Tourism

● Tourism is a rapidly growing industry and has far-reaching economic and environmental impact across the world.
● In 2010, 940 million people were recorded as arriving in a country from abroad because of tourism.
● This is worth $919 billion dollars, making tourism one of the worlds largest industries.

Cause of the growth of tourism:

● Social/Economic
- increase in car ownership
- increase in leisure time by; holday entitlement, shorter working week, early retirement with pensions and ageing population
- greater wealth from; larger incomes, less children, two wage earner families

● Chnages in technology
- Motorways
- Jet aircraft
- Computer reservation systems
- Internet on line booking

● Product Development
- Package holidays
- Theme Parks
- Activity holidays
- Weekend breaks
- Ecotourism

Impacts of tourism

● Local
+ more sales to tourists
- displacement of local people because of rising house prices
- lack of community spirit due to holiday homes being empty most of the year

● Global
+ creates money for countries
- all the travelling leads to global climate change

● Social
- Urban development eg. Las Vegas
- Congestion - pressure on local services
+ Quality of life increases - more money for healthcare
- money goes to different people - could widen the gao between rich and poor
- some of the clothes worn could be disrespectful
- jealous of tourists wealth
- mass production of cultural objects - loses meaning
- culture changed to suit tourists

● Economic
+ Jobs created
- high rates of unemployment - Gull Coast, Queensland
- overly dependent on tourism - Maldives

● Environmental
- Mass tourism - Ohio - high rise hotels near beach = erosion on the beach
- Constant traffic in delicate ecosystem
- Coral reef damage - sea walls/anchors/divers
- Rubbish sorted
- Great damage in places where its flourished without thought for long term effects
- Problems won't keeo tourists away