In many of the world's developing countries, tourism is starting to play a more important role in the improvements of the local and national economies. One of these countries that have started to view tourism as a way to alleviate poverty throughout the country is Nicaragua. With miles of beaches, large swaths of pristine rainforests and beautiful volcanoes, Nicaragua has plenty to offer to travelers from all over the world. One of the sectors of tourism that has rapidly expanded in recent years is that which caters specifically to North American and European surfing tourists, who travel to Nicaragua for the powerful surf found on the Pacific coast. Even though many of the hotels themselves are owned by foreign tourism operators the Nicaraguans have managed to find employment that can provide new alternatives to their traditional means of self-support such as farming and fishing. This study found that the new employment opportunities can allow them access to capital that would have been unheard of as early as five to ten years ago. However, with the emergence of this tourism sector and the rise in popularity of tourism destinations such as Playa Gigante, foreign actors may cause a rise in the overall prices of goods and real estate in the area.
","abstract_html":"<p>In many of the world's developing countries, tourism is starting to play a more important role in the improvements of the local and national economies. One of these countries that have started to view tourism as a way to alleviate poverty throughout the country is Nicaragua. With miles of beaches, large swaths of pristine rainforests and beautiful volcanoes, Nicaragua has plenty to offer to travelers from all over the world. One of the sectors of tourism that has rapidly expanded in recent years is that which caters specifically to North American and European surfing tourists, who travel to Nicaragua for the powerful surf found on the Pacific coast. Even though many of the hotels themselves are owned by foreign tourism operators the Nicaraguans have managed to find employment that can provide new alternatives to their traditional means of self-support such as farming and fishing. This study found that the new employment opportunities can allow them access to capital that would have been unheard of as early as five to ten years ago. However, with the emergence of this tourism sector and the rise in popularity of tourism destinations such as Playa Gigante, foreign actors may cause a rise in the overall prices of goods and real estate in the area.</p>","abstract_has_math":false,"creators":["Earhart, Nicholas Harrison William"],"institution":null,"degree_name":"M.A.","degree_level":"Masters Thesis","degree_discipline":null,"degree_department":null,"school":null,"contributors":["Matthew J. Taylor, Ph.D."],"advisors":[],"committee_chairs":[],"committee_members":[],"year":2015,"date_issued":"2015-01-01T08:00:00Z","date_published":"2015-01-01T08:00:00Z","updated_at":"2026-07-24T02:02:53Z","subjects":["Central America","Development","Nicaragua","Surfing","Surfonomics","Tourism","Geographic Information Sciences","International and Area Studies","Latin American Studies","Nature and Society Relations"],"languages":["en"],"rights":["Copyright is held by the author. User is responsible for all copyright compliance.
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"],"dc:subject":["Central America","Development","Nicaragua","Surfing","Surfonomics","Tourism","Geographic Information Sciences","International and Area Studies","Latin American Studies","Nature and Society Relations"],"dc:title":["The Effects of Surf-Driven Development on the Local Population of Playa Gigante, Nicaragua"],"thesis:degree_level":["Masters Thesis"],"thesis:degree_name":["M.A."]},"updated_at":"2026-07-24T02:02:53Z"}