Table of Contents

1.0 Introduction..................................................................................................... 2
2.0 History of Travel and Tourism...........................................................................3
2.1.0 Economic Policies...................................................................................... 4
2.1.1 Transportation........................................................................................... 4
2.1.2 Accommodation......................................................................................... 5
2.1.3 Technology................................................................................................. 5
2.1.4 Air transport.............................................................................................. 7
2.1.5 Tour operators........................................................................................... 7
2.1.6 Vertical Integrations................................................................................10
2.1.7 Conclusion............................................................................................... 10
3.0 The economy in 21st Century.........................................................................13
4.0 Benefits of International Tourism in the 21 st Century.....................................15
4.1 Infrastructure and Super Infrastructure.........................................................19
4.2 Private and Public Partnership (PPP)..............................................................20
4.3 Responsible tourism and alternative tourism development...........................21
4.4 Small and Medium Enterprises development (SMEs)...................................22
4.4 Development of other economy....................................................................23
4.5 Regional integration...................................................................................... 24
5.0 Conclusion.................................................................................................. 25
Reference............................................................................................................ 27

Table of figures
Figure 1: Global International Tourism Revenue (Source: UNWTO).......................................15
Figure 2: Global International Tourist Arrival (Source: UNWTO)..........................................16
Figure 3: Total Contribution of Travel and Tourism to GDP (Source: WTTC)............................17
Figure 4: Total Contribution of Travel and Tourism to Employment (Source: WTTC)..................18
Figure 5: New Terminal SSR International Airport- Mauritius...............................................20
Figure 6: Public and Private Partnership for Destination Promotion........................................21
Figure 7: Bonito in Brazil............................................................................................ 22
Figure 8: SME`s development through Art and Craft for Tourism Industry................................23
Figure 9: Aquaculture Development at Pointe aux Feuilles...................................................25

1.0 Introduction
When defining tourism a clear concept and a more precise definition of tourism is necessary
for various purposes such as to describe the tourism phenomenon systematically .Firstly to
1

describe and define its scope, secondly for statistical purpose, when the phenomenon is
measured we must clearly know what exactly is to be measured and lastly for legislative and
administrative purposes since legislation may apply to certain activities alone and not to
others. Tourism is a complex phenomenon that involves human activity of great significance
encompassing also economic, social, cultural, educational and political significance.
Therefore the WTO/United Nations Recommendations on Tourism Statistics has come to a
definition of tourism as Tourism comprises the activities of persons travelling to and
staying in places outside their usual environment for not more than one consecutive year for
leisure, business and other purposes.
While discussing the tourism phenomenon there is emphasis on not only international tourism
but also on domestic tourism which are the two main types of tourism. Domestic tourism is
when people travel outside their domicile to certain other areas within the country as
compared to travelling outside the boundaries of the country as in international tourism.
The tourism phenomenon as is being witnessed today is a visible result of the great waves of
technology since the last three last centuries. The history of travel and tourism existed since
ages but it was in form mostly of trade, commerce and for seeking knowledge whereby no
travel formalities existed as there were no frontiers. Nonetheless, tourism has contributed in
many different ways whether in a social, cultural, educational, medical, political and
economical manner in the world economy since then till today in the 21st century.

2.0 History of Travel and Tourism

In the early years of the twentieth century, tourism continued to expand as a consequence of
increasing wealth, interest and outgoing attitudes, and improvements in peoples transport.

Advances in transport allowed people to travel in masses. In fact, mass production and mass
consumption was the rationale of that period. Although its roots go back to the eighteenth
century, travel was still an innovation for the masses, and the homogeneous character of the
demand led to the production of standardized products that could suit everyone.
From the 1930s onwards, the growing availability of the motor car stimulated tourism further,
and during the interwar years the aircraft began to play a small role in the tourism market as
an option for the wealthier classes, particularly in Europe (Swarbrooke & Horner, 2007).
Further, the arrival of holiday camps aimed at a growing low income market for holidays was
a major development of 1930s, and received widespread acceptance by the public. The instant
success of the concept resulted in the construction of similar structures all over the coastal
areas and even in inland resorts. Moreover, the allure to the sun in 1960s, from the cool and
variable climates of Northern Europe and North America, encouraged the emergence of
package tours. As such, the mass characteristic of tourism is strengthened further.
The continent of Europe and notably United Kingdom play important roles in the constitution
process of industrial tourism. Accordingly, mass tourism initially commenced in England at
the second half of the nineteenth century. Mass tourism owes its existence to mainly two
specific reasons: the first reason is the development in the transportation technologies and the
second is the individual efforts of an English entrepreneur Thomas Cook (Poon, 1993). Using
the steam train and ship for transportation, Thomas Cook organized international package
tours to three destinations including the Far East, India and America in 1862. By the year
1897, Thomas Cook reached the figure of 20,000 tourists annually (Poon, 1993).
It is not a coincidence that mass tourism was first organized in England by an English
entrepreneur. It was the Industrial Revolution above the other reasons that brings steam
train in technological dimension and inflexible-heavy working hours in sociological
dimensions. However, it would seem appropriate to refer to the second half of the 19th century
and even the first half of the 20th century as infancy period of mass tourism. Some authors
(Cook, Yale & Marqua, 2006) are consistent with the idea and called this period (1800-1944)
in the literature as mobility era while some others (Fuller, 1994; Syratt, 2003) split the
period into two, before the First World War and post First World War taking the developments
in the car industry and hotel business into a consideration. Middleton and Lickoris (2005)
credited 1919-1939 as new mobility claiming that some remarkable developments occurred
in the 1920s and 1930s. Weaver and Lawton (2006) attributed 1880-1950 as the post-Cook
period as a result of Cook and his adaptation of Industrial Revolution technologies and
3

principles to the travel industry. It is worth noting that it is impossible to talk about the
industrialized mass tourism apart from some individual enterprises and some technological
developments in the mentioned period.

2.1.0 Economic Policies

The economic policies in some countries played important roles for the conversion process of
the tourism industry. The trade unions forced governments for more flexible working hours
and by the year 1939, many European countries agreed on salaried holidays for employees
which brought increased prosperity and the need for vacation together (Yale, 1995). However,
the supply for these new types of vacationers was inadequate during 1920s and 1930s.
Hotels were quite luxurious and with the upper- income guests in mind (when taking
accommodation supply into account). For transportation supply, it could be claimed that the
trains and ships were still the more popular vehicles and air transportation was still in its
search of progress.

2.1.1 Transportation
Consequently, railway and maritime transportation were still popular mass carriers, but far
more slow carriers than aircrafts and secured time of the new vacationers salaried holidays.
The nature of tourist product has dramatically changed after the Second World War,
especially between 1960s and 1980s. While the marketing practice is customer oriented
nowadays, post-war conditions were completely different and marketing was sales
oriented. There were remarkable supplies for many products across Europe and tourism was
not an exception to this. On the other hand, the economical and technological developments
that changed tourism in the mentioned period could be summarized as follows (Yale, 1995):

The greater prosperity of the population at large

Paid (salaried) holidays for many European workers
A new use of excess aero planes after the war
Technical improvements in aircraft production which made it possible to fly further

and faster
A greater sense of democracy and equality fostered by the war effort
Better education
Better packaging of the opportunities by tour operators
Spread of television, bringing images of the rest of the world to almost every
household

2.1.2 Accommodation
The hotel chains, airlines, business travels, cruises and short breaks have been the factors that
helped development of USAs mass tourism in the progress. However, it is completely a
different story in Europe because of the demographical and economical structures of the
continent. The European mass tourism market has grown relatively from richer and more
developed European countries tourism demand for holidays to rather less developed southern
(in other words Mediterranean) countries. The necessity for travelling international inside
(short-haul) the continent has brought new actors as organizers in tourism, namely tour
operators. Tour operators, charter flights, and inclusive toursespecially holiday packagesare the identifiers of European mass tourism in the golden age of mass tourism.
On the other hand, the common factors that changed the world tourism business and
accordingly mass tourism could be summarized as being technology, air transportation,
accommodation companies, tour operators, conglomerates and mass consumption depending
on holiday needs. These factors are going to be detailed in the following sections.

2.1.3 Technology
Technology today is intensively involved in all the industries, manipulating the business
world and the tourism industry is not the exception. The impacts of technology are relatively
seen on the aircrafts, credit cards and travellers cheques, computers and finally reservation
systems used in the communication among organizers and intermediaries when the tourism
industrys mass tourism age is considered. Tourism is a more information flow friendly
industry than product flow and this characteristic is making it more dependent on
technologies. Technology has directly affected tourism on four major topics: aircrafts, plastic
cards and travel cheques, computers and reservation systems.
Significant technological improvements in aviation and sea transport played a catalytic role in
increasing safety record and in reducing substantially the real monetary and time travel
outlays (Holloway, 1998). The basic effect of technology on the aircraft technology is related
with the Second World War. The war temporarily disrupted commercial flights, but it brought
tremendous long-run gains for the development of the air transportation industry, including
(Gee, Makens & Choy 1997):

The creation of a large body of experienced pilots;

Increased public acquaintance with aviation, as hundreds of thousands of military

personnel and civilian employees experienced their first flight during the war;
Increased knowledge of the weather;
5

Improved maps and knowledge of foreign terrain;

Construction of thousands of airfields in wide parts of the world;
A large assortment of surplus aircraft design, flying techniques, and other knowledge
necessary for advancement of the industry.

In the early years of mass tourism, computer technology was still in its infancy. Thus,
computers were used mainly for planning and delivery process of the tourist product. In
summary, computers were more the facilitators of the golden age of mass tourism.
Conversely, todays computers are also identifiers in either production or marketing stages of
the tourism business with the help of the communication technologies. The most notable
impact of the technology in the golden age is linked to the Computer Reservation Systems
(CRSs). Starting from the early years (1950s) of mass tourism, firstly airlines and then the
hotels with tour operators established their own CRSs. However, the CRSs in the early years
were serving dumb terminals without intranet or internet and they were not working
synchronously. Moreover, the CRSs of suppliers (airlines, hotels and tour operators) were not
thoroughly adaptable for communicating with each other. The communication between airline
CRSs and sales offices were provided by SITA (in Europe) and ARINC (in USA) network
consortia (Inkpen, 1998).
The limited use of CRSs dramatically changed after the Deregulations of USA in 1978. The
new companies, schedules, fares and services have brought the fierce competition among
airline companies with this process. Some airline companies went on strategic partnerships
and established global distribution systems (GDSs) for marketing purposes via travel
agencies. The development of GDS was in the meantime the beginning of the end of mass
tourisms golden age with the emergence of the deep impact of the internet world.

2.1.4 Air transport

Air transportation diversifies from all other transportations in the industrial tourism and its
probably because of the inclusive tours that dominate the industrial tourism movements. In
fact, while one of the two most important components of an international package tour is the
hotel bed, the other is undoubtedly the aircraft seat. There are two important developments
tied with air transportation regarding the tourism industry and mass tourism. The first one is
the foundation of International Air Transport Association (IATA) in 1945 (Sezgin, 2010). The
foundational goals of IATA were the organization of safe, regular and economic
transportation worldwide and providing the coordination among airlines. The obligation for
membership has brought standardization in the scheduled air transportation (Walker, 1996:
6

38). Today, more than 230 airlines mostly flag carriers- are members of IATA and that
constitutes 93 percent of all scheduled flights around the world (Papatheodorou, 2008).
The second and more important development of air transportation regarding mass tourism is
the charter flights and the equal rights which were given to charter and scheduled companies
for the new directions in 1960 (Renshaw, 1997). By means of the mentioned rights,
monopolist air transportation market has turned out to be more reasonable for tour operators.
The flag carriers had to give contingent for inclusive tours to tour operators with the fierce
competition.
Mass tourism related to charter flights started, as early as 1950s in Europe, while the first
charter flight which was a part of a package tour in USA was operated in 1968 (Doganis,
1998). The countries and governments in the globalization progress softened some
procedures and limited the difference between schedule and charter flights. The airlines
known as charter-only could organize flights with the liberalizations to new destinations that
were previously operated only by the scheduled airlines. Surely, consumers were the most
benefitted leg of these conversions and liberalizations. Tourists could find more alternatives
to more destinations with better services sometimes, and paying less than before. However,
this was another blast effect for mass tourisms golden age that more people could organize
their own travel.

2.1.5 Tour operators

The tour operators in Europe and the chain hotels and airline companies in the USA were the
leading determinants in the development of mass tourism.
The first American hotel was opened in 1794 (Walker, 1996); taverns and small hotels
followed. The expansion of hotels in the USA as in the case of Europe was boosted in the
first half of the 20th century till Second World War. This period witnessed the rise of luxury
hotels being operated all over the country and they spread to the continent. The chain hotels
and the airline companies being the initiator of mass tourism in the USA did not happen
accidentally. Different than Europe, the USA had the potential to develop all kinds of tourism
apart from cultural tourism. Consequently, the development of tourism was mainly domestic
in the USA.
Multinational hotel companies had also made important investments in the developing
countries. For the developing countries, tourism was appreciated to be an important medium
for increasing employment opportunities and reducing the foreign currency deficit.
7

Consequently, they made some regulations to attract foreign investment. Incentives such as
build-operate-transfer, privilege of the profit transfer, financial supports, support for financial
projection, capital sharing, exemption of income taxes, investment credits and special
exchange rates were offered by the developing countries for the potential investors (Poon,
1993). Overdependence to multinational chain hotels in the developing countries was more
intense when compared to developed countries. As a result, some hotel chains like Hilton
Corporation and Holiday Inn, succeeding a certain level of standardization expanded their
branches all over Europe and other countries targeting business travel and high income
markets.
In the process of mass tourism development in Europe, economically developed Northern
European countries are cited to be tourist-generator countries and less developed Southern
countries on the coast of Mediterranean are destination countries. The tour operators in the
leading countries in the European tourism industry, namely Germany, the UK and France,
have invested in tourist attracting countries. The most influential are the hotel investments for
the purpose of product standardization. In this vein, tour operators as the first liable body
when any inconveniences occur, tried to eliminate possible problems that could be stemmed
from the accommodation businesses. In fact, they maintained their audits via their
representatives in the destination countries. In the course of time, however, they further
undertook hotel ownership and used other methods to increase their role in the destinations.
Conclusively, the urban hotels mainly American roots serving to business travellers, and
meeting organizations, the holiday camps and the resort hotels common to Mediterranean
region specialized in leisure travellers. These were sold as a component of packaged tours.
In the globalizing process, urban hotels were urged to diversify their markets and developed
integration methods specific to destinations they are located in. For example, Hilton Hotels
used franchise or management contracts in the markets they perceived to be economically
risky while employing joint venture or direct investment in developed countries. Coastal
hotels and holiday camps flourished with the mass tourism development on the continent.
The leading conglomerates integrated with the accommodation businesses in popular mass
tourism destinations in the Mediterranean region. Aimed at the growing low-income market
for holidays, the holiday camps set new standards of comfort, offered 24-hour entertainment
at an all-inclusive price, were efficient in operation and originally European (Holloway,
1998). According to Holloway the success of this of all-in entertainment concept was later to
be copied by hotels, and the hotel with its leisure complex became a popular development
8

even before the war in the USA. Club Med and Robinson Club chains, which were pioneers
and being operated in most of the Mediterranean destinations, are still owned by
conglomerates. Although the integration methods used by the urban hotel benefited from
holiday camps and coastal hotels, direct investment is much more common due to the policies
of mass tourism players such as conglomerates and tour operators in Europe.
In the course of time, tour operators needed to integrate/merge with airline companies and the
hospitality units in destination countries in order to increase their control on their final
product, the packaged tour. Such a development boosted tourism investments in Europe and
resulted in tour operators to become multinational companies. In order to diminish the risks
taken, tour operators also took part in operating and managing coastal resorts and hotels in
developing destination countries. However, it was not always possible to control the
hospitality units unless an investment was made and the risk was taken. Besides, integrations
methods such as franchising, management contracts etc. which eliminates the investment
risks were limited for charter operations. Consequently tour operators were faced with heavy
investment requirements and managerial costs when they aspired to control the airline
companies or the seat capacity.
Tour operators also stimulate the tourism demand due to pricing policies in the destinations.
However, it took tour operators more than half a century to become determinant actors in
mass tourism, as they are backed by finance companies, banks and holdings. These financial
institutes are multi-national and global firms launching in tourism by integrating tour
operators, namely conglomerates.

2.1.6 Vertical Integrations

Vertical integrations have been applicable in the all levels of the tourism industrys
production and distribution levels. Airlines, hotels, travel agencies and even food & beverage
companies have integrated with the other suppliers with different purposes of mass tourism.
However, the majority of vertical integrations in tourism industry are in fact done by tour
operators.
As the producers of the final product (inclusive tour), tour operators went to backward
vertical integrations for controlling the product components, product standardization and to
gain a competitive advantage. Tour operators also went to forward vertical integrations with
travel agencies for marketing purposes and for controlling the market.

The vertical integrations in the European tourism industry are both the reason and the
consequence of mass tourism. The reasons of why the vertical integrations increased the
tourism demand are lowered costs and prices due to integrations (Yarcan, 1996). On the other
hand, the urge for more vertical integrations is related with controlling the seat and the bed
supply and gaining competitive advantages.

2.1.7 Conclusion
Consumers are core to any economic activity, and tourism is not an exception to this.
However, the post-war years are slightly different. The focus of business in 50s is the mass
production, scale economies, standard products and low prices in the tourism industry as in
the case of other industries (Poon, 1993). The idea of selling as much as produced was
common among the businesses due to changes in demand. In short, mass tourism was sales
oriented rather than a consumer one. In other words, due to the large number of tourists
demonstrating homogenous interests, the tourism product was provided under conditions of
mass production (Urry, 1990). A changing demand structure also influenced the development
of mass tourism after the Second World War. Leisure needs of working classes also facilitated
the development of mass tourism.
Although mass tourism was not customer oriented in the beginning, the tourists were the final
consumers of the package tour. Supply was composed of accommodation establishments, tour
operators and travel agencies. As a result of increasing production, the potential demand was
converted to active demand. The trend was mass production, mass marketing and mass
consumption. Consequently consumers drove similar cars, consumed similar food and
travelled to similar destinations (Poon, 1993). On the basis of aforementioned reasons it
cannot be concluded that mass tourism always expanded in the same direction and manner.
Expectedly, wealthier people with higher educational levels were in a way above this trend.
However, the masses found mass tourism reasonable due to its price levels. The core of mass
tourism in Europe is composed of cheaper package tours organized by tour operators and
charter flights. Tour operators had representatives in destinations on the basis of research.
This led tourists to feel secure while travelling. On the other hand, in the USA the
determinants of mass tourism were airline oligopolies and hotel chains. While tours in Europe
were towards coastal areas in the Mediterranean, package tours in the USA were basically
focused on business travel and domestic travel. As a result, the transportation vehicles in the
initial phase of mass tourism were charter flights in Europe, and coach companies or private
automobiles in the USA.
10

Another factor that affects different developments in mass tourism in both continents is the
paid (salaried) vacations. The average length of paid vacation is two weeks in the USA
compared to four weeks in Europe. As a result, Europeans could elect more international
travels. On the other hand, weekend vacations and short holidays are more common in the
USA. Although the development of mass tourism experienced different phases in both
Europe and the USA, its global development can be examined in two parts. First is the
holidays taken by low or middle income individuals. Their holidays are inclined towards sea,
sun and sand. The organizers of the holidays are the conglomerates and the tour operators. In
international transportation mostly charter airline companies under the control of
conglomerates and tour operators are used. The travel related services are mostly held by
incoming tour operators under the provision of conglomerates or tour operators or
representatives working under the supervision of outgoing tour operators. Accommodation in
these packaged tours is offered by homogenous hotels and resorts in the coastal areas offering
entertaining and recreational activities. As can be seen, holiday tourism is directed towards
low and middle income tourists having two to four week paid holidays. Vacations are realized
in resorts or holiday camps closed to the outer environment and hence cheaper due to higher
rate of participation.
The second structure in mass tourism is cultural tourism. The range of cultural tourism
activities include the use of cultural heritage assets such as archaeological sites, museums,
castles, palaces, historical buildings, famous buildings, ruins, art, sculpture, crafts, galleries,
ethnic communities, religious buildings and other features that represent people and their
cultures (Miller, 1997). In a broad sense, cultural tourism also includes activities with a
cultural content as parts of trips and visits with a combination of pursuits (Medlik, 1996).
The income level of cultural tourists is higher compared to vacationers. Essentially, cultural
tours are organized by expert tour operators. Destination services are usually supplied by
independent incoming tour operators and the guides employed by these tour operators.
Mass tourism developed differently worldwide but its managerial structure is fairly similar.
Product standardization, branding and homogenous company structure is achieved in both
continents. However, these are achieved by chain hotels in the USA and by the conglomerates
and tour operators in Europe (Poon, 1993). Whatever the direction of the development is,
mass tourism allowed masses to enjoy vacations, entertainments and holidays. Although,
Poon (1993) claimed that tourism has changed and converted into new tourism, and mass
11

tourism has completed its golden age, it may be concluded that mass tourism is still popular
and still the dominator of the industrial tourism as long as new markets emerge.

3.0 The economy in 21st Century

A hundred years ago, the international economy was entering the 20th century with the freest
flow of goods, services and capital in human history. The previous century had witnessed
expansion of global output and trade, and rising living standards in Europe and North
America at a pace never before seen in human history. The 20th century then saw just over a
decade of continued expansion, followed by the abrupt disruption of trading and financial
ties during the First World War. After some steps toward a restoration of the pre-war
situation, the international economy collapsed during the decade of the Great Depression,
and continued to be fragmented during the Second World War. The century-long trend
toward globalization had been reversed and, as of 1950, or even 1960, globalization and the
degree of integration of the world economy was considerably less than it had been fifty years
before.
Since the start of the 21st century there have been a large number of wildcard events that
have affected tourism patterns and flows at a global scale. These include:

Terrorist attacks, such as 911 or the bombings in Bali.

12

Disease outbreaks, such as SARS, foot and mouth disease in the UK or avian flu.
Natural disasters, such as tsunamis in the Indian Ocean and Japan, massive
earthquakes in China, Japan and New Zealand, and hurricanes in the East Asia and

the United States.

Economic events, such as a rapid increase in the price of fuel and the global

economic and financial crisis from 2008 on.

Political events, such as the Arab Spring in North Africa and the Middle East, or
regulatory changes in boarding and passport requirements for travelers as a result of
increased concerns over security. This also includes sudden changes in terms of what
you can take onto aircraft as hand luggage.

To wildcard events there are also a number of other trends that contribute to an increasingly
complex business environment for tourism. These include:

Demographic changes in developed countries, such as an aging population and

increase in the number of single-parent families.

Rapid population growth in the developing world.
Increased urbanization on a global scale.
Global environmental change, including climate change, biodiversity loss and

changes in water availability.

Increasing costs of energy, particularly with respect to the costs of conventional oil,
with flow on effects on energy and food security.

All of these trends affect the production and consumption of tourism. Production is affected
because the resource base of tourism is changed. Consumption is impacted both directly and
indirectly. An example of a direct impact is the higher cost of getting to destinations as a
result of increases in the price of fuel. Such an example also highlights that the accessibility
of a destination is not just determined by the relative travel distance between a generating
area and the destination in terms of kilometres or miles, but also in terms of cost. Indirect
impacts of the above trends on consumption relate to the overall contribution of these trends
to Tourism in the 21st Century the state of the economy, as economic downturns tend to
correspond with slowdowns in outbound travel. Ultimately underlying the health of the
economy is the health of the environment; therefore increasingly issues of global
environmental change are influencing consideration of trends in tourism.
For all governments around the world tourism have great economic impacts on their
economies, it contribute to their national balance of payment, generate employment at all
levels, tourism provide consequent revenues to government through various taxes.
13

4.0 Benefits of International Tourism in the 21 st Century

Global international tourism revenue from 2000 to 2014

(in Billion US dollars)
1500

Inte rnation al tou rism re ce ipts in billion dollars

1245
1197
1078
1042
857939851927
1000
679743
475
500
0

Years

Figure 1: Global International Tourism Revenue (Source: UNWTO)

Figure 1 shows the global international tourism revenue from 2000 to 2014. According to the
World Bank international tourism receipts are expenditures by international inbound visitors,
including payments to national carriers for international transport. Included in these receipts
are also any other prepayment made for goods or services received in the destination country.
Travel has develop into a more reachable approach to people around the world over the past
few decades and as a result the global tourism industry has boomed, particularly in more
recent years. From already sizeable 475 billion U.S. dollar revenue in 2000, the industry
proceeded to generate more than one trillion dollars in 2013, so it is not unforeseen that
global leaders have placed much importance on the advertising of tourism in their own
countries. The International tourist arrivals are expected to exceed 1.8 billion by 2030 as per
14

the United Nations World Tourism Organization (UNWTO). Europe is the region receiving
by far the largest number of international tourist arrivals worldwide every year, followed by
the Asian Pacific region. London benefited the most from visitor spending with tourists in
2014, generating almost 20 billion U.S. dollars there as per UNWTO. New York and Paris
also fascinated a lot of spenders. The tourist spending also profits other large industries
closely linked to tourism. When traveling, people always need somewhere to stay hence the
global hotel industry is expected to engender 550 billion U.S. dollars revenue by 2016.

Global international tourist arrivals from 2000 to 2014

(in millions)

Inte rnation al tou rist arrivals in m illi ons

1138
1200
10401087
983
940
919
898
883
1000
799 846
800 674
600
400
200
0

Years

Figure 2: Global International Tourist Arrival (Source: UNWTO)

Figure 2 illustrates that the number of international tourist arrivals has increased steadily
almost every year despite falling only during times of global economic suffering (mostly in
year 2009). Statistics of international tourist arrivals have almost doubled from 674 million in
2000 to 1.1 billion in 2014. Europe has consistently been the region with the largest number
of visitors each year. In latest years, the Asia Pacific region has grown to become the second
largest market. In 2014, London was the foremost leading city in international visitor
spending with 19.27 billion U.S. dollars whereas New York and Paris followed closely.
Although having the most international visitor spending, London was also the most visited
city destination in the world in 2014, with just about 18.7 million international overnight
visitors. City like Bangkok was the second most popular one with 16.4 million visitors and
Paris came into third with 15.6 million visitors. The most popular tourist attraction worldwide
was the Las Vegas Strip in the United States with just short of 40 million visitors a year. As

15

per UNWTO by 2030, international tourist arrivals worldwide are expected to exceed 1.8
billion.

Total Contribution of Travel & Tourism to GDP from 2000 to 2014 (in Billion US dollars)
8000
6000

7581
7316
7083
6846
6
713
6678
6
567
6490
6485
6253
5823

4000
Total C ontribution of T&T to GDP in billion dollars

2000
0

Years

Figure 3: Total Contribution of Travel and Tourism to GDP (Source: WTTC)

This statistic shows the direct and total economic impact of travel and tourism on the global
economy from 2000 to 2014. Travel and tourism made a total contribution (direct, indirect
and induced) of almost seven trillion U.S. dollars to the global economy in 2013. The direct
travel & tourism contribution includes the commodities accommodation, transportation,
entertainment and attractions of these industries that are namely accommodation services,
food & beverage services, retail trade, transportation services and cultural, sports &
recreational services. The figures for total impact also include indirect and induced
contributions. In recent years, the travel and tourism industry has contributed around seven
trillion U.S. dollars to the global economy yearly, approaching eight trillion in 2014. A highly
lucrative and important industry to the global economy, travel and tourism makes a direct
economic impact of more than two trillion U.S. dollars each year. The European Union makes
the largest contribution in this area, closely followed by North America and North East Asia.
Due to their less developed tourism industries, regions such as North and Sub Saharan Africa
make a much smaller impact. However, according to the World Travel and Tourism Council
(WTTC), some of the fastest-emerging tourism destinations can be found in Africa, including
Namibia, Zambia and Angola. This is possibly owing to the comprehension of the benefits
travel and tourism can provide for a countrys economy, or maybe because of the growing
16

popularity of less-travelled destinations among global tourists. This is not to say travellers are
not still visiting well-established tourism destinations in their millions the number of
overseas visitors to the United States, for example, is still increasing each year and is
expected to exceed 40 million by 2018 as per WTTC.

Total Contribution of Travel & Tourism to Employment from 2000 to 2014 (in '000)
276845
274301
270723
268191
265169
270000
263711
260088
257735259996
260000
254477
246890
250000
280000

Total C ontribution of T&T to Employment in '000

240000
230000

Years

Figure 4: Total Contribution of Travel and Tourism to Employment (Source: WTTC)

Figure 4 shows data which include total contribution of travel and tourism to employment
including direct and indirect employment. Although initial infrastructure investment is
needed, as more people travel, additional tourism infrastructure is built and people are
employed to service the needs of the tourists. The more visitors go to a destination, the more
hotels, restaurants, and ancillary tourism services are needed and the more jobs in travel &
tourism are created. The benefits of the travel & tourismrelated jobs are then further
multiplied through the economy to the suppliers that support the industry. The pace of growth
slowed along with most major economies during the downturn in 2001 and 2002, and the
change in employment in Travel & Tourism was

more pronounced than it was for

employment overall. During the expansion of 200306, global employment in the industry
returned to its role of outpacing overall employment growth and again it suffered harsher than
average losses during the most recent recession in 2009 (Turner and Sears, 2013).
Employment recovery has now begun and the forecast expects employment growth into
international tourism to outpace overall employment growth. The annual economic impact
research carried out by WTTC and Oxford Economics found that T&T direct employment is
expected to grow at an average 1.9 percent per annum over the next 10 years, compared with
total employment growth of 1.2 percent each year through year 2022. The United Nations
17

World Tourism Organisation (UNWTO) is expecting the sectors global economy to provide
296 million jobs by 2019.

4.1 Infrastructure and Super Infrastructure

Tourism can induce the local government to make infrastructure developments such as
enhanced water and sewage systems, roads, electricity, telephone and public transport
networks. This can improve the quality of life for local residents as well as facilitate tourism.
Tourism infrastructure results from a mix of both private and public sector investment
whether travel is by air, sea, or land transport, suitable facilities and services must be in place
for the advancement of a successful destination. Several authors, as well as Gunn (1988) and
Inskeep (1991), have mentioned the infrastructure base of a country as a potential element of
the appeal of a host destination. Infrastructure is an essential part of the tourism package for
instance road infrastructure boosts accessibility of tourists to different parts of the tourist
receiving country while sound harbour and airport infrastructure safeguards that both
incoming and outgoing tourist experience a comfortable transition from the cruise ship or
plane into the borders of the destination country and vice versa.
Mo, Howard and Havitz (1993), using survey methodology, find that tourists favour travel to
countries that have the matching infrastructures as in their country of origin. Prideaux (2000)
suggested that a critical mass of public infrastructure (including transport) is essential for
enabling the establishment of high-quality resorts in a country. There are various elements as
infrastructural factor such as water supply, electricity, sewage and solid waste disposal, and
telecommunications for the tourism industry to operate efficiently. However the benefit of
international tourism in the 21st century has massively helped the local population where they
can benefit from the same facilities. A local recent infrastructural development from the
international tourism of the 21st century may be in the form of the new passenger Terminal at
SSR International Airport.

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Figure 5: New Terminal SSR International Airport- Mauritius

4.2 Private and Public Partnership (PPP)

In the 21st Century the public private partnerships (PPP) allow the public sector to gain from
commercial enthusiasm and the ability to deal with financial implications in an environment
of economic restrictions, innovation and efficiencies through the introduction of private
sector stakeholders who fund their own capital, skills and experience.

The union between

public and the private sectors has recently come to position as a strategic tool for tourism
development. Zapata and Hall (2011) proposed four reasons for the development between
public and private partnerships in the tourism sector. Firstly Partnerships in destination
management is a form of subcontracting of services which has resulted in new effective
forms of public administration. Secondly, the government is progressively adopting the
relational interventionist model and is assuming the role of initiator and conveyor of
collaborative arrangements that inspire the involvement of the tourist industry in policymaking. Third, minimise public funding due to the deregulation processes have resulted in
the privatisation of functions and services previously provided by the state. Finally, the
typical breakup and the high interdependency of the tourism industry boost the strengthening
of inter-organisational relationships, which often lead to formal tourism partnerships.
Successful collaborations have seen the creation of highly successful tourism destination
campaigns such as 100% Pure New Zealand or Amazing Thailand.

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Figure 6: Public and Private Partnership for Destination Promotion

4.3 Responsible tourism and alternative tourism

development
One of the emerging trends of tourism in the 21st century remains the responsible tourism. It
is to make better places to live in and better places to visit. Responsible Tourism recognises
the interests of local people and that great places to live are great places to visit. It puts in
people, their quality of life and maximises the preservation of natural and cultural heritage at
the heart of tourism and minimizes negative social or environmental impacts, and helps local
people conserve fragile cultures and habitats or species.
According to Eadington and Smith 1992, Alternative Tourism has been generally defined as
forms of tourist that are consistent with natural, social and community values and which
allows both hosts and guest to enjoy positive and worthwhile interaction and shared
experiences. Moreover Morgan et al., 2002 and Sheller and Urry, 2004 stated that tourism is
first and foremost an activity about difference and encounter, and its influence in the
representation of places and societies is crucial
In the year 2013 Bonito, Brazil got an award for the sustainability of the site. "Bonito in
Brazil received 190,000 tourists in 2012. It is famous for its crystal clear waters, caves,
mountain and forests with diverse wildlife to be found in a national park and ten private
20

reserves. As tourists began to arrive several concerns emerged: there was fear that
unregulated tourism could impact on the environment. The private sector businesses and the
public authorities realised that tourism development in Bonito needed to be managed so they
developed a voucher system to control visitor numbers.

Figure 7: Bonito in Brazil

4.4 Small and Medium Enterprises development (SMEs)

In the 21st century international tourism has given rise to the Small and medium-sized
enterprises (SMEs) who are non-subsidiary, self-governing firms. Small business
development is the backbone of any strong economy. They drive innovation in a way rarely
attempted by larger, more rigid organisations, and provide a fantastic source of employment
contributing to local economy.
Referring to the local small and medium enterprises nowadays there are around 6,417
operational enterprises both in Mauritius and Rodrigues. Modern tourism helps in developing
and expanding SMEs business as they like to travel and discover the various typical food and
artisanal of a particular destination.

These SMEs contribute to the GDP of 40%

and "generate 54 % of jobs which represents approximately 255,000 jobs in the tourism
destination. Small and medium enterprises are employing people and help in the multiplier
effect of the local economy.

At the same time such enterprises are helping the local

destination to keep alive its traditional craft, artisans, cuisine and many more as increasing
numbers of tourists want to absorb the local way of life when they travel, and exploring the
21

native art scene. Money is earned from tourism through such employment. The positive side
of it is that the money is returned to the local economy, and has a great multiplier effect as it
is spent over and over again. Figure 8 below shows various small and medium entrepreneurs
promoting and selling their product.

Figure 8: SME`s development through Art and Craft for Tourism Industry

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4.4 Development of other economy

In the 21st century tourism industry has become a vital driver of economic, social, and
cultural development in both developed and developing countries. Unlike traditional
industries (e.g. manufacturing, communications, financial services, etc.), tourism can be an
important economic driver in remote areas of countries far from economic centres, as well as
in the major business and administrative centres.

Tourism development stimulates

development in other sectors of the economy as well. The wide distribution of Tourism
within countries is an important dimension to its economic value.

Increasing regional

diversification can help to strengthen regional and national economies. A diversified economy
is less sensitive to the fluctuations of any particular industry because risks are spread evenly
across a number of industries. When one industry is struggling, other stronger industries can
help to support the economy. The more diversified an economy, the more resilient it is to
external events and developments.
Furthermore the tourism industry has given rise to the blue economy that is the aquaculture,
fishing and energy. However with reference to a local online media ion news dated 14
September 2014 Mauritius harness blue economy to achieve high income status. The local
government is talking about making the blue economy one of its pillar. Its usefulness will be
as such the Deep Ocean Water Applications whereby two companies, Sotravic Limited and
Hitachi, will pump cold water from the deep ocean and use it for air conditioning
requirements. Secondly the community-based seaweed farming project and production of
other value added products. Faced with such difficulties on the economic front, the
Government is actively encouraging the emergence of new growth sectors. The choice of
marine aquaculture was dictated by the rapid pace of aquaculture development in the world
on the one hand, and the untapped potential of Mauritius in finfish farming and marine
aquaculture on the other. This potential has come to light after a successful attempt by the
private sector to produce red drum, sea bream and rabbit fish in floating cages on a relatively
large commercial scale.
Moreover in the 21st century the local government faced with such difficulties on the
economic front, that they encouraged the emergence of new growth sectors, which was the
choice of marine aquaculture which was dictated by the rapid pace of aquaculture
development in the world on the one hand, and the untapped potential of Mauritius in finfish
farming and marine aquaculture on the other. This potential has come to light after a
23

successful attempt by the private sector to produce red drum, sea bream and rabbit fish in
floating cages on a relatively large commercial scale. Figure 9 shows how part of the
aquaculture is being done.

Figure 9: Aquaculture Development at Pointe aux Feuilles

4.5 Regional integration

Tourism industry has encouraged regional integration, that is neighbouring countries enter
into an agreement in order to upgrade cooperation through common institutions and rules.
Thus regional integration offers a precious opportunity to improve the countries relationship,
connectivity and tool for resolving conflicts, liberal access to foreign banks and cross border
bank ownership and many more. Research in globalisation of service industries has focused
on developing global strategies for service industries by identifying industry globalisation
drivers and factors (McLaughlin and Fitzsimmons, 1996)
The interconnection and relationships between national and regional political, economic, and
social institutions and norms helps in transforming a destination to be the hub of the
regionally integrated tourism industry. Goods are sufficiently strong substitutes, regional
trade agreements will cause the demand for third party goods to decrease, which will drive
down prices. In addition, more acute competition in the trade zone may convince outside
firms to cut prices to maintain exports to the region. This will create a positive terms of trade
effect for member countries. However, the move to free trade between partners who maintain
significant tariffs vis--vis the rest of the world may well result in trade diversion and welfare
loss (Viner, 1950). The risk of trade diversion could be mitigated if countries implement very
low external tariffs (open regionalism arrangements).
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5.0 Conclusion
Tourism is nowadays an important industry that is constantly growing. Its activities have been
diversified towards eco and rural tourism. This has created opportunities that make the new
demands from tourists coincide with rural communities need for economic development.
Tourism development impacts are felt at the national, regional, and local levels for any
country that develops the tourism industry. Tourism serves as an important incentive to
preserve the environment ensuring a balanced growth path of the economy and increasing
living standards.
Tourism is one of the few potential growth sectors in mature economies. The industry of
tourism is considered as one of the most contributively sectors towards economic
development worldwide.
To gain the involvement of the private sector, it is important that governmental entities
develop and foster cooperative activities that are mutually beneficial. By including private
sector representatives in the planning and execution of public policy decisions, governments
and the private sector can develop risk sharing partnerships. These risk sharing partnerships
can help government and private sector participants, to better understand each others needs
and achieve common goals. Tourism development can have positive economic effects on
local economies, and a visible impact on national GDP growth. It can be also an essential
component for both economic development and poverty reduction. National development
strategies must therefore be developed with recognition that tourism plays an essential role in
improving the conditions of poorer segments of society.
Responsible ecotourism includes programs that minimize the adverse effects of traditional
tourism on the natural environment, and enhance the cultural integrity of local people.
Therefore, in addition to evaluating environmental and cultural factors, initiatives by
hospitality providers to promote recycling, energy efficiency, water reuse, and the creation of
economic opportunities for local communities are an integral part of ecotourism.
Tourism industry actually counts as one of the economic and social phenomena of the last
century and certainly will retain its position for centuries to come. World tourism has
traditionally been measured by international tourist arrivals and international tourist revenues.
Tourism has found a niche as an effective instrument for generating employment, earning
revenue and foreign exchange, enhancing environment preserving culture and tradition,

25

thereby facilitating the overall development. Tourism is one of the world's largest and fastest
growing industries.
As from 2000, there were 699 million international tourist arrivals throughout the world, an
increase of 7.4% over the preceding year and international tourist receipts reached US $ 476
billion, a 4.5% increase from 1999. There has been also a strong growth in foreign travel to
developing countries during recent years and this trend is expected to continue. In the last two
decades, an increasing number of destination economies have come to rely on the travel,
tourism and hospitality industry. Economic diversification and technological improvement
have created a favorable environment for tourism development in the present age of
globalization.
A holistic approach to tourism planning and development of destinations for sustainable
tourism, both in terms of providing a quality experience for visitors and addressing all the
impacts of tourism. The tourism sector plays an important role on sustainable rural
development.
It stimulates infrastructure investment and its benefits spill over to other activities. However,
when implementing tourism projects, the full impact on such activities must be assessed in
terms of natural resource degradation and unstable seasonal employment.
Governments should be aware that massive tourism activities can prejudice the quality of life
of local inhabitants, environmental resources as well as natural reserves and wild life. The
pressure by investors in sensitive areas must be contained by implementing restrictive land
use expansion policies.

26

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