Impacts of Travel and Tourism: The Darker Side
While tourism brings many economic benefits to destinations, it can also lead to significant social and cultural challenges. This session explores three key negative impacts: commodification, crime and culture clash.
Key Definitions:
- Commodification: The process of turning cultural practices, traditions and artefacts into products that can be bought and sold.
- Culture clash: Conflict that occurs when tourists and locals with different values, behaviours and expectations interact.
- Socio-cultural impacts: The effects that tourism has on local communities, their traditions and way of life.
💰 Commodification of Culture
Commodification happens when local cultures, traditions and ceremonies are changed or adapted to satisfy tourist expectations. This can lead to:
- Loss of authenticity as cultural practices become performances
- Standardisation of cultural products to meet tourist expectations
- Cheapening of sacred traditions when they become tourist attractions
🎭 Examples of Commodification
Common examples include:
- Mass-produced "authentic" souvenirs made in factories
- Traditional ceremonies shortened or modified for tourist schedules
- Cultural villages where indigenous people perform daily activities for tourists
- Religious sites becoming photo opportunities rather than places of worship
Tourism and Crime
The relationship between tourism and crime is complex. Tourists can be both victims and causes of increased criminal activity in destinations.
How Tourism Can Influence Crime
Tourism development can affect crime rates in several ways:
👿 Opportunistic Crime
Tourists often carry valuable items (cameras, phones, cash) and may be less vigilant in unfamiliar surroundings, making them targets for:
- Pickpocketing
- Bag snatching
- Tourist scams
💵 Economic Crime
The wealth gap between tourists and locals can lead to:
- Theft and robbery
- Currency fraud
- Overcharging
- Black markets
🍸 Tourism-Specific Crime
Some criminal activities emerge specifically to serve tourists:
- Drug trafficking
- Sex tourism
- Counterfeit goods
- Illegal wildlife trade
Case Study Focus: Crime in Barcelona
Barcelona, Spain has become notorious for pickpocketing and theft targeting tourists. In 2019, the city reported over 300 thefts per day during peak season, with tourists being the primary victims. Thieves target crowded areas like Las Ramblas, Sagrada Familia and beaches. The city has responded by:
- Increasing police presence in tourist areas
- Creating a special police unit focused on crimes against tourists
- Launching awareness campaigns to educate visitors
- Installing CCTV in high-risk areas
Despite these efforts, the problem persists, affecting Barcelona's reputation as a tourist destination.
Culture Clash: When Worlds Collide
Culture clash occurs when tourists and locals with different cultural backgrounds, values and behaviours interact, often leading to misunderstandings and conflict.
😮 Causes of Culture Clash
Several factors contribute to culture clash in tourism:
- Different values: Tourists may have different attitudes toward time, privacy and personal space
- Language barriers: Communication problems can lead to misunderstandings
- Behaviour differences: Tourists may unknowingly violate local customs (dress codes, photography, alcohol consumption)
- Economic disparities: Visible wealth differences between tourists and locals can cause resentment
😓 Impacts of Culture Clash
The consequences of culture clash can include:
- Local resentment toward tourists
- Stereotyping on both sides
- Loss of cultural identity
- Conflict between generations as young people adopt tourist behaviours
- Demonstration effect - locals imitating tourist lifestyles
- Anti-tourism movements in extreme cases
Case Study Focus: Bali, Indonesia
Bali has experienced significant cultural impacts from mass tourism:
- Commodification: Traditional Balinese dances have been shortened and modified to entertain tourists, losing religious significance
- Culture clash: Tourists often violate sacred temple dress codes despite signage and guidelines
- Crime: Increase in theft, scams and drug-related offences in tourist areas
In 2019, Bali announced plans to introduce a "tourist tax" to help fund cultural preservation and address these issues. The island has also created stricter rules about tourist behaviour at temples and sacred sites.
Managing Negative Socio-Cultural Impacts
Destinations can implement various strategies to minimise the negative impacts of tourism while preserving local culture and maintaining safety.
📝 Education & Awareness
- Tourist education through guidebooks, signs and visitor centres
- Cultural orientation for visitors
- Codes of conduct for tourists
- Training local communities to manage tourism
🔧 Regulation & Control
- Limiting visitor numbers to sensitive sites
- Enforcing strict rules at cultural sites
- Licensing authentic craft producers
- Increased security in tourist areas
- Penalties for inappropriate behaviour
🏠 Community Involvement
- Including locals in tourism planning
- Community-owned tourism enterprises
- Fair distribution of tourism benefits
- Cultural preservation programmes
- Encouraging authentic cultural exchanges
Examining the Balance
While this session has focused on negative impacts, it's important to remember that tourism can also have positive socio-cultural effects, including:
- Preservation of cultural traditions that might otherwise disappear
- Renewed pride in local culture and heritage
- Cultural exchange and increased understanding between different groups
- Improved facilities that benefit both tourists and locals
The key to sustainable tourism development is finding a balance that maximises these benefits while minimising the negative impacts we've discussed.
Exam Tip!
For your iGCSE exam, be prepared to:
- Define key terms like commodification and culture clash
- Provide specific examples of these impacts from real destinations
- Explain both positive and negative socio-cultural impacts of tourism
- Discuss strategies that can help manage negative impacts
- Evaluate the effectiveness of different management approaches
Case studies are particularly valuable for demonstrating your understanding of these concepts!