View metadata, citation and similar papers at core.ac.uk brought to you by CORE provided by Research Repository Lesbian Tourism: ‘Perth W.A. as an attractive lesbian tourist destination’. Source: http://www.purplemoon.com/Stickers/rainbow-flag-female accessed on October 9, 2009 Simon Teoh, B. Tour (Tourism) This thesis is submitted in partial fulfilment of the degree of Bachelor of Tourism (Honours) School of Social Sciences Murdoch University, Western Australia, 2009 ii Copyright Acknowledgement I acknowledge that a copy of this thesis will be held at the Murdoch University Library. I understand that, under the provisions s51.2 of the Copyright Act 1968, all or part of this thesis may be copied without infringement of copyright where such a reproduction is for the purposes of study and research. This statement does not signal any transfer of copyright away from the author. Signed: …………………………………………………………... Full Name of Degree: Bachelor of Tourism with Honours Thesis Title: Lesbian Tourism: ‘Perth W.A. as an attractive lesbian tourist destination’. Author: Simon Teoh Year: 2009 iii Declaration I declare this project is my own account of my research and that all references are appropriately acknowledged. ……………………. Simon Teoh 04th November, 2009 iv Abstract In September 2008, the Lord Mayor of Perth announced her vision for Perth to be more ‘gay- friendly’. Her vision aroused some dissonance from the ultra conservatives. The aim of this thesis is to determine the attractiveness of Perth as a lesbian destination. The significance of this study is to understand local lesbian residents’ perceptions of Perth as a ‘lesbian-friendly’ destination, and to evaluate the motivation and satisfaction of lesbian-tourists to Perth. The methodology used included participation observation at the 2009 Sydney Gay and Lesbian Mardi Gras Parade; a semi-structured focus group interview of 4 self-identified lesbian Perth residents, and a purposive sample, using snowball effect, of 112 self-identified lesbians for an on-line survey. The data was analysed using content and statistical analysis. The findings were interpreted using a social constructivist approach, within a male feminist framework. The findings indicated that slightly over a quarter of lesbian Perth residents felt that Perth is ‘lesbian-friendly’ (27%). Whilst ‘culture and sights’ was the top motivator for a lesbian vacation (94%), ‘visiting friends and family’ was the top motivator for lesbian tourists visiting Perth (71%). Slightly over a tenth of lesbian tourists were satisfied with lesbian attractions in Perth (13%). Overall, only a small number of respondents found Perth to be their first-choice ‘lesbian-friendly’ destination (6%), with an overwhelming majority wanting to see more lesbian attractions (85%), and 5% agreeing that there are sufficient lesbian venues. These results strongly suggest that Perth is not ‘lesbian-friendly’, and lacks attractions and venues as an attractive lesbian tourist destination. Recommendations for further research arising from these findings include undertaking a comparison between Perth and other Australian cities in terms of lesbian tourism. Keywords: lesbian tourism, ‘lesbian-friendly’, tourist perception, attractive lesbian tourist destination, Perth W.A. v Table of Contents Copyright Acknowledgement .................................................................................................... ii Abstract ..................................................................................................................................... iv Table of Contents ...................................................................................................................... v List of Tables, Figures and Plates .......................................................................................... vii Abbreviations .......................................................................................................................... viii Acknowledgements ................................................................................................................... ix Chapter 1 Introduction ............................................................................................................ 1 1.1. Background ................................................................................................................................ 1 1.2. Tourist discrimination based on sexuality ............................................................................... 2 1.3. Concepts and terms ................................................................................................................... 2 1.4. Research interest ........................................................................................................................ 3 1.5. Scope of study............................................................................................................................. 4 1.6. Aims of study .............................................................................................................................. 4 1.7. Significance of study .................................................................................................................. 5 1.8. Thesis overview .......................................................................................................................... 5 Chapter 2 Literature review ..................................................................................................... 7 2.1. Introduction ............................................................................................................................... 7 2.2. Australian gay and lesbian tourist market .............................................................................. 7 2.3. Issues of tourist perception ..................................................................................................... 12 2.4. Tourist Motivation ................................................................................................................... 19 2.5. Tourist Satisfaction .................................................................................................................. 24 2.6. Sustainable Tourism ................................................................................................................ 26 2.7. Tourism scholarship framework ............................................................................................ 27 2.8. Current state of research ........................................................................................................ 28 2.9. Research aims and objectives ................................................................................................. 32 2.10. Summary ................................................................................................................................ 33 Chapter 3 Research design .................................................................................................... 34 3.1. Interpretive paradigm ............................................................................................................. 34 3.2. Methodology ............................................................................................................................. 36 3.3. Rationale for on-line survey questionnaire ........................................................................... 41 3.4. Pilot testing ............................................................................................................................... 42 3.5. Ethical consideration ............................................................................................................... 42 3.6. Respondent sample ................................................................................................................. 43 vi 3.7. Data analysis ............................................................................................................................ 45 3.8. Summary .................................................................................................................................. 45 Chapter 4 Results ................................................................................................................... 47 4.1. Introduction ............................................................................................................................. 47 4.2. Characteristics of respondents ............................................................................................... 47 4.3. Aim 1 – Perceptions of Perth lesbian residents ..................................................................... 49 4.4. Aim 2 – Motivations and satisfaction of Perth lesbian tourists ........................................... 57 4.5. Aim 3 – Attractiveness of Perth as a lesbian ‘rainbow tourist’ destination ....................... 61 4.6. Summary .................................................................................................................................. 65 Chapter 5 Discussion ............................................................................................................. 66 5.1. Introduction ............................................................................................................................. 66 5.2. Aim 1 - Perceptions of Perth lesbian residents...................................................................... 66 5.3. Aim 2 – Motivations and satisfaction of Perth lesbian tourist