Tourism is a travel from a person´s usual place of residence for a period longer than 24 hours usually for pleasure or recreation and to different places of rest, called destinations. Tourism also involves people traveling for business or health, or to visit friends and relatives.
The person traveling is a tourist. The basic principle in tourism is catering to the needs of tourists and satisfying of all their wishes and requests.
The tourist destination is a place or area to which tourists travel. It may be a resort, or a big city. In summer it may be a resort on a shore of a sea or an ocean as all tourists are likely to seek for the three “s”: sun, sea, and sand.
Tourism may be of the two main types: internal and international. When tourists travel between two or more countries, this tourism is called international. When they travel within the same country, this is internal or domestic (home) tourism.
In any season of the year tourists go on short travels to different destinations. Such trips for less than 24 hours are called excursions. A person who takes such a trip is called excursionist. The length of his trip distinguishes an excursionist from a tourist, who is away from his usual place of residence for more than 24 hours.
When traveling, a tourist needs a place to have a rest. Such places are called accommodations. There a traveler may obtain a bed. These places are hotels, motels, inns, camping grounds, hostels and so on and so forth. In a hotel a person traveling may also obtain food and drink. These are catering services provided by restaurants and bars.
There are some very important attractions in tourism. The first one is the multiplier effect of the tourist dollar. Money paid for wages or in other ways is spent not once, but sometimes several times for other items in the economy – the food that hotel employees eat at home, the house in which they live, or the durable goods that they buy.
Besides, in many countries tourism is a very important part of economics, as it is rather labour-intensive. It requires a great number of workers in proportion to the number of people served in tourism.
The tourist industry has become one of the most important economic influences of modern times. It has also been one of the fastest growing in recent years. The growth rate of tourism generally exceeded the growth rate for the worldwide economy. The sun and sea areas spring up every year. The shores of the Mediterranean and the Caribbean seas, the Pacific coastlines of Mexico, Florida and Hawaii, the South-Eastern coast of Asia, the shores of Australia and New Zealand have been intensively developed in the past few years.
Assignment 1.2 Answer the following questions:
1. How can tourism be defined?
2. What kinds of people are involved in tourism?
3. What is the word for a person traveling?
4. In what way does tourism cater to the needs of the people who travel?
5. What is the difference between international and internal tourism?
6. What is a resort?
7. What is a tourist destination? Is it always a resort?
8. What is an excursion? How does it differ from any other tourist travel?
9. What does accommodation mean?
10. What do catering services include?
11. What does the multiplier effect mean?
12. Why is tourism labour-intensive?
Assignment 1.3 Complete the sentences:
1. Tourism is a …
2. The person traveling is …
3. The tourist destination is …
4. When tourists travel between two or more countries it is …
5. When they travel within the same …
6. A person who takes a short trip is called …
7. All tourists are likely to seek for …
8. A place to have a rest is …
9. In a hotel tourist may obtain …
10. The place where any person may be accommodated is …
11. Restaurants and bars provide …
Assignment 1.4 Match the words with their definitions:
1. Residence a. a place to rest usually near the sea
2. Destination b. employing a lot of people
3. Recreation c. to look for
4. labour-intensive d. a place with many sights and hotels
5. Resort e. a place to live or to stay
6. Tourist f. travels within the country
7. Accommodation g. a person attending sights
8. seek h. places to stay, hotels, guesthouses ect.
9. Excursionist k. a person traveling
10. Internal tourism l. travels abroad
11. International tourism m. rest
Assignment 1.5 Some words are very similar in meaning, and it is important to know exactly when, where and how you can use them. Study the definitions of different types of traveling. Translate the sentences.
A journey means an act of traveling to a place that is far away.
A trip is an act of traveling to a place, especially when you stay in the place for a short time.
A voyage is a journey in a boat or a ship.
A crossing is a short journey in a ship or a boat, which goes from one side of a sea, lake or other area of water to the other side.
A drive is a journey in a car.
A ride is a short journey in a vehicle such as a car or a bicycle or a horse.
A tour is a journey during which a traveler visits several places usually within a fixed period of time.
