Tourism Students at St Mary’s Undertake Fieldwork in the Czech Republic

Students on the Tourism and Tourism Management undergraduate programmes at St Mary’s University, Twickenham have recently undertaken research during a fieldtrip to the Czech Republic. The seven-day trip, which was organised for second year students on the two courses, saw the group study the local architecture in Prague and a day trip where they investigated the management and promotion of cultural sustainability in the city of Pilsen. They were also able to listen to talks from the Czech Tourist Authority, and representatives from local tourism and management organisations. The students then had the opportunity to undertake their own research using a mix of methodologies including interviews, questionnaires, participant observation and content analysis. There was a wide range of topics studied such as, the economic, social and environmental consequences of tourist development; assessing Prague’s marketing; investigating the policy and strategic planning of tourism at national and EU level; and analysing tourism policy and disability. St Mary’s Programme Director for Tourism Peter Smith said, “The field trip gives students the opportunity to gain practical experience of working in a different tourism environment and culture. It enables them to consider a range of management issues concerned with tourism development, and engage with practitioners and the public in exploring tourism management issues.”