Reviewing the Scale of Travel and Tourism
Throughout this unit, we've explored how travel and tourism has grown to become one of the world's largest industries. Let's review the key concepts and prepare for your assessment.
Key Definitions:
- Tourism: The activities of people travelling to and staying in places outside their usual environment for leisure, business or other purposes.
- Domestic tourism: Residents of a country travelling within that country.
- Inbound tourism: Non-residents travelling in a given country.
- Outbound tourism: Residents of a country travelling to another country.
- Mass tourism: Large numbers of people visiting popular holiday destinations for recreation or leisure.
★ Global Tourism Growth
Tourism has seen extraordinary growth over the past 70 years. In 1950, there were just 25 million international tourist arrivals worldwide. By 2019 (pre-pandemic), this had grown to 1.5 billion arrivals. This represents a 60-fold increase! The industry now accounts for about 10% of global GDP and 1 in 10 jobs worldwide.
★ Factors Driving Tourism Growth
Several key factors have contributed to this massive growth: increased leisure time, rising disposable incomes, improved transportation (especially affordable air travel), technological advancements like online booking and changing social attitudes that value travel experiences. The growing middle class in emerging economies has also fuelled tourism expansion.
Economic Impacts of Tourism
Tourism creates both positive and negative economic effects that you need to understand for your assessment.
+ Positive Economic Impacts
- Job creation (direct and indirect)
- Foreign exchange earnings
- Infrastructure development
- Tax revenue generation
- Multiplier effect on local economies
− Negative Economic Impacts
- Economic leakage (profits leaving the country)
- Seasonal employment issues
- Over-dependence on tourism
- Inflation in tourist areas
- Opportunity costs of development
✓ Measuring Economic Impact
- Tourism Satellite Accounts (TSAs)
- Direct contribution to GDP
- Employment statistics
- Tourism income multiplier
- Balance of payments contribution
Social and Environmental Impacts
Tourism isn't just about economics - it has profound effects on people and places.
Social Impacts of Tourism
Tourism creates interactions between different cultures and can transform local communities:
+ Positive Social Impacts
- Cultural exchange and understanding
- Preservation of local traditions and heritage
- Improved quality of life through better facilities
- Educational opportunities
- Reduced migration from rural areas
− Negative Social Impacts
- Commodification of culture
- Demonstration effect (locals adopting tourist behaviours)
- Overcrowding and tourist fatigue
- Increased crime in some destinations
- Loss of authenticity and cultural identity
Environmental Impacts of Tourism
Tourism's relationship with the environment is complex and requires careful management:
+ Positive Environmental Impacts
- Conservation of natural areas (parks, reserves)
- Protection of wildlife through tourism value
- Increased environmental awareness
- Funding for environmental projects
- Incentives for cleaner infrastructure
− Negative Environmental Impacts
- Carbon emissions from transportation
- Habitat destruction for development
- Water and energy consumption
- Waste generation and pollution
- Degradation of natural attractions
Case Study Focus: Venice, Italy
Venice exemplifies the challenges of mass tourism. With around 30 million visitors annually but only 55,000 residents, the city faces:
- Economic benefits: Tourism generates €3 billion annually and supports thousands of jobs
- Environmental challenges: Cruise ships cause pollution and damage to the lagoon ecosystem
- Social issues: Rising housing costs have driven locals out and crowds make daily life difficult
- Management responses: Entry fees for day visitors, cruise ship restrictions and promotion of off-season tourism
This case study demonstrates how even successful tourist destinations must balance economic benefits with environmental and social sustainability.
Measuring and Analysing Tourism
For your assessment, you'll need to understand how tourism is measured and analysed:
★ Key Tourism Statistics
- Tourist arrivals: The number of visitors entering a destination
- Tourist nights: The total number of nights spent by tourists
- Average length of stay: Nights divided by arrivals
- Tourism receipts: Money spent by tourists in the destination
- Tourism expenditure: Money spent by residents travelling abroad
- Tourism balance: The difference between receipts and expenditure
★ Data Sources and Analysis
- UNWTO: United Nations World Tourism Organization statistics
- National tourism offices: Country-specific data
- Border counts: Immigration data on arrivals
- Accommodation statistics: Hotel occupancy rates
- Visitor surveys: Information on spending and satisfaction
- Big data: Mobile phone tracking, social media analysis
Sustainable Tourism Development
A critical concept for your assessment is understanding how tourism can be developed sustainably:
♦ Economic Sustainability
Tourism that creates lasting economic benefits for local communities through fair wages, local ownership and reduced leakage. Examples include community-based tourism initiatives and local supply chain integration.
♦ Social Sustainability
Tourism that respects local cultures, involves communities in decision-making and distributes benefits fairly. This includes cultural heritage preservation and authentic cultural exchanges.
♦ Environmental Sustainability
Tourism that minimises environmental impact and contributes to conservation. Examples include eco-tourism, carbon offset programmes and protected area management.
Case Study Focus: Costa Rica's Ecotourism
Costa Rica has successfully positioned itself as a leader in sustainable tourism:
- Protected areas: Over 25% of land is protected as national parks or reserves
- Certification: The Certificate for Sustainable Tourism (CST) programme rates businesses on sustainability
- Economic impact: Tourism accounts for 8.2% of GDP and has helped reduce poverty
- Environmental benefits: Reversed deforestation trend, now has 52% forest cover
- Community involvement: Local cooperatives and small businesses participate in tourism
This case study demonstrates how sustainable tourism can benefit the economy while protecting natural and cultural resources.
Assessment Preparation Tips
As you prepare for your assessment on the Scale of Travel and Tourism, keep these tips in mind:
★ Content Knowledge
- Know your definitions - be precise with tourism terminology
- Understand the factors that have led to tourism growth
- Be able to explain economic, social and environmental impacts
- Learn key statistics about global tourism's scale
- Memorise details from at least two contrasting case studies
★ Exam Technique
- Read questions carefully - identify command words
- Use specific examples to support your points
- Structure longer answers with clear paragraphs
- Balance your discussion of positive and negative impacts
- Include relevant statistics and data where appropriate
- Practise interpreting tourism data and graphs
Remember that examiners are looking for well-balanced answers that show understanding of tourism's complexity. Don't just list facts - explain their significance and how they connect to broader themes in the subject.
