Travel and tourism
People travel or move from one place to another for different reasons, such as:
-for business
-to visit friends or family, or
-for pleasure, recreation or self-improvement
People who travel for pleasure or recreation are called tourists - though of course they may combine tourist activities such as visiting the historic sites with business meetings or visiting friends.
Changing patterns of tourism
The nature of tourism is changing. The holidays taken by people who live in MEDCs, such as the UK, are longer, more expensive and more frequent than those taken by previous generations. There are many reasons for this change.
-People can afford to take more holidays. People earn more money today and are paid by their employer while on holiday. (This is called holiday pay.)
-Lifestyles and interests have changed. People are looking for more active holidays often in more exotic locations.
-The nature of employment has changed. Flexible working hours and the ease to take leave from work outside the traditional holiday times of Christmas, Easter and mid-summer, means that workers can take their holidays at different times throughout the year.
-People have more holiday allowance from work. On average people in the UK have three weeks of holiday a year. Consequently, many people in the UK will go on holiday more than once a year.
-Greater availability of cheap flights from Budget Airlines has allowed people to travel to more destinations, often for long-weekends in Europe.
-A better range of package holidays make it easier for people to book a greater variety of trip.
-Tourism is an important part of many countries' economies so countries will actively encourage tourists.
-The internet has made it easier for people to gather information about destinations and book flights, car hire and accommodation around the world
Holidays: supply and demand
Like any market, the market in holidays is dominated by supply and demand. Tourists travel for different reasons and will choose a holiday that suits their requirements. Some of the things that people like to experience on holiday are:-different cultures and traditions
-beautiful landscapes
-recreational activities, such as extreme sports
-rare ecosystems and wildlife, such as going on a safari or taking a conservation holiday.
These requirements for different types of holiday add up to a demand
The supply of holidays comes from the holiday companies who organise and sell holidays designed to appeal to particular requirements of each group of tourists. Many of these are highly organised holidays with travel, accomodation and activities all paid for in advance - so-called package holidays.
Tourism as a business
Tourism is an important part of many countries' economies. In LEDCs, revenue from tourism can be invested in building schools and hospitals and improving transport infrastructure - thus helping economic development.Most countries, LEDCs and MEDCs alike, actively encourage tourists and foster the development of the sites that will attract them. Profits can be made from providing accommodation, food and souvenirs for tourists during their stay.
Tourism is part of the services or tertiary sector of a country's economy. In the UK it's one of the most important parts of the economy - providing jobs for 2.1 million people or 7% of the working population. Their customers are both foreign and domestic tourists, with domestic holidaymakers outnumbering those from abroad
-27.5 million visits were made to the UK by foreign tourists in 2004 - more than 2003.
-Most popular destination for foreign visitors is London (47 %). Only 10 % of foreign tourists visit either Scotland or Wales.
-Western Europe was where most visitors came from (64 %) followed by North America (16 %)
-Most popular method of transport was aeroplane (71 %). Heathrow is the most popular airport.
-Average length of stay for foreign visitors is 8 nights.
-Income from domestic tourism was 86 % of the money made by the UK tourism industry as a whole.
-151 million visits were made to UK destinations by UK residents in 2003.
-Trip duration averaged 3 nights - much shorter than overseas visits.
-Pleasure/leisure accounts for 47 % of trips, followed by visiting relatives and friends (28 percent).
-Most popular holiday period is the 3rd quarter of the year (July, August and September) - followed by the 2nd quarter (April, May and June).
-Most popular destination is the South West of Britain, followed by the South East.
-Favourite method of transport was car (73 %).
-Most popular activity while on holiday was walking (3 times more so than the next most popular - visiting heritage sites). Others are swimming, viewing artistic exhibits, watching performing arts and visiting theme parks.
-Top 10 overseas destinations in 2003 were Spain, France, Irish Republic, USA, Italy, Greece,
Netherlands, Germany, Belgium and Portugal. Tourism is important to the economies of all these countries.
-Number of trips abroad by UK residents was 61.4 million - two-fifths of the trips made in the UK.
-Average duration of foreign trips was 10 days - more than 3 times the average domestic trip.
-Most popular method of travel for overseas trips was aeroplane (77 percent), followed by ferry and channel tunnel.
-Most popular reason for travelling abroad was holidaying (69 percent), followed by visiting friends or relatives and going on business.
-Package holidays or all-inclusive tours made up a third of all overseas trips by UK residents.
http://www.bbc.co.uk/schools/gcsebitesize/geography/tourism/tourismattractionsrev1.shtml
