Community-based tourism in Cape Verde - a case study

Abstract

Community-based tourism is taking its place in the world as an alternative to traditional tourist destinations, especially in developing countries. This form of tourism allows for greater contact with the local community and for the tourist to experience new sensations while enabling the economic and social development of the geographic area. In this paper, the results of fieldwork carried out in the island of Fogo (Cape Verde) are presented, assessing the opinion and perception tourists visiting this island have of both the quality of the services offered by community-based tourism enterprises, as well as the potential of the tourism resources in the area. The main results of the investigation endorse the quality of services offered to tourists by local businesses and highlight the hospitality of the local community, a key element for the development of this kind of tourism, particularly in different african countries. Similarly, it highlights the passenger satisfaction with services received and the need to strengthen the training to tourism staff through aid, for example, international cooperation, NGOs and universities. The originality of this research comes from analysis of the demand made on a concrete island of Cape Verde, a country which is producing a huge economic development through the tourism sector.