Political economy and the emergence of a hybrid mode of governance of tourism planning.

This paper examines how Hong Kong's political economy influences its local modes of tourism governance and development planning. The study explores how a destination can exhibit a hybrid mode of tourism governance, and also how that emerged in Hong Kong in relation to three phases of socio-economic and tourism development. The three phases are 1842-1966, 1967-1997, and post-1997. Hong Kong's present mode of tourism governance combines pro-growth and pluralist elements. It is affected by the need for capital accumulation and political legitimacy and by the relative influence of government and civil society.