An Industry in Decline? The Evolution of Whale-watching Tourism in Hervey Bay, Australia

Australian whale-watching tourism began in Hervey Bay, Queensland in 1987. For 20 years Hervey Bay has been historically promoted as the "whale-watching capital of Australia". However, an increase in whale-watching operations across south-east Queensland and Australia compete for the tourist dollar. While Hervey Bay remains Australia's largest commercial Humpback Whale viewing area based on the number of whales, the number of visitors and the number of boasts that operate, this may be changing. This paper examines the evolution of Hervey Bay whale-watching in relation to the Butler tourism lifecycle model, and Duffus and Dearden's conceptual framework for wildlife tourism. It analyses official visitation data, wildlife records and tour operations information, as well as interviews with tour operators and the protected area management agency. The multi-dimensional nature of the information collected allowed greater capacity for understanding the changes occuring in Hervey bay whale-watching. The results indicate that changing visitor and commercial operator numbers and profiles, increasing regional competition and a changing relationship with the protected area managers may be symptomatic of a maturing industry that has reached a watershed point in its sustainability. The findings of this research have implications for tourism stakeholders including planners, protected area managers and tour operators in relation to changing sector demands and proactive adaptation to those changes