics are observed in the destination
Hammamet and its two tourism areas, namely, the closure and reconversion of some
tourist facilities, decreasing number of vacationers and an increase in the use of the
tourism area as a short trip destination. However, external factors, namely, the Jasmine
revolution in 2011 and the terrorist attacks in 2015, considerably impacted the number
of tourists. Thus, given the fact that the model does not take into account external factors,
it cannot be concluded that the destination is in the decline stage based on the TALC
model.

Moreover, from 2016 to 2018, the number of international tourists rapidly increased, in
both tourism areas, which indicates that the destination is recovering from the events of
2015. Furthermore, based on the field study and interviews conducted, some efforts are
observed from hoteliers to change and adapt to the current situation. Thus, it is
concluded that the destination Hammamet is in a post-stagnation, restructuring phase,
or the re-orientation stage described by Agarwal (1994), as gradual efforts are
undertaken to avoid decline.

6.2 Current Challenges and Recommendations

The hoteliers interviewed confirmed that the tourism destination is slowly recovering and
have shared their concerns about the current challenges faced by Hammamet. The
respondent affirm that the Tunisian tourism model is out of steam and that package tours
and all-inclusive hotels are not as attractive as they used to be. Nevertheless, for the
short-term, based on the recommendation formulated by the respondents, it is advised
to consolidate the current offer and the growing Algerian and Russian markets.

56
Moreover, shared governance is to be promoted in order to identify adequate solution
for rising environmental and social issues.

For the long-term, several objectives are identified to adapt to international tourism
trends and reinvent the image of the destination Hammamet. The actions recommended
to attain this objective include: the digitalization of tourism relevant information and
services, the creation of quality labels and quality control mechanisms, the valorisation
of cultural heritage and the creation of events.

The main purpose of this thesis is not to establish a plan to improve the image or the
attractivity of the tourism destination Hammamet, however, it would be interesting that
further research use the analysis and findings of this study to come up with a viable
tourism strategies to ensure the future development of the destination.

57
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8. Annexes

Annex A: Product Life Cycle

Annex A: Product-Lifecycle (Tekic et al., 2013)

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Annex B: Interview Guide

Interview Guide
Introduction

• Clarification (study and its purpose)

• Explain the purpose of conducting interviews and the intended use of information
• Ensure respondent with anonymity and confidentiality
• Provide the interviewee with a general structure of the interview

Background of Respondent

• Profession, experience etc.

Interview Questions

• How would you assess the current situation of the tourism destination
Hammamet? (crisis, decline, restructuring, recovering) and why?
• What are the factors that have led to the current situation (socio-political factors
or structural flaws)?
• How would you consider the tourism Area Yasmine-Hammamet: complementary
or competitor, integrated or separate, to the original tourism area? And Why?
• In the last years the number of Tunisian, Algerian and Russian arrivals in hotels
importantly increased, how do you see this change? (negative, positive) And
why?
• What are the current challenges that the destination is facing?
• Are there any efforts or initiatives undertaken to cope with environmental impacts
(coastal erosion, waste management)?
• What recommendations/leads would you suggest to ensure the sustainability of
the tourism industry in Hammamet?

Do you want to add something that you consider important?

Annex B: Interview Guide

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Annex C: Urbanisation of Hammamet

Annex C.1: Urbanisation of Hammamet in the inner parts of Hammamet (Barraket-El-Sahel and
Bir-Bouragba) (Miossec, 2001)

67
Annex C.2: Development of Urban Space and Changes in land use in Hammamet (Amrouni et
al., 2019)

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Annex D: Contracts Between Tour Operators and Hoteliers in Tunisia

Annex D: Contract Types between Hotels and Tour Operators in Tunisia (Dribek, 2012, p.102)

69
Annex E: Documents Highlighting Local Discontent and Concern About the
Tourism Activity in Hammamet

Annex E.1: Seminar about Tourism and Environment Organized in 1991 in Hammamet
(Document obtained from a local environmental association: Association d’Education Relative à
l’Environnement (AERE) Hammamet, 2020)
70
Annex E.2: Seminar about Tourism and Environment Organized in 1992 by Local Associations
in Hammamet with the Presence of the Tunisian Minister of Tourism and Handcrafts (Hellal,
2015, p.401)

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 Annex E.3: Petition Against the Privatization of Public Beaches (Hellal, 2015, p.402)

Annex E.4: Journal Article, issued in 1993, about the Potential Negative Impacts of the New
Tourism Station Yasmine- Hammamet, Author of the Article: Olfa Belhassine (Document
obtained from AERE Hammamet, 2020)

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 Annex E.5: Journal Article about Seaweed Accumulation on the Beaches of Yasmine-
Hammamet, Author: Walid Khefifi, Le Quotidien (newspaper), 2006 (Document obtained from
AERE Hammamet, 2020)

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Annex F: Coastal Erosion in the Tourism Destination Hammamet

Annex F.1: Comparative Photographs Showing the Severe Coastal Erosion of the Gulf of
Hammamet (Amrouni et al., 2019, p.89)

74
Annex F.2: Shoreline Evolution of the Beaches of The Gulf of Hammamet (Amrouni et al., 2019,
p.81)

75
Annex G: Tourist Facilities and Attractions Closures Observed in the Original
Tourism Area of Hammamet (Photographs)

Annex G.1: Hotel Tanit Established by the SHTT in 1964 (Photograph taken on the 20th of
February 2020 in Hammamet)

Annex G.2: Closed Hotel: Hotel Bennila (Photograph taken on the 20th of February 2020 in
Hammamet)
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Annex G.3: Hotel du Golfe Used as Parking Space (Photograph taken on the 20th of February
2020 in Hammamet)

Annex G.4: Closed Bar in a Touristic Area of Hammamet (Photograph taken on the 20th of
February 2020 in Hammamet)

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Annex G.5: Closed Business (Photograph taken on the 20th of February 2020 in Hammamet)

78
Annex H: Share of the Main Nationalities in the Overnight Stays of Non-
Residents in Tunisia (2015-2017) & Growth of the Russian (Russes)Share

2015

2016

2017

Annex H: Share of the Main Nationalities in the Overnight Stays of Non-Residents in Tunisia
(2015-2017) (ONTT, 2017, p.44)

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Annex I: Complex “Yasmine” (Artificial Medina and Theme Park Carthage Land)
in Yasmine-Hammamet

Annex I: Plan of the Complex “Yasmine” (Medina and Theme Park) in the Tourism Area
Yasmine-Hammamet (Hellal, 2015, p.216)

Annex J: Seasonality of the Tourism Activity in Hammamet

1 000 000
900 000
800 000
700 000
600 000
500 000
400 000
300 000
200 000
100 000
0

Hammamet-Nabeul Yasmine Hammamet

Annex J: Overnight Stays in Hotels per Month in Hammamet-Nabeul and Yasmine-Hammamet

in 2018 (ONTT)

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Annex K: Number of visitors in the Archeologic Site Pupput and the Fort of
Hammamet

Cultural Site 2015 2016 2017 2018

The Archeologic Site

Pupput 296 156 377 810

The Fort of Hammamet 5 667 4 403 7 729 13 040

Annex K: Number of visitors in the Archeologic Site Pupput and the Fort of Hammamet (2015-
2018) (ONTT, 2016 and 2018)

81
Annex L: Tunisian Federation of Hoteliers (FTH): Press Release

COMMUNIQUE DE PRESSE

LA MAIRIE DE HAMMAMET RESOLUMENT CONTRE LE TOURISME

La FTH-Cap Bon dénonce avec la plus grande fermeté l’arrachage injustifié d’arbres, de
plantes et de verdure sur la plage de Hammamet, sous prétexte de « campagne de
nettoyage ». La zone avait déjà été nettoyée par un hôtel du centre-ville quelques jours
auparavant, de l’aveu même de la municipalité qui avait salué ce travail dans une
publication Facebook le 20 février ! De plus, ces plantes servaient à retenir le sable et à
empêcher l’érosion marine…
Comment expliquer que l’on s’attaque à un hôtelier qui n’épargne aucun effort pour
réparer, nettoyer et soigner son environnement, en faisant le travail qui aurait dû être fait
par les autorités locales ? Comment expliquer que l’on arrache des arbres centenaires,
des acacias, des bambous et autres plantes de valeur en bord de mer et qui figurent sur
toutes les vieilles photos de Hammamet ? Comment justifier que l’on brise la
canalisation d’eau usée de l’école Chebbi alors qu’elle avait été réparée par ce même
hôtelier et à ses frais deux semaines plus tôt ? Préfère-t-on voir de nouveau la plage de
Yasmina envahie des eaux usées déversées par cette canalisation ? Pourquoi ce Conseil
Municipal refuse-t-il d’associer la FTH à ses réunions et à ses décisions, et ne veut pas
d’un travail serein et main dans la main avec les principaux acteurs économiques de la
région ? Cette campagne ne fait que renforcer notre conviction que le Conseil Municipal
et son président se positionnent résolument contre le tourisme.
Monsieur le maire de Hammamet a récemment déclaré que 2019 était une année record
en terme de taxe hôtelière payée par les hôtels, et qu’en conséquence, la municipalité
bénéficiait de revenus records pour valoriser la ville et l’embellir. Est-ce à la démolition
du tourisme que cet argent va servir ? A l’arrachage d’arbres centenaires ? Au combat
contre toute possibilité d’animation et de loisirs sur nos plages ? Rappelons que cette
opération « coup de poing » a été réalisée sans informer l’APAL ni les fédérations du
tourisme FTH et FTAV, organismes incontournables vu le poids prédominant du
secteur touristique dans l’économie de la ville. Rappelons également que le tourisme est
le poumon économique de Hammamet, c’est la source de revenus principale de la
majorité des habitants de la ville qui vivent directement ou indirectement du tourisme.

La FTH demande des explications au Conseil Municipal de Hammamet quant à cette

attitude injustifiée et ce choix incompréhensible de focaliser toute son énergie sur une
zone déjà nettoyée par son exploitant, alors que des artères principales et des sites
hautement touristiques à l’exemple de la Médina ou de Pupput, croulent sous les
ordures et les trous dans les trottoirs et dans les allées piétonnes de la vieille ville !
Comment sont gérées les priorités dans cette municipalité ? Est-ce que le Conseil
Municipal veut que Hammamet continue à être une destination touristique de grande
notoriété, ou bien préfère-t-il éradiquer le tourisme de notre région ?

Le Conseil Régional de la Fédération Tunisienne de l’Hôtellerie

Annex L: Tunisian Federation of Hoteliers (FTH): Press Release (FTH Facebook Official Page,
27th of February 2020, 18:27)
82
 9. Declaration of Authenticity

I, Elyes Sahli (19544), student at the Rhine-Waal University of Applied Sciences, hereby
certify that this thesis is the result of my own work and investigation and that any
information retrieved from published or unpublished work of others has been
acknowledged and listed in the references.

Date: 05/03/2020

Signature:

83
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