The Impact of The Blue Flag Program to Protect Beaches on The Behavior of Tourists at the Destination

Elgamel, Poussy Mohammed; Fayed, Hanaa Abdelkader; Wafiq, Ghada Mohamed; Zaki, Dalia

doi:10.21608/sis.2022.175129.1105

The Impact of The Blue Flag Program to Protect Beaches on The Behavior of Tourists at the Destination

Document Type : Original Research

Authors

¹ Instructor - High Institute for Hotels, Tourism & Computer, Seyouf, Alexandria; PhD Researcher, Faculty of Tourism and Hotels, Fayoum University

² Professor, Tourism Studies Department, Faculty of Tourism and Hotels, Fayoum University

³ Professor, Tourism Studies Department, High Institute for Hotels, Tourism & Computer, Seyouf, Alexandria

10.21608/sis.2022.175129.1105

Abstract

The Blue Flag program is designed to raise environmental awareness and promote sound environmental practices among tourists, residents, beach and marina management, and staff. The program criteria are designed to work with each country's national, regional, and local legislation. To be eligible for a Blue Flag award, a beach, marina, or boat must meet Tourist set of specific criteria.
This program aims for governments, tourism companies and institutions to continue their participation in nurturing clean and safe water, beautiful landscapes, and a healthy environment. For tourists, the blue flag is an international recognition and a symbol of high-quality beaches, marinas and tourist boats.
This study aims to identify the impact of the possibility of applying the standards of the blue flag program on the behavior of tourists in tourist destinations. The methodology of this study was divided into:
- The literature review that includes everything related to the variables of this study from theories and previous studies.
- The field study, and the environment for tourists in the Egyptian tourist destination.
The results of the study showed that there is an effect of the possibility of applying the program's standards on tourists' purchasing, social and environmental behaviors towards the beaches they frequent in the Egyptian tourist destinations. The study recommended the need to implement the blue flag program for beaches in Egypt as a model for environmental tourism signs to take advantage of its multiple advantages, especially in preserving the environment, and effective marketing of the Egyptian tourist destination worldwide.

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