Why Brazil and Iguazu Falls as an Important Tourist and Travel Destination - Case Study Example

Tourism in Brazil Name Course Number Date of Submission Tourism in Brazil 1. Map of Brazil Source: Touropia (2016). 2. How and Why Brazil Became an Important Destination for Travelers and Tourists Brazil is one of the world’s leading tourism destinations in the world. The South American country has witnessed a significant growth in the number of tourists visiting its vast tourist attraction sites. In 2012, Brazil received about 5.17 million visitors from different parts of the world, which made it the second most visited tourist destination in South America just after Argentina. In the same year, Brazil’s tourism industry generated a total of $6.6 billion in revenue. According to Travel and Tourism Competitiveness Index (TTCI) 2015 rankings, Brazil ranked at position 28th preferred tourist destination in the world. However, tourism in Brazil is now a new thing; rather the history of tourism in Brazil dates back to the nineteenth century following the arrival of the Portuguese royal family in Brazil, where they moved and settled in Rio de Janeiro. The Portuguese royal family chose Rio de Janeiro as their preferred place of resident because of its attractiveness as the Rio authorities are said to have done a lot in the 1930s to make Rio attractive tourist destination (Rezende-Parker et al. 2003, p. 246). Some of these efforts included the creation of the Rio Carnivals, emphasis on Rio Beaches, and building of good infrastructural facilities, such as roads and airports, as well as five-star hotels, where tourists can get accommodation. Besides, Brazil has become a popular tourist destination of choice for many people because of its rich cultural and historical attraction sites. Brazil is blessed with abundant natural resources that make it an attractive tourist destination of choice. Some of the natural resources that attract tourists to Brazil include Amazon jungle, Amazon River, and numerous national parks. For instance, the Amazon Rainforest that stretches across most of the South American countries is a major tourist attraction site in Brazil receiving hundreds of thousands visitors every year. 3. Why Iguacu (Iguazu) Falls is an Important Tourist and Travel Destination Iguacu Falls is one of the most amazing tourist attractions in Brazil. The fall is described as one of the wonders of the world. Iguacu Falls attracts tourists from all over the world because of the beautiful sceneries that are characteristic of this fall. First, this fall is one of its kinds because it consists of more than 274 falls and has a curved cataract that drops at a height of about 350, which creates beautiful scenery for the visitors (Sweeney 2015). Tourists also visit this fall to see the rainbow that forms on the waterfalls resulting from refraction of light against the thundering waters. Besides, Iguacu Falls is surrounded by a forest that is home to the opossum that is found only in Australia. Therefore, visitors that come to the fall also have the opportunity to see the opossum in addition to over 200 plant species that surrounds the falls. Additionally, the Iguacu Falls has a point where a visitor can stand and get enveloped up to about 260 degrees of waterfalls, which provide an attractive scenic experience to the tourists that visit this magnificent falls (Sweeney 2015). 4. Explain how tourists will experience Brazil’s cultural diversity when they visit the following places Brazil is a country is rich in cultural diversity. The experience of Brazil’s rich cultural diversity can be realized by visiting cities, such as Olinda, Liberdade and Cachoeria. Olinda is a municipality located in the state of Pernambuco (Grunewald 2002, p. 1004). This is a vibrant city that has people from all walks of life, including Portuguese, Blacks, Americans, Chinese, Italians and Americans among other ethic and nationalities. Olinda became the second city in Brazil to be declared a Historical and Cultural Heritage Site of Humanity by the UNESCO and this indicates how culturally rich this city is (Carnival Exhibit 2015). The city hosts a number of cultural events that includes craft fairs, samba festival, afoxe, reggae celebrations and maracatu among others cultural events. Additionally, the city is also famous for hosting the Carnival Brazil, which is a cultural event that involves Carnival groups, the community and tourists parade through Olinda city streets and lanes to demonstrate the culture and traditions of the Indians, whites and blacks (fig. 2). Figure 2: Olinda Carnival Source: Carnival Exhibit (2015). Tourists also have a chance to experience the Brazilian rich cultural diversity by visiting Liberdade. Visitors of Liberdade city have the opportunity to experience the Japanese culture considering that Liberdade is the city with the largest Japanese people outside Japan. Any visitor of Liberdade has the opportunity to participate in Japanese cultural plays, such as cosplay, which are held mostly during weekends. Additionally, tourists that visit the city have the opportunity to attend the Liberdade street market that is held every weekend offering the traditional Japanese goods and cuisines, which is one of its kinds, and is predominantly non-Asian (Sommers 2012). The Brazilian cultural diversity can also be experienced by visiting Cachoeria, which is a vibrant town located about two hours drive from Salvador city. The city is known for its rick Afro-Brazilian culture. The town is characterized by a large number of traditional Candomblé terreiros, and the Irmandade da Boa Morte, which is a female religious order that was created by freed slaves more than two centuries ago (Grunewald 2002, p. 1006). Visitors of this town also have the opportunity to experience the allure of the Festa de Nossa Senhora da Boa Morte and the Festa de Nossa Senhora da Ajuda cultural festivals and events (Sommers 2012). 5. Description of the Rio Carnival (Carnival) and the role of the Samba Schools in its development The Carnival is a Brazilian festival held in February or March every year depending on the day of the Easter. The festival is characterized by pomp and colors. Rio Carnival is just one of the carnival festivals held in Brazil and is said to be the biggest considering that it brings together more than two million people that gather on the streets every day. This festival has been held in Rio since 1723 (Rio Carnival 2016). The development of the Carnival in Brazil has mainly been attributed to the Samba Schools, where refers to the association of groups or social clubs that represents the people in the Rio de Janeiro’s neighborhoods. The Samba Schools have played a critical role in the development for the Rio Carnival because in the final months to the Carnival, they hold samba nights, which are characterized by dance and entertainment the whole night to usher in the Carnival (Rio Carnival 2016). This way, they help to bring people from different parts of Brazil and the world to gather in the streets for the Carnival. Tourists that visit the Rio Carnival have the opportunity to participate by parading with people in the Rio streets as well as participating in dance. 6. Describe how a well-informed tour guide would describe the variety of architectural styles in Iticare Itacaré ranks among the most popular tourist destinations in Brazil. Located South of Bahia, Itacaré is home to white sands and beaches that are surrounded by coconut plantations. Additionally, the town is surrounded by waterfalls, rivers, trails, virgin forests, mangroves and sandbanks. The town also has abundant natural conditions for different sporting activities that include hiking and mountain biking. The local architecture of Itacaré is marked by old mansions and houses, which dates back to more than a century ago (Palmer 2014, p. 349). 7. Describe favela tourism. Why can it be referred to as the commodification of poverty? Favela tourism refers to tourism that focuses on visiting the slum. Favela is a Portuguese word use to describe one of the Brazil’s largest slums (Phillips 2013). The slum if visited by hundreds of thousands tourists that come to see the kind of life that the slum dwellers live. The favela tourism can be considered an example of commodification of poverty because instead of the Brazilian doing something to better the lives of the slum dwellers by building them better housing structures, addressing insecurity, providing jobs and improving healthcare and other social amenities, it is using the poverty that characterize the favela slum to market the place as a tourist destination (Phillips 2013). In fact, favela slum is receiving many tourists from all over the world, that move to the slum though in a controlled and save way, but they do not bother to better the lives of the slum dwellers, thus amounting to commodification of poverty. 8. How has tourism helped to bring about cultural revival for the Pataxo people of Bahia? The culture of the Pataxo people were eroded by the arrival of the Portuguese that tried to control them and assimilate them into the mainstream culture. For instance, the arrival of the Portuguese saw the Paraxo people of Bahia lose their language and begin to speak the Portuguese. However, tourism has played a big role in reviving the culture of these native tribes. Tourism has helped bring about cultural revival for this people because as the Pataxo people move with the tourists as guides, they get a chance to tell tourists about the forest plants that they used as medicines. When with the tourists, they also get to give the tourists their traditional food and drinks and in the process this has helped in reviving the culture of these native tribes (Grunewald 2002, p. 1004) 9. Using the Kayapo of the Amazon jungle as your example, how does tourism enable tourists to know ‘the Other’? The Kayapo are a part of the native tribes of the Amerindian groups that still live in the Amazon Jungle. The Kayapos have resisted any attempt to assimilate them to the mainstream culture by opting to still to their traditional culture. When the tourists visit the Kayapo people in the Amazon rainforest, they enable the tourists know the other by acting as tour guides to the visitors of the forest. The assist tourists in knowing anything that they might want to know about the jungle and what to avoid. This way, they help tourists know the other. 10. What role does Copacabana Beach play in creating Brazil’s image? Copacabana beach is the world’s most famous beach. The sandy beach covers about 4 kilometers. Copacabana beach play a critical role in creating Brazil’s image by portraying Brazil as the best tourist destination (Conners 2015). The beach provides beachgoers with a good place for bustling, sunbathing and swimming place. Additionally, Copacabana beach also provides a perfect place for beach volleyball, which makes Brazil one of the countries with best beach for beach volleyball. Source: Conners (2015). 11. What are the positive and negative effects of staging mega-events in Brazil? Mega-events are common is brazil. Sports mega-events are particularly common in Brazil. In recent years, Brazil has hosted two of the biggest sporting events in the world that included the 2014 World Cup and the 2016 Olympic games. These mega events have had both positive and negative effects on Brazil. The notable positive effects include attracting hundreds and thousands of sports athletes and spectators into Brazil (Santos 2014, 1313). This in turn promotes the growth of the Brazilian economy since these international visitors spend huge amounts of money in the Brazilian hotels and restaurants among other businesses. Second, these mega-events are accorded wide media coverage and this gives Brazil the opportunity to advertise its beauty and natural features that tourists can visit. In fact, reports indicate that Brazil has experienced significant growth in tourist arrivals since the 2014 World Cup and the 2016 Olympic games due to the positive media coverage. However, hosting such mega events also impact negatively on Brazil as it erodes the Brazilian culture as it brings people from other cultures into Brazil (Santos 2014, 1314). 12. Describe the kinds of ecotourism attractions Brazil has developed and assess the impacts of ecotourism on the local people Ecotourism has developed significantly in Brazil in the last decades. Currently, Brazil boasts to having several ecotourism attractions. Some of the ecotourism destinations in Brazil include Amazon, Savanna and Plateau, Pantanal, Coastline and Oceanic islands, CERRADO, CAATINGA, and PAMPAS. Ecotourism has had many positive impacts on the local people. First, because ecotourism promotes environmental conservation and this ensures that the natural environment that the local people depend on is not degraded (Rezende-Parker et al. 2003, p. 244). Second, ecotourism provides jobs for the local people as they are involved in tourism, where they are hired as tour guides, which creates jobs for them, thus resulting in development. Additionally, because a large amount of revenue collected from ecotourism remains in the area, this ensures the development of the region, which is good for the local people. However, ecotourism can impact negatively on the local people by causing cultural erosion. 13. Describe three kinds of gastronomic experiences (food and drink experiences) available for tourists in Brazil Brazil being a culturally rich country has a variety of cuisines and drinks that a tourist can have a taste of when they visit this South American country. One such is the Matto Grosso cuisine, which is a meal consisting of fish wrapped in banana leaves plus grilled sea salt. The other popular Brazilian cuisine is feijoada, which is prepared of black beans and pork served with vegetables, white rice and orange slices (Iberostar Hotels & Resorts 2016). Third, tourists visiting Brazil should also expect the national Brazilian drink called caipirinha, which is a drink made with cachaca, lime juice, beer, sugar, fruit smoothies and ice. 14. Describe the kinds of transport tourists use to visit Brazil and to travel within Brazil Transport is an important infrastructural facility that promotes the development of tourism industry. Transport, however, remains one of the major impediments to the Brazilian tourism industry. This is notwithstanding the efforts that have been made by the Brazilian government to develop its transport infrastructure. Over the last few years, the Brazilian has improved its transport system and currently tourists can access different tourist destinations by road, air, rail or water. The Igauca (Igauzu) falls is one of the popular tourism destination in Brazil located near the border of Brazil, Argentina and Paraguay (Tomlinson et al. 2011, p. 40). The Igauca (Igauzu) falls can be accessed by road by taking a bus from Puerto Iguazu to the fall’s entrance. The Igauca Fall can also be accessed by flight as there are two airports just a few miles from the falls, which include Cataratas del Iguazú (IGR) in Argentina and Foz do Iguaçu Airport (IGU) in Brazil. The same applies to Sugarloaf Mountain that can be accessed by roads and flight. However, these modes of transport are only used up to the mountain foots after which tourists are forced to climb the mountain by foot. As for Amazon, because this jungle is so dense, it cannot be accessed by roads. Instead, the wilderness is only accessible by use of waterways (BBC 2014). There are cruise boats that take visitors on a tour of the Amazon even if they cannot access the entire forest. Although Amazon can also be accessed by flights, there are no landing strips in the jungle meaning airplanes have to drop tourists at the nearest cities with airports after which roads are used to take the tourists to the Amazon access points, where they board cruise boats to take them round (BBC 2014). In addition, there are canopy tours makes it easy for tourists with a good alternative of navigating the dense forest. 15. Kinds of Accommodation Available to Tourists in Brazil When a tourist is choosing its tourism destination, the kinds of accommodations that are available is a major factor that determines the choice of the destination. In Brazil, there are different kinds of accommodations for tourists. The first are hotels that are available almost everywhere and come in different pries, facility ranges and quality. Second is the resort which is large complexes and include Litoral Norte, Costa do Sol and Linha Verde among others. Motels are also popular tourist accommodation facility available in Brazil (Rezende-Parker et al. 2003, p. 243). However, unlike in North America and European countries, Brazilian motels require short stay by visitors. There are also poundas, which are small family-run guesthouses providing bed and breakfast. Poundas are popular among tourists in Brazil because they are more personal and charming than hotels. Brazil also has jungle lodges that provide accommodation to the tourists as is the case in Amazon and Pantanal forests and national parks, where there are lodges that are purposely built to provide accommodation to the visitors. Other types of accommodations that are available include aparthotels and backpackers hostels and camping grounds. 16. Brochure Amazon Jungle Amazon Jungle is ranked among Brazil’s top tourist destinations stretching from Atlantic Ocean to Andes Mountains. This wilderness occupies a number of South American countries that include Brazil, Ecuador, Peru, Colombia and many others. The Amazon River meanders through the Amazon jungle which allows for the easy navigation of this magnificent wilderness. This magnificent jungle is a huge attraction to tourists because of its biodiversity. Visitors of Amazon Rainforest have the opportunity to see over 50% of the world’s biodiversity (BBC 2014). Some of the animals that inhabit this vast wilderness include Tiger, orang utan, monkeys, leopards and baboons among others wild animals. The Amazon forest is also inhabited by indigenous tribes, especially the Kayapo tribe that makes the place a huge tourist attraction site. Source: BBC (2014). Iguacu Falls Iguacu Falls is an amazing tourist attraction in Brazil. The fall is among the few wonders of the world. The fall consists of more than 274 falls and has a curved cataract that drops at a height of about 350, which creates beautiful scenery. The waterfalls creates developed from refraction of light against the thundering waters that adds beauty to the fall for visitor. Iguacu Falls is surrounded by a forest that is home to the opossum that is found only in Australia in addition to over 200 plant species that surrounds the falls. This world wonder also has a point where a visitor can stand and get enveloped up to about 260 degrees of waterfalls (Sweeney 2015). Source: Sweeney (2015) References BBC 2014, Amazonian wildlife, viewed 19 October 2016 http://www.bbc.co.uk/nature/places/Amazon_Basin Carnival Exhibit 2015, Recife and Olinda, Brazil, viewed 19 October 2016 http://www.carnavalexhibit.org/brazil.php Conners, V 2015, Rio's best beaches, viewed 19 October 2016 http://www.travelchannel.com/destinations/brazil/rio-de-janeiro/articles/rios-best-beaches Grunewald, R 2002, ‘Tourism and Cultural Revival’, Annals of Tourism Research, vol. 29, no. 4, pp. 1004-1021. Iberostar Hotels & Resorts 2016, Gastronomic specialties of Brazil, viewed 19 October 2016 https://www.iberostar.com/en/hotels/brazil/gastronomy Palmer, C. T 2014, “Tourism, changing architectural styles, and the production of place in Itacaré, Bahia, Brazil,” Journal of Tourism and Cultural Change vol. 12, no. 4, pp. 349-363. Phillips, D 2013, Favela tourism in Rio de Janeiro. The Guardian 4 November, viewed 19 October 2016 https://www.theguardian.com/travel/2013/nov/04/rio-de-janeiro-brazil-favela-tourism Rezende-Parker, AM, Morrison, AM, Ismail, JA 2003, ‘Dazed and confused? An exploratory study of the image of Brazil as a travel destination’, Journal of vacation marketing, vol. 9, no. 3, pp. 243-259. Rio Carnival 2016, The Rio Samba Schools, viewed 19 October 2016 http://www.rio-carnival.net/samba-school/samba-schools-rio-de-janeiro.php Santos, J. M. C. M 2014, ‘Brazil: an emerging power establishing itself in the world of international sports mega-events’, The International Journal of the History of Sport, vol. 31, no. 10, pp. 1312-1327. Sommers, M 2012, The Reconcâvo: Santo Amaro and Cachoeira, viewed 19 October 2016 http://moon.com/2012/03/the-reconcavo-santo-amaro-and-cachoeira/ Sweeney, N 2015, Iguazu Falls: Why this natural wonder should be on everyone's bucket list. CNN 25 March, viewed 19 October 2016 http://edition.cnn.com/2015/03/24/travel/iguazu-falls-bucket-list/ Tomlinson, R, Bass, O, & Bassett, T 2011, ‘Before and after the vuvuzela: identity, image and mega-events in South Africa, China and Brazil’, South African Geographical Journal, vol. 93, no. 1, pp. 38-48. Touropia 2016, 10 top tourist attractions in Brazil, viewed 19 October 2016 http://www.touropia.com/tourist-attractions-in-brazil/ Read More