Developing a GIS based tourism information system for hambantota district
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Date
2008
Authors
Marasinghe, B. S
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Journal ISSN
Volume Title
Publisher
University of Peradeniya
Abstract
Presently Hambantota generates a low income compare to the other two districts in the southern province, even though there are famous tourism destinations situated within or around the Hambantota District such as Kathragama, Yala, and Sithulpawwa. This is due to many foreign tourists visiting with package tour (usually from Colombo). These are pre decided and due to lack of management and tourism marketing the district is virtually unknown.
Government and Non-Government organizations attempted to promote tourism industry since 2006 but it suffered some major drawbacks due to the lack of a comprehensive spatial database of tourist facilities and destinations.
In this study, tourism and attribute data gathered by field survey are classified in to three categories namely Cultural, Ecological and Modern day tourism. Then GIS database was created using ArcGIS 9.2 and maps, pictures and flash clips were integrated to the system. Additionally network analysis dataset was used to take advantages of GIS possibilities for tourism. New tools were created using “Model builder” to carry Network Analyst in GIS and results of these directive forward tourism will be presented. The developed GIS database provides valuable and selective information to tourists to plan travel routes, accommodation, etc. Travelers are also able to visualize tourist sites through digital images and flash clips. It can be defined as a common platform for relevant authorities for archiving, analyzing and displaying of tourist information for the efficient management and promotion of tourism industry in Hambantota district.
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Keywords
Earth Sciences , GIS , Tourism , Hambantota