DESIGN AND EVALUATION OF THE NATURAL LAND
FORM AND FEATURES OF A TOURIST HOLIDAY RESORT CENTRE
CHAPTER ONE
1.0 INTRODUCTION
1.1
BACKGROUND OF THE STUDY
There urge in
man to discover the unknown, to explore new and peculiar places, to find a
change in the environment and to have new experiences are some of the basic
reasons why people move from their location to other places Robinson, (1976).
The intrinsic connection that exists between man and nature is indeed one that
cannot be overemphasized. Man’s inquisitive nature leads him to explore and
unravel such mysteries that nature holds in her coffers, which keeps him bound
to its beauty and be stores on him a sense of awe and sensation whenever he is
within the natural environment.
Our natural
environment, with some of these peculiar features of nature can be developed to
be explored through tourism, which is now a fast growing sector in different
nations today. Initially, tourist centres, as well as places with high tourism
potentials were mostly neglected, but have become a major focus point of most
economy because of its advantages as it improves the economy, provides means
for relaxation, brings humans to a close interaction with the natural
environment, it creates and open ways for development of places.
An average human have a natural desire to
relax and relieve himself from the stress that life has imposed upon him due to
his daily activities, especially in this so-called golden age where our world
today finds itself, which is responsible for the various depressions of the
society. Hence he looks forward to a place where he finds comfort in nature, an
environment where he is able to live his normal life and still have a feel of
or be in contact with the natural environment.
Nigeria is one
of the richly blessed nations in the world, especially in Africa, with high
tourism potentials existing in most areas within the country, giving its
diverse natural features and land forms ranging from beautiful waterfalls,
rivers, natural lakes and streams to beautiful massive rocks and stones, pure
vegetation, stunning land forms and topography, and a lot monuments that
reflects the cultural values of the people and also tells of the ancient origin
and history of different cultures, traditions, places and activities. These
features are in a way scares in many other regions in the world, and hence,
serve as an advantage as it serves as opportunity to generate income, encourage
even development, promote tourism based rural enterprises, generate employment
and accelerate rural urban integration and cultural exchange. Tourism have a
large impact on bio-physical environment, and most of Nigeria’s natural
landscapes and features are eco-sensitive areas and exploring them as tourist
destinations would be of great advantage.
The world today
is involved with a lot of activities in which our nature is being tampered with
and re-modified to a great extent that disrupts the beauty and comfort of the
natural environment. It is indeed necessary to explore and harness the natural
environment within us, and one of the means in which this can be achieved is
through tourism. Tsui (1999) stated that the assets of nature can and ought to
be an integral aspect ofarchitecture,
and that within the beauty of nature is an intelligence that is eternal.
Furthermore, Olgyay (1981) postulated that the desirable procedure in design
would be to work with the forces of nature and not against them, and to exploit
their potentialities to create better conditions of life.
1.2 PROBLEM STATEMENT
Traditionally,
tourist centres are attracted commonly to the least developed regions, and
hence the desires and expectations of a tourist when visiting such centres is
thus a boundless exciting new experience that is intrinsic and connected to its
location, the people in such places, traditional and its cultural differences
of the place.
However, many of
the resorts do not bare the interest for the tourists and the people of the
local communities as it ought, its sometimes planned and designed in a way that
there is no harmony between the natural landforms and features such as the
facilities. Hence, the major expectation that attracts people to resorts is
being ignored. Therefore, this research shall focus on the means of planning
and designing a holiday resort to harmonize and blend with its natural site.
1.3 AIM AND OBJECTIVES
This study is aimed at evaluating
the natural land form and features of a resort environment, and integrating it
in the design of a tourist holiday resort.
The objectives are:
- Study of
existing resort environments where nature is harnessed - Evaluate
the different natural features and land forms that exist in the resort
environment through a site analysis - To
determine the means in which natural environment and features can be
integrated into a resort design - To
produce a prototype design for a holiday resort in Jebba-North, Niger
state.
1.4 JUSTIFICATION OF THE STUDY
Tsui (1999)
maintained that the qualities of nature can and ought to be an integral aspect
of ourarchitecture, and that within
the beauty of nature is an intelligence that is eternal. Without excessively
tampering with the natural features of the environment, a space can be created
within it to satisfy the activities of man. Our natural environment often times
is being altered and distorted greatly by man in order to achieve his
innovations. This has caused an unbalance in the eco system and also leads to a
lot of manmade features existing around us. This study is then justified based
on the fact that it is important for us to preserve our natural environment and
also live and plan our activities with the inclusion of nature, and also it the
importance of harnessing nature and its features and integrating it into the
activities of man.
1.5 SCOPE AND LIMITATIONS
The scope of
this study involves providing a resort design that integrates natural features
in it, and promotes relaxation and also have the natural environment fully
incorporated into it, without neglecting the proper management of public space.
The resort centre will provide facilities such as
A hotel
An events centre
Cinema
Space for some outdoor activities
such as fishing, canoeing, outdoor games and sporte
Children playgrounds
Administrative offices
Fitness facilities
Restaurants and shops.
LIMITATIONS
The main limitation posed to this
research is the inability of the researcher to gain full access into most
resort centres in the country for research purpose, especially the interior
spaces, due to the present security challenge, and this might limit the
precision in the data representation.
1.6 CONTRIBUTION TO KNOWLEDGE
This research
study is meant to establish that nature is an important aspect of architecture.
This study hence brings people’s minds towards the importance and the positive
effect of nature of man, and the necessity to blend the natural environment and
natural features existing in a particular environment into the built
environments. This research is to bring to lime light the importance of
blending the features of a given site into architectural constructions and
building structures. It will also serve as basis for further research in this
area. On completing this research project, knowledge should be contributed
through. This research will also aid a clearer insight into the understanding
and means of applying natural elements in architecture and also proper
integration of the building design with the natural environment.
1.7 STUDY AREA
Nature once held a secret. “…a century of
heroic deeds… a monumental stargazing cenotaph, a rocky spectre that spawned as
much folk tales as its true origin…all guarded by an epic river that seemed to
outlive man himself”, a place worthy to be called natures curator; Jebba
is a town in Kwara State, one of the 36 states in Nigeria and its location is
on coordinates 9°9′14″N 4°48′43″E. The population of Jebba was estimated to be
22,411 by the NCC in 2007. The town is comprised of two main parts which are
Jebba North and South; Jebba south falls under Kwara State while Jebba North is
in Niger State. The major occupations practiced by the people in Jebba are
trade, fishing and farming, then a few make up the civil servant population.
The Nigerian paper mill, which is the largest paper mill in the whole of West
Africa, is situated in this great town, as well as the Jebba dam, which happens
to be one of Nigeria’s three Hydro Electric Dams. It also has a monument of Mungo
Park; in remembrance of the shipwreck which took place there, while he tried to
trace the source of the Niger,
located on the hill side along the river NigerBridge.
There are also beautiful views of the historic Niger River
from different angles, and many other environmental features. There have been
some effort to promote Jebba as a tourism destination, as they can take
advantage of the monuments, the rock hill called Juju Rock has also attracted
considerable interest of rock climbers and tourists, the river Niger present,
and the vast natural environmental features.