Topic 5: Global Tourism

KQ1: How does the nature of tourism vary from place to place?

Who are the tourists?

Tourists are people who travel and stay away from their normal place of residence for more than 24 hours

How do tourist destinations differ from one another?

Tourism may be categorised according to types of attractions offered to tourists. Different places and environments provide different opportunities for tourist activities:

  • Places of scenic beauty

    • mountain regions, coastal resorts, national parks offer opportunities for honeypot tourism (e.g. Grand Canyon National Park in USA)

  • Places with good facilities

    • MICE facilities offer opportunities to host large-scale events to attract tourists (e.g. Singapore hosted the Youth Olympic Games in 2010)

    • Medical tourism (e.g. Singapore is a reputable medical hub in Southeast Asia)

    • Theme parks (e.g. Disneyland in Japan)

  • Places with rich culture offer opportunities for

    • heritage tourism (e.g. Machu Picchu in Peru)

    • film-induced tourism (e.g. Lotte World in South Korea is the filming site for Stairway to Heaven),

    • pilgrimage tourism (e.g. Mecca in Saudi Arabia),

  • Places of conflicts offer opportunities for dark tourism (e.g. Tuoi Sleng Genocide Museum in Cambodia),

Role of different groups in tourism

  • Government

  • Media (e.g. travel writers)

  • International organisations

KQ2: Why has tourism become a global phenomenon?

In what ways is tourism changing?

What influences tourism trends?

  • Trends in global tourism industry in terms of destinations, country of origin and tourist dollars for:

    • Domestic tourism,

    • International tourism,

  • Evolution of mass tourism in the form of the package holiday to niche tourism such as eco-tourism

  • Development of short haul destinations and the growth of long haul destinations

Why is tourism subject to regional fluctuation?

Reasons for the growth of global tourism

  • Developments in technology

    • Better and affordable transport

    • E-services: online booking of tours and tickets

    • Ease of access of information

  • Demand factors arising from changing profile of tourists

    • Disposable income

    • Leisure time

    • Changing lifestyle

  • Destination factors

    • Attractions

    • Investment in infrastructure and services

    • Access to information

Impacts of events that hinder the growth of tourism

  • Disasters (e.g. Japan tsunamis 2011)

  • Recessions (e.g. Global recession of 2008 -2011)

  • Political Situations (e.g. Thailand political unrest in 2010)

  • Diseases (e.g. Germany E-Colio outbreak in 2010)

KQ3: Developing tourism at what cost?

What is the impact of tourism?

  • Economic

    • Advantages

      • employment opportunities,

      • growth in income,

      • development of infrastructure and facilities

    • Disadvantages

      • seasonal unemployment

      • under-use of facilities at certain times of the year

      • shortage of services

  • Socio-cultural

    • Advantages

      • preservation of local customs and heritage

    • Disadvantages

      • dilution of local customs and heritage,

      • increased crime

  • Environmental

    • Advantages

      • conservation of natural environments

    • Disadvantages

      • vandalism,

      • littering and pollution

      • destruction of habitat,

      • carbon footprint,

      • increased congestion

How are the impacts of tourism managed?

  • Conservation of fragile environments

  • Promote sustainable tourism (through laws and regulation and support from local population

  • Responsibilities of various groups

    • local communities through community-based tourism

    • visitors,

    • tour operators,

    • planning authorities,

    • non-governmental organizations (e.g.The International Eco-tourism Society)

Case study: 2 contrasting types of tourist attractions in Singapore (e.g. coastal areas, theme parks, heritage sites, urban areas)

  1. What is the nature of tourist activity?

  2. What is the impact of the development of tourism on the area where they are located as well as the whole country?

  3. How is the impact managed?

  4. Is tourism a way for the area or country to develop?