A conceptual review of last chance tourism: The case of Turkey

• Published in: Tourism
• Main Authors: Kiliç, B., Yozukmaz, N.
• Other Authors: MÜ
• Format: Review
• Language: English
• Published: Institute for Tourism 2020
• Subjects: Environmental awareness; Extinction; Hasankeyf; Last chance tourism; Threat of disappearance; Arctic; Global warming
• Online Access: https://hdl.handle.net/20.500.12809/6254; https://doi.org/10.37741/T.68.3.6

Being always a popular issue despite being called differently on media, last chance tourism (LCT) has become a significant matter in tourism literature in recent years due to the increase in global warming and world population. Even though LCT has emerged in relation to visit demands to destinations under the threat of disappea rance in Arctic regions, the concept is now not only used for destinations disappearing due to environmental changes but also for places disappearing due to anthropogenic reasons. The most important aspects of this concept are its relation with other tourism types and the paradox that it creates because of its impacts on the environment. These two aspects of this concept are still discussed in tourism literature. With regard to this discussion, the purpose of this study is to examine LCT and its paradox in the literature in detail; to discuss the term with regard to Turkey and to determine possible last chance destinations in Turkey with an emphasis on Hasankeyf (Batman). For this aim, a detailed literature review and an online search with keywords such as "places under threat" were conducted. As a result of this study, it is revealed that there are many LCT destinations in Turkey which have been dragged into being a LCT destination as a result of misgovernment and Hasankeyf (Batman) has been already recognized as a LCT destination by the tourists and therefore can be evaluated within LCT literature in future research in a more detailed and empirical way. © 2020 Institute for Tourism. All rights reserved. Twelve thousand-year-old Hasankeyf settlement is situated near the Euphrates at the southeastern part of Turkey. Hosting many historical artifacts from Neolithic caves, Roman ruins to the statues from Middle Age, Hasankeyf is a unique natural museum. For the purpose of building Ilısu Hydroelectric Power Plant Project as it has been planned, almost 80% of Hasankeyf will be submerged despite its rich, multicultural historical values and heritage. Nevertheless, there has not been any approved international plan for replacement and protection of the artifacts in the ancient city. The most urgent thing to do is the creation of an independent strategic plan protecting the balance between preservation and sustainable development. Hasankeyf was nominated for the program of "7 Cultural Heritage under Major Threat" in 2016 by "Kültür Bilincini Geliştirme Vakfı" ("Developing Cultural Consciousness Foundation") whose campaign has been supported by many national and international institutions and foundations ( Endangered Site, 2009; Büyük tehlike altındaki 14 yer, 2015).