Research Information System
ITW2013 International Tourism Week Conference Series V, Turkey, 1 - 04 April 2013, pp.95-106, (Full Text)
Tourism consists of visits from one place to another in order to relax, enjoy, participate in cultural activities, etc. In long term, sustainability of tourism products and tourism sector depends on the protection of environmental, natural and cultural values and heritage.
Vernacular architecture defines the shape of the original architecture of a particular region. Recent approaches for sustainable tourism include protection of local architecture and its use in tourist facilities as a model, the use of traditional building techniques and local materials. Local architecture, establishing a connection between past and present, has become a new focus in sustainable tourism.
Research in recent years has revealed that trends in increasing interest to what is original and unique in historic and cultural heritage and natural areas and accordingly diverse artistic and cultural activities have become one of the foremost choices of tourists. On the other hand the choice of local architecture and building materials will both provide tourism revenue for local people and tourism companies and, local cuisine culture will flourish architectural continuity will be maintained and local identity of the region will be strengthened.
Public tourism activities gradually began to evolve into individual tourism in Antalya with a special interest of local architecture. For example, in some of the historic settlements in Antalya, like Akseki and Ibradi in south of the Taurus Mountains, mountain villages settled based on natural conditions and human-oriented value judgments have typical Mediterranean character that unique to the region. Recently, local architecture was supported with "7 District 7 City" project by Environment and Cultural Heritage Protection and Promotion Foundation (ÇEKÜL) in cooperation with Chamber of Architects in Antalya in which local houses have been restored. Studies for the entry of the region into the UNESCO World Heritage List are ongoing and in recent years the region is attracting the attention of many domestic and foreign tourists accommodating in inner city local houses.
Antalya is accepted as the tourism capital of Turkey and mostly mentioned with public tourism, but the region's unique natural and cultural features have also high potential for sustainable tourism in which local architecture play an important role. Today in old town Kaleici and Kas many historic buildings have been restored for tourism facilities as pensions, restaurants and entertainment venues and did not loss their functionality due to tourism.
In this study the role of local architecture in sustainable tourism will be discussed and some examples from Antalya region will be analysed with a focus on the importance of local architecture, advantages and potentials for sustainable tourism. Study results would provide a wider framework for unique local architecture and new modelling for new accommodation facilities in tourism with regard to Mediterranean conditions, material used and functional and aesthetic properties that can be benefited