Case 14: Gold Coast, Queensland

The Gold Coast has long been one of Australia’s iconic destinations. Rapid development by entrepreneurs in the 1960s saw the former coastal fishing and surfing town grow quickly into a city. After many decades of success, market fluctuations and changing consumer patterns the Gold Coast has stagnated as a destination. This case discusses the history of tourism on the Gold Coast and provides a context to some of the modern governance challenges faced by the destination. The findings of an empirical study of social network analysis identify various power relationships in the destination’s governance structure.

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