The Role Of Tour Operators in Sustainable Tourism

Despite the central role they hold as the link in the supply chain , the connection between the tourist and the destination and as the key element in the tourism system, their role in destination sustainability remains an under researched field. As a consequence of their key position,changes in the tour operators, behaviour towards more sustainable patterns of operation have the potential to drive changes in the primary producers of tourist services on one hand, and on the tourists on the other. They exert a great deal of influence in relation to sustainable tourism, they are in a position to dictate whether a destination achieves sustainable tourism whilst at their worst they represent a bottleneck in achieving sustainable development. And though destination specific issues may dictate the level of control they excercise, maturity in the market and demand in more experiencial tourism, tour operators need to capitalize on market potential, avoid negative PR or censure by consumers has been the driver towards more responsible action by operators. Kenya as a Case study avails a rich experience in investigating the interrelationship and barriers to sustainability.