Recommendations

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 examine the factors that influence it as making it to have international outlook

3.0 MAIN CONTENT

3.1 Global Nature of Tourism

Tourism has become a global phenomenon since it has been discovered to be a pollution free type of industry which also has potential to generate a lot of foreign exchange. The new millennium has witnessed the continued growth of interest in how people spend their spare time, especially their leisure time and non-work time (Stephen, 2009). The interest in leisure outside one’s geographical environment has become international phenomenon called tourism. For example, in 2005 the World Travel and Tourism Council (WTTC) estimated that travel and tourism, as economic activities, generated US$ 6201 billion which is expected to grow to US$10,678.5 billion by 2015. This equates to 4.6 percent growth in the demand for travel and tourism per annum which is far in excess of the scale and pace of growth in the economies of most countries.

The growing trend in international significance of tourism can be explained in many ways which include the following according to Page (2009):

i. Tourism is a discretionary activity. People are not required to undertake it as a basic need to survive, unlike consuming food and water.

ii. Tourism is of growing economic significance at a global scale with growth rate in excess of the rate of economic growth for many countries.

iii. Many governments see tourism as offering new employment opportunities in a growing sector that is focused on service industries and may assist in developing and modernizing the economy.

iv. Tourism is increasingly becoming associated with quality of life issues as it offers people the opportunity to take a break away from the complexities and stresses of everyday life and work. It provides the context for rest, relaxation and an opportunity to do something different in a new environment.

v. Tourism is becoming seen as a basic right in the developed westternised industrialised countries and it is enshrined in legislation regarding holiday entitlement – the result is many people associate holiday entitlement with the propensity (i.e. the potential to engage in) to generate tourism.

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vi. In some less developed countries, tourism is being advocated as a possible solution to poverty (this is described as ‘pro-poor’

tourism strategies), with local people benefitting from this form of economic activity.

vii. Holidays are a defining feature of non-work for many workers.

They have the opportunity to spend their spare time for recreation and enjoyment.

viii. Global travel is becoming more accessible in the developed world for all classes of people with the rise of low-cost airlines and cut-price travel fueling a new wave of demand for tour-demand in the new millennium. This is potentially replicating the demand in the 1960s and 1970s for new popular forms of mass tourism. Much of that earlier growth was fueled by access to transport (i.e. the car and air travel) and this provided new leisure opportunities in the western world.

ix. Consumer spending on discretionary items such as travel and tourism is being perceived as a less costly item in house-hold budgets. It’s also much easier to finance tourism with the rapid rise in credit card spending in developed countries, increasing access to travel opportunities and participation in tourism.

x. Technology such as the internet has made booking travel-related products easy and placed it within the reach of a new generation of computer-literate consumers who are willing to get rid of much of the traditional ritual of going to a travel agent to book the annual holiday to a distance tourist centre. Such technology now opens many possibilities for national and international travel at the click of the computer mouse.

xi. Reductions in the price aeroplane tickets has made international travel and tourism products and services more widely available

SELF-ASSESSMENT EXERCISE

Why is global travel more accessible in the developed world for all classes of people?

4.0 CONCLUSION

This section shows how tourism gained international recognition as major economic activities capable of attracting foreign exchange into a nation. The fact that tourism industry produces less pollution compared to conventional industries made it to be so attractive to nations all over the world. In year 2005, the World Travel and Tourism Council estimated that tourism as economic activity generated USD 6201billion which was also expected to grow to USD 10678.5 billion by 2015. This unit also considered various factors that made tourism a global affair.

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5.0 SUMMARY

The summary of concerns raised in this Unit is that tourism has achieved international dimension because of its ability to attract foreign exchange with less stress. It affords tourists to travel to countries of their choice depending on the kind of pleasure they want to derive from the tourist destination. This informs why many types of tourism exist today. These tourism types are well discussed in this course.

6.0 TUTOR-MARKED ASSIGNMENT

1. Give reasons for tourism as attaining a global recognition.

2. Why is there growing trend in international tourism?

7.0 REFERENCES/FURTHER READING

Ashford, H., Stanton, H., & Moore, C. (1991). Airport Operations.

London: Pitman

Fact-File. (2010). ‘Top-10 African Safari Destinations in Hospitality and Tourism.’ African Hospitality and Tourism, 14 (1): 3-4.

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UNIT 2 DISADVANTAGES, DANGERS AND