Casting the Holiday Dice: Demarketing Gambling to Encourage Local Tourism

Australians are not taking up their full allowance of annual holidays which could, in time, lead to issues of community health as well as impact on the viability of the domestic tourism industry. As a response, government tourism organisations in Australia have allocated funds to encourage domestic holidays. However, competition for discretionary income from other sources of recreational activities will continue to impact on this sector, requiring more than direct tourism promotion. This paper considers one such competing aspect of discretionary spending, namely gambling, and its likely effect on tourism expenditure. It examines the role of demarketing as a means to limit gambling expenditure and increase tourism. A range of demarketing and remarketing strategies are proposed as integrated elements of gambling and tourism planning. Such a proposal has the potential to restructure regional communities in such a way as to contribute to the building of community and personal well-being.