The Future of Tourism

As more of us become more affluent one luxury in increasing demand is traveling.  It has been beneficial for many, but the author to point how some concerns.

One concern is that as an area becomes popular the locals lose control as corporations and outside companies move in.  Prices for many locally priced goods go up and locals find themselves being pushed further away.  In some cases there is significant environmental damage.

One example given was for Barcelona, one of my targets having watched a few foreign films plus the Olympics.  Now I am putting it further down my list.

Another example was Hawaii with its native culture being sidelined for a more commercially desirable image. 

Environmental concerns are the direct result of trying to squeeze more people into a sensitive area.  One trend has been with glaciers that have been promoted as something you have to see before they disappear.   Many efforts have begun to ameliorate climate change.  One long range concern is air travel and that is very complicated, but progressing.

Kerala in India is an example where locals have been given power to make decisions.  Most countries see tourism as an important economic tool.  Kerala is home to some of my favorite movies and I am glad to hear that locals offer interested tourist a chance to understand their culture.   See http://www.therealjohndavidson.com/2021/03/how-i-discovered-malayalam-cinema-and.html

The author referred to another book that impacted me, "Overbooked".  Among many good ideas that author highlighted two countries as good examples of being well managed.  France was one that honored its literary and artistic history.  Costa Rica was the other that got my attention, because their focus was on the environment with an emphasis on their unique natural assets.  At the same time they trained local people and paid them well.  They also limited numbers.  Read more  http://www.therealjohndavidson.com/2014/02/overbooked-and-thoughts-on-tourism.html

We have always had travelers including migrants, merchants, pilgrims and invading armies.  Tourism happened among the wealthy of Europe starting around the second half of the 18th century.  World War II heralded awareness of the world and incomes started to rise sparking an interest.  From 1950 to 2019 tourists went from 25 million per year to nearly 1.5 billion.  Then Covid drastically cut tourism with a notable drop in economic benefits.  Now the trend is upward.

One motive for tourism was to promote world peace,.  One unlikely source was Nikita Krushchev, but many others joined the pleas.  Tourism was identified in the 1960's as an industry with some countries including it in cabinet positions.

Mark Twain said "Travel is fatal to prejudice, bigotry and narrow mindedness and many of our people need it sorely...Broad, wholesome and charitable views of men and things can not be acquired by vegetating in one little corner of the earth all one's lifetime."

Traveling can be very superficial, but Paige holds out hope that as individuals we can go deeper and enjoy it a bit more.  As an example she wrote about her experiences going by herself to Saudi Arabia where fears of anti female views had been prevalent and the Kashoggi.  Afterwards reflecting outsiders view of America. 

"I now know that Saudi Arabia is a deeply flawed and beautiful place that's home to millions of diverse souls including my fun and courageous tourist guide." Thinking deeper, "I ...see my home country as a deeply flawed and beautiful place that's home to millions of diverse souls including many of my closest friends and family members.....hope the naysayers might one day visit the U.S. and see there is more to it than the politics and crises they read about in the news."

 Hoping as you contemplate what to do in your future you give some thought to traveling and how it could make your life not only more enjoyable, but also more meaningful.

As I organize this blog post my city for over 43 years, Hamilton, Ontario, is holding its biggest tourist attraction event, Supercrawl.  I look forward to it, but I am now appreciating some downsides.  It is a once a year bonanza for our local restaurants, but as part of the deal literally tons of food trucks siphon off much of the tourist dollars.  Often they are more accessible than the restaurants.  This event started as an art crawl and then music was added and many vendors showed up. There is something for most everyone, but I would feel more comfortable if more locals benefited.  Now it is a big deal with a big budget trying to balance making it a fuller experience to attract a crowd, without local entrepreneurs being missing out.