Beaches, Ruins, Resorts

Beaches, Ruins, Resorts

The Politics of Tourism in the Arab World

Waleed Hazbun
Table of Contents
PRESS:
H-Net review

$25.00 paper
ISBN: 978-0-8166-5492-5

$75.00 cloth
ISBN: 978-0-8166-5491-8

How Arab states use tourism for their own ends.

Despite being viewed as a dangerous region to visit, leisure travel across the Middle East has thrived even in the post–9/11 era. In Beaches, Ruins, Resorts, Waleed Hazbun investigates this overlooked industry to show how tourism is shaping the economic development and international relations of the region in dramatic ways.

Following Europeans seeking Mediterranean beaches, Israelis crossing into Jordan as leisure tourists, and visitors discovering Dubai, Hazbun offers an original perspective on the Middle East and North Africa and challenges common portrayals of Arab nations as disconnected from the rest of the world. Rather, Hazbun reveals how government elites are using tourism to take part in globalization while, at the same time, crafting it to serve state interests. Paradoxically, the expansion of travel in the region has allowed states to encourage integration into the global economy while simultaneously expanding control over their society. Beaches, Ruins, Resorts also explores tourism’s broader beneficial effects on the region, such as aiding the peace process between Israel and Jordan, fostering Tunisia’s economic connection with Europe, and transforming Arab cities into hubs of international travel.

Hazbun tells the new and surprising story of how the draw of glittering beaches, luxury hotels and resorts, and sightseeing at ancient ruins impact the Arab world—promoting both economic globalization and political authoritarianism. In doing so, Beaches, Ruins, Resorts provides a much-needed guide for those interested in the changing nature of this fraught region and its place in the world.

“Hazbun’s work is very well-researched and well-crafted. Indeed, the book makes an overdue addition to several contemporary debates on Middle Eastern political economy, delivering what it promises and engaging the reader in the process.” —The Middle East Journal

“An eye-opening book. Hazbun’s writing is articulate and detailed, but still accessible for non-specialists.” —Multicultural Review

Waleed Hazbun is assistant professor of political science at Johns Hopkins University.

360 pages | 16 b&w photos, 8 tables | 6 x 9 | 2008

TABLE OF CONTENTS

Abbreviations

Introduction: Tourism, Territory, and the Politics of Globalization

1. Fordism on the Beach: Tunisia and the International Division of Leisure

2. Images of Openness, Spaces of Control: Tourism in Tunisia’s New Era

3. The Geopolitics of Tourism and the Making of the New Middle East

4. The Territorial Politics of Tourism in Jordan

5. The View from Dubai: Post–9/11 Geographies of Travel

Acknowledgments
Notes
Bibliography
Index

[an error occurred while processing this directive]
[an error occurred while processing this directive]



Beaches, Ruins, Resorts *The Politics of Tourism in the Arab World* Waleed Hazbun Table of Contents PRESS: H-Net review		$25.00 paper ISBN: 978-0-8166-5492-5 $75.00 cloth ISBN: 978-0-8166-5491-8
How Arab states use tourism for their own ends. Despite being viewed as a dangerous region to visit, leisure travel across the Middle East has thrived even in the post–9/11 era. In Beaches, Ruins, Resorts, Waleed Hazbun investigates this overlooked industry to show how tourism is shaping the economic development and international relations of the region in dramatic ways. Following Europeans seeking Mediterranean beaches, Israelis crossing into Jordan as leisure tourists, and visitors discovering Dubai, Hazbun offers an original perspective on the Middle East and North Africa and challenges common portrayals of Arab nations as disconnected from the rest of the world. Rather, Hazbun reveals how government elites are using tourism to take part in globalization while, at the same time, crafting it to serve state interests. Paradoxically, the expansion of travel in the region has allowed states to encourage integration into the global economy while simultaneously expanding control over their society. Beaches, Ruins, Resorts also explores tourism’s broader beneficial effects on the region, such as aiding the peace process between Israel and Jordan, fostering Tunisia’s economic connection with Europe, and transforming Arab cities into hubs of international travel. Hazbun tells the new and surprising story of how the draw of glittering beaches, luxury hotels and resorts, and sightseeing at ancient ruins impact the Arab world—promoting both economic globalization and political authoritarianism. In doing so, Beaches, Ruins, Resorts provides a much-needed guide for those interested in the changing nature of this fraught region and its place in the world. “Hazbun’s work is very well-researched and well-crafted. Indeed, the book makes an overdue addition to several contemporary debates on Middle Eastern political economy, delivering what it promises and engaging the reader in the process.” —The Middle East Journal “An eye-opening book. Hazbun’s writing is articulate and detailed, but still accessible for non-specialists.” —Multicultural Review Waleed Hazbun is assistant professor of political science at Johns Hopkins University. 360 pages \| 16 b&w photos, 8 tables \| 6 x 9 \| 2008 TABLE OF CONTENTS Abbreviations Introduction: Tourism, Territory, and the Politics of Globalization 1. Fordism on the Beach: Tunisia and the International Division of Leisure 2. Images of Openness, Spaces of Control: Tourism in Tunisia’s New Era 3. The Geopolitics of Tourism and the Making of the New Middle East 4. The Territorial Politics of Tourism in Jordan 5. The View from Dubai: Post–9/11 Geographies of Travel Acknowledgments Notes Bibliography Index