In the twenty first century, imagery of Nirvana (empty perfect waves breaking in remote exotic locations) fuels a multi-billion dollar global surf industry and drives surfing tourism to every surfable coast from Iceland to Antarctica. Focusing on Indonesias Mentawai Islands, home to the worlds richest surf fields and the largest fleet of surf charter boats ever assembled, this book develops a new theory of the social construction of surfing tourist space. This theory of Nirvanification expands previous notions of tourist space and explores how socially constructed surfing tourist space is...

Whilst being an ambiguous and contested concept, sustainability has become one of the 21^st century s most pervasive ideas, as humanity s increasing impact on the environment, as well as increasing social and economic inequalities, have local and global consequences. Surfing is a globally recognised cultural phenomena whose unique connection with nature and rapid expansion into a multibillion pound industry offers exciting synergies for exploring various dimensions of sustainability.

This book is the first to bring together the world s foremost experts on the themes of...