Sustainability of the tourism industry depends very significantly on the quality and proper management of assets such as cultural heritage, man-made structures, events and natural resources (e.g. wildlife, beaches, and mountains). Due to uninhibited rapid increase in the economic indicators of tourism globally, several destinations have experienced excessive number of visitors while some have witnessed visitor rowdiness and delinquency. Therefore, demarketing a strategy utilised to regulate the level and character of actual and future demand by organisations including enterprises has been applied in the tourism industry. This paper examines the evolution of the literature on demarketing in the tourism industry between 1989 and 2017, its theoretical and conceptual development as well as the practical contexts of its application for demand regulation. All the publications scrutinised were obtained online and each was content analysed. Results of the study indicate that the major rationale for demarketing in tourism are to: maintain ecological integrity by regulating excessive demand that is, discourage too many people from visiting ecologically sensitive tourism assets like national parks, game reserves and other excessively patronised natural resources; curtail socially unacceptable consumption in form of rowdiness and misconduct at destinations. The overarching implication of the study is that demarketing constitutes a robust strategy for realising and maintaining sustainable tourism development. However, for success it must be well targeted, monitored and evaluated.

Keywords : Marketing, Ecological Integrity, Sustainability, Over-tourism, Behaviour.