Layoffs are rampant, gas prices are volatile, airlines are cutting flights, and Americans are feeling the economic pinch of a recession. As much as we hate it in this country of big dreams, big cars and Big Macs, we have to find a way to cut back. For many Americans, that means turning the Great American Vacation into a “staycation,” which is the big buzzword of the year, having appeared in articles everywhere from www.CNN.com to Newsweek. But what does a staycation really mean? Newspaper humor columnist and frequent staycationer Matt Wixon shares with readers the definition of a staycation as well as: Rules for a successful, satisfying vacation at home or nearby Motivation and encouragement for people who can’t afford the big, traditional vacation Ways to make the most of time off from work Strategies and experiences from more than a dozen staycationers, as well as hundreds of Internet links and specific ideas to help plan a vacation in your hometown. From alternatives to destination theme parks to making the most of out local amenities to reigniting the flame in a relationship, Americans will find this guide a humorous and invaluable guide to staying home on vacation.

The world is getting faster. This sentiment is proclaimed so often that it is taken for granted, rarely questioned or examined by those who celebrate the notion of an accelerated culture or by those who decry it. Sarah Sharma engages with that assumption in this sophisticated critical inquiry into the temporalities of everyday life. Sharma conducted ethnographic research among individuals whose jobs or avocations involve a persistent focus on time: taxi drivers, frequent-flyer business travelers, corporate yoga instructors, devotees of the slow-food and slow-living movements. Based on that research, she develops the concept of "power-chronography" to make visible the entangled and uneven politics of temporality. Focusing on how people's different relationships to labor configures their experience of time, she argues that both "speed-up" and "slow-down" often function as a form of biopolitical social control necessary to contemporary global capitalism.

This book proposes that sustainable marketing should be founded on a higher level of consciousness, governed by the Eastern ethical principles of dharma and karma. It suggests a socially responsible, integrated marketing strategy to boost transformational heritage tourism. The book puts forward a framework to promote and inspire transformative heritage tourism from a sustainable marketing perspective. Drawing on examples from different parts of the world such as Thailand, China, the USA, India, Australia, the United Kingdom, Spain, and Hong Kong, it takes a unique approach by integrating elements associated with distributive justice, procedural justice, morally motivated existentialist authentic experiences and the well-being of visited and visiting environments. The book pivots on the planning and marketing of heritage of communities such as local, descendent and indigenous across eight broad themes: (1) promotion and sustainable branding of heritage tourism; (2) empowerment of indigenous communities; (3) authenticity and conservation of heritage; (4) safeguarding of art, culture and cultural landscapes; (5) economic viability for the host communities; (6) interpretation and resolution of dissonant heritage representations; (7) stimulating audience engagement and co-created mindful spaces and; (8) facilitating moral consciousness and stimulating lasting inner transformation in guests and hosts. Scholars can replicate and/or test the proposed guided sustainable marketing model, referred to as the transformative heritage tourism pathway, which is adapted from a) the needs, activities and well-being sequential path of transformation and, b) the socially responsible sustainable marketing doctrine guided by the principles of 'dharma' and 'karma'. This book is unique as it stresses eudaimonia as the ultimate goal of well-being and argues that its pursuit can steer the sustained transformation route toward a higher sense of consciousness and responsible production and consumption of heritage resources. In summary, this book contributes toward advancing the dialogue on sustainable marketing and transformative heritage tourism. It will appeal to researchers, undergraduates and practitioners interested in sustainable marketing, transformative heritage tourism and social, ecological, cultural and economic welfare of visited and visiting destinations.

The COVID-19 pandemic has rapidly affected our communication and lifestyle and upended all regular routines of daily life. Social distancing, economic disruption, and challenges to public health brought about a new order of government policies. Besides, social responsibilities adapted many new norms due to the measures taken by authorities to control the spread of the pandemic. The current global situation offers an opportunity for joint communal effort at national and international levels along with social awareness and commitment to official instructions. Significant enquiries given in this book, from Asian and Middle Eastern countries, address attendant issues concerning the COVID-19 pandemic and the specific roles played by government policy, public awareness, social behaviour, and the role of technology during the pandemic. Selected papers from Current Trends in the Middle East: Virtual International Joint Conference on COVID-19 Global Impacts (V-The 4th ICCTME 2021, 9 – 10 March 2021) discuss ‘how leaders at all levels battled the pandemic and their concerted efforts successfully confronted the crisis and avoided panic’. This theme implies several layers of strategic planning which as a whole have attempted at shaping the society in a way to reduce the risk of COVID-19 transmission while assuring integrity, obtaining national solidarity and reinforcing public trust in governments. Additional investigations in the book analyze the role of technology and pivotal approaches in accordance with the need to embrace the Fourth Industrial Revolution (IR4.0). We hope that this approach will open the floor for attracting novel contributions from great minds with an awareness of protecting cultural heritage. In particular, specific attention is given to examining the role of technology usage in mediating the interaction between people and institutions for sustainable living, including the interaction between all members of society and technology. Along the same lines, a connotative analysis provides insight into how and why the application of smart digital infrastructures into hospitals and houses might prevent contagious diseases in the COVID-19 era. Our authors highlight key trends and insights from different perspectives and discuss various strategies and roles adopted by local and international institutions. Willingness to learn from others is the idea behind this book. In the light of this idea, organized preparations and well-coordinated initiatives produced favourable results in this collection. Through its discussion of the current crisis management via a wide range of information and experiences in sharing knowledge, experiences, and skills from Malaysia, Indonesia, Iran, Pakistan, Turkey and Palestine, this book aims to be a part of the scientific environment that deliberates to decrease the number of infections and deaths, in relation to the COVID-19 pandemic

Women and Travel: Historical and Contemporary Perspectives is a fascinating look at the behavior, motivations, experiences, and needs of women as tourists and travellers, drawing on both historic and contemporary eras. Surprisingly little research has explored key issues, experiences, and opportunities in the context of women’s travel. This revealing volume fills this gap, exploring the discourses, debates, and discussions about women, travel, and tourism. With an international roster of contributors from diverse regions of the world, the book celebrates a variety of women’s voices. Khoo-Lattimore and Wilson deliberately sought to include nontraditional and non-Western perspectives on women’s travel, with inclusions of Asian solo female travelers; Islamic women travellers and the constraints placed on them; and women who cannot travel (or choose, for whatever reason, a ‘home holiday’). This enlightening volume brings together scholars from the broad areas of tourism, hospitality, geography, and leisure studies to examine how and why women travel. The chapters bring light to perspectives from different countries, cultures, backgrounds, and religions, and utilize different methods, approaches and styles of presentation. Women and Travel: Historical and Contemporary Perspectives will be of interest to academics and graduate students from a range of disciplines, including tourism, leisure studies, sociology, cultural geography, anthropology, feminist and gender studies, business, economics and management; as well as professionals working in the tourism industry, particularly those with an interest in niche markets and segmentation.

Does your family enjoy a fun and exciting summer vacation but the budget is tight? Or are you tired of the hustle and bustle of packing to get everyone ready for a week-long trip, and don't forget the crowds at the airport or - gasp! - gas prices. Seriously, if you have a family, you need this book! It is full if ideas for turning your home into a place you'll want to vacation in, suggestions for activities that your kids will love and tons of tips that will make your family want to staycation again and again. Denise D. Witmer is a recognized writer of parenting and family books and sites including her book, The Everything Parent's Guide to Raising a Successful Child and site About.com Parenting Teens. She has worked at a Children Home in Pennsylvania and has taken many group and family vacations and successfully put together countless staycation activities and day trips. She is trained in Parent Effectiveness Training, Support & Training for Exceptional Parents and is the mother of three children.

While the debate over our changing environment rages on, one thing remains clear: being green is a hot topic—socially, politically, and economically. Whether you’ve “been green” from birth or don’t even know what the three “Rs” stand for, 48 Things To Know About Sustainable Living can help you make small, affordable (or free!) changes that will have a major impact on the environment and simplify your everyday life. Chock-full of tips and useful Web sites, 48 Things will show you how to easily become planet-friendly by: Discovering eco-friendly substitutions for everything from food and clothing to appliances, cleaning products, office supplies, and transportation Reducing waste and electricity, saving you time and money Taking advantage of both modern green technology and renewable natural resources

Since the post World War Two boom in private automobile ownership, Drive Tourism has transformed the tourism landscape by facilitating dispersal and the growth of attractions and tourism related infrastructure beyond the zones that had previously emerged around seaports and railway terminals. The automobile has made regional dispersal possible and created opportunities for many small rural communities to supplement rural economies with a tourism economy. Drive Tourism is a popular form of tourism activity that has significantly contributed to the development of Tourism in many nations, but has received relatively little attention in the literature. This book is the first attempt to provide a global comprehensive review and scholarly investigation into this popular and growing form of tourism. It draws on a vast range of geographical locations to critically explore the impacts of drive tourism in developed and underdeveloped regions. It evaluates tourism authorities’ response to the Drive Tourism Experience, and offers operational insights into the management of the drive experience as well as providing original empirical research and insights into the field that will contribute to future investigation. In doing so it explores the many forms of drive tourism from caravanning to fly drive touring.

The modern-day world faces a hostile climate, depleted resources and the destruction of habitats. The dream that growth will lead to a materialistic utopia is left unfulfilled by a lack of ecological and economic capacity. The only choice is to find alternatives to increased growth, transform the structures and institutions currently shaping the world, change lifestyles and articulate a more credible vision for the future and lasting prosperity. As a reaction to the problems accrued by capitalism, new development approaches such as the concept of degrowth have evolved. Degrowth in Tourism explores newly-emerging development and philosophical approachesthat provide more equity for host communities and offer a low-carbon future by looking at alternatives to the classic models of development and applying the concept of degrowth in a tourism context. Proposing that we need to shift tourism research from models which prioritize commodified tourism experiences to those that offer alternative decommodified ones this book: Provides topical analysis and illustrates the key themes of degrowth; Discusses the relationship between tourism and degrowth from both a historic perspective and through contemporary patterns of activity; Includes international examples and case studies to translate theory into practical new approaches. A comprehensive review of the subject, this book will be of great interest to researchers and practitioners within tourism, development, environment and economics, as well as those specifically studying degrowth.