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We specialise in tailor-made holidays around East Africa (Rwanda, Uganda Kenya and Tanzania) To Dubai, whether you're travelling alone or in a private group, on a shoestring or in the lap of luxury. Browse our tour collection for ideas and then contact us and we can plan a trip just for you. We will cover every moment of your time in the Land of Smiles, from the second you arrive to the airport, to dropping you back there. Tell us the hotel you are looking for, the tours you want, any transfers you need and the budget you have to work with and we can help you to plan every detail.

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There is no place on earth like Uganda. Visiting safari game parks in Uganda is one of the ...

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International tourism: the most popular countries

Drastic declines due to COVID-19

The most popular travel countries.

Germany is the world travel champion

Booming tourism and slump in 2020.

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Economic Impact Research

• In 2023, the Travel & Tourism sector contributed 9.1% to the global GDP; an increase of 23.2% from 2022 and only 4.1% below the 2019 level.
• In 2023, there were 27 million new jobs, representing a 9.1% increase compared to 2022, and only 1.4% below the 2019 level.
• Domestic visitor spending rose by 18.1% in 2023, surpassing the 2019 level.
• International visitor spending registered a 33.1% jump in 2023 but remained 14.4% below the 2019 total.

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From the outset, our Members realised that hard economic facts were needed to help governments and policymakers truly understand the potential of Travel & Tourism. Measuring the size and growth of Travel & Tourism and its contribution to society, therefore, plays a vital part in underpinning WTTC’s work.

What research does WTTC carry out?

Each year, WTTC and Oxford Economics produce reports covering the economic contribution of our sector in 185 countries, for 26 economic and geographic regions, and for more than 70 cities. We also benchmark Travel & Tourism against other economic sectors and analyse the impact of government policies affecting the sector such as jobs and visa facilitation.

Visit our Research Hub via the button below to find all our Economic Impact Reports, as well as other reports on Travel and Tourism. 

By: Bastian Herre , Veronika Samborska and Max Roser

Tourism has massively increased in recent decades. Aviation has opened up travel from domestic to international. Before the COVID-19 pandemic, the number of international visits had more than doubled since 2000.

Tourism can be important for both the travelers and the people in the countries they visit.

For visitors, traveling can increase their understanding of and appreciation for people in other countries and their cultures.

And in many countries, many people rely on tourism for their income. In some, it is one of the largest industries.

But tourism also has externalities: it contributes to global carbon emissions and can encroach on local environments and cultures.

On this page, you can find data and visualizations on the history and current state of tourism across the world.

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The future of tourism: Bridging the labor gap, enhancing customer experience

As travel resumes and builds momentum, it’s becoming clear that tourism is resilient—there is an enduring desire to travel. Against all odds, international tourism rebounded in 2022: visitor numbers to Europe and the Middle East climbed to around 80 percent of 2019 levels, and the Americas recovered about 65 percent of prepandemic visitors 1 “Tourism set to return to pre-pandemic levels in some regions in 2023,” United Nations World Tourism Organization (UNWTO), January 17, 2023. —a number made more significant because it was reached without travelers from China, which had the world’s largest outbound travel market before the pandemic. 2 “ Outlook for China tourism 2023: Light at the end of the tunnel ,” McKinsey, May 9, 2023.

Recovery and growth are likely to continue. According to estimates from the World Tourism Organization (UNWTO) for 2023, international tourist arrivals could reach 80 to 95 percent of prepandemic levels depending on the extent of the economic slowdown, travel recovery in Asia–Pacific, and geopolitical tensions, among other factors. 3 “Tourism set to return to pre-pandemic levels in some regions in 2023,” United Nations World Tourism Organization (UNWTO), January 17, 2023. Similarly, the World Travel & Tourism Council (WTTC) forecasts that by the end of 2023, nearly half of the 185 countries in which the organization conducts research will have either recovered to prepandemic levels or be within 95 percent of full recovery. 4 “Global travel and tourism catapults into 2023 says WTTC,” World Travel & Tourism Council (WTTC), April 26, 2023.

Longer-term forecasts also point to optimism for the decade ahead. Travel and tourism GDP is predicted to grow, on average, at 5.8 percent a year between 2022 and 2032, outpacing the growth of the overall economy at an expected 2.7 percent a year. 5 Travel & Tourism economic impact 2022 , WTTC, August 2022.

So, is it all systems go for travel and tourism? Not really. The industry continues to face a prolonged and widespread labor shortage. After losing 62 million travel and tourism jobs in 2020, labor supply and demand remain out of balance. 6 “WTTC research reveals Travel & Tourism’s slow recovery is hitting jobs and growth worldwide,” World Travel & Tourism Council, October 6, 2021. Today, in the European Union, 11 percent of tourism jobs are likely to go unfilled; in the United States, that figure is 7 percent. 7 Travel & Tourism economic impact 2022 : Staff shortages, WTTC, August 2022.

There has been an exodus of tourism staff, particularly from customer-facing roles, to other sectors, and there is no sign that the industry will be able to bring all these people back. 8 Travel & Tourism economic impact 2022 : Staff shortages, WTTC, August 2022. Hotels, restaurants, cruises, airports, and airlines face staff shortages that can translate into operational, reputational, and financial difficulties. If unaddressed, these shortages may constrain the industry’s growth trajectory.

The current labor shortage may have its roots in factors related to the nature of work in the industry. Chronic workplace challenges, coupled with the effects of COVID-19, have culminated in an industry struggling to rebuild its workforce. Generally, tourism-related jobs are largely informal, partly due to high seasonality and weak regulation. And conditions such as excessively long working hours, low wages, a high turnover rate, and a lack of social protection tend to be most pronounced in an informal economy. Additionally, shift work, night work, and temporary or part-time employment are common in tourism.

The industry may need to revisit some fundamentals to build a far more sustainable future: either make the industry more attractive to talent (and put conditions in place to retain staff for longer periods) or improve products, services, and processes so that they complement existing staffing needs or solve existing pain points.

One solution could be to build a workforce with the mix of digital and interpersonal skills needed to keep up with travelers’ fast-changing requirements. The industry could make the most of available technology to provide customers with a digitally enhanced experience, resolve staff shortages, and improve working conditions.

Would you like to learn more about our Travel, Logistics & Infrastructure Practice ?

Complementing concierges with chatbots.

The pace of technological change has redefined customer expectations. Technology-driven services are often at customers’ fingertips, with no queues or waiting times. By contrast, the airport and airline disruption widely reported in the press over the summer of 2022 points to customers not receiving this same level of digital innovation when traveling.

Imagine the following travel experience: it’s 2035 and you start your long-awaited honeymoon to a tropical island. A virtual tour operator and a destination travel specialist booked your trip for you; you connected via videoconference to make your plans. Your itinerary was chosen with the support of generative AI , which analyzed your preferences, recommended personalized travel packages, and made real-time adjustments based on your feedback.

Before leaving home, you check in online and QR code your luggage. You travel to the airport by self-driving cab. After dropping off your luggage at the self-service counter, you pass through security and the biometric check. You access the premier lounge with the QR code on the airline’s loyalty card and help yourself to a glass of wine and a sandwich. After your flight, a prebooked, self-driving cab takes you to the resort. No need to check in—that was completed online ahead of time (including picking your room and making sure that the hotel’s virtual concierge arranged for red roses and a bottle of champagne to be delivered).

While your luggage is brought to the room by a baggage robot, your personal digital concierge presents the honeymoon itinerary with all the requested bookings. For the romantic dinner on the first night, you order your food via the restaurant app on the table and settle the bill likewise. So far, you’ve had very little human interaction. But at dinner, the sommelier chats with you in person about the wine. The next day, your sightseeing is made easier by the hotel app and digital guide—and you don’t get lost! With the aid of holographic technology, the virtual tour guide brings historical figures to life and takes your sightseeing experience to a whole new level. Then, as arranged, a local citizen meets you and takes you to their home to enjoy a local family dinner. The trip is seamless, there are no holdups or snags.

This scenario features less human interaction than a traditional trip—but it flows smoothly due to the underlying technology. The human interactions that do take place are authentic, meaningful, and add a special touch to the experience. This may be a far-fetched example, but the essence of the scenario is clear: use technology to ease typical travel pain points such as queues, misunderstandings, or misinformation, and elevate the quality of human interaction.

Travel with less human interaction may be considered a disruptive idea, as many travelers rely on and enjoy the human connection, the “service with a smile.” This will always be the case, but perhaps the time is right to think about bringing a digital experience into the mix. The industry may not need to depend exclusively on human beings to serve its customers. Perhaps the future of travel is physical, but digitally enhanced (and with a smile!).

Digital solutions are on the rise and can help bridge the labor gap

Digital innovation is improving customer experience across multiple industries. Car-sharing apps have overcome service-counter waiting times and endless paperwork that travelers traditionally had to cope with when renting a car. The same applies to time-consuming hotel check-in, check-out, and payment processes that can annoy weary customers. These pain points can be removed. For instance, in China, the Huazhu Hotels Group installed self-check-in kiosks that enable guests to check in or out in under 30 seconds. 9 “Huazhu Group targets lifestyle market opportunities,” ChinaTravelNews, May 27, 2021.

Technology meets hospitality

In 2019, Alibaba opened its FlyZoo Hotel in Huangzhou, described as a “290-room ultra-modern boutique, where technology meets hospitality.” 1 “Chinese e-commerce giant Alibaba has a hotel run almost entirely by robots that can serve food and fetch toiletries—take a look inside,” Business Insider, October 21, 2019; “FlyZoo Hotel: The hotel of the future or just more technology hype?,” Hotel Technology News, March 2019. The hotel was the first of its kind that instead of relying on traditional check-in and key card processes, allowed guests to manage reservations and make payments entirely from a mobile app, to check-in using self-service kiosks, and enter their rooms using facial-recognition technology.

The hotel is run almost entirely by robots that serve food and fetch toiletries and other sundries as needed. Each guest room has a voice-activated smart assistant to help guests with a variety of tasks, from adjusting the temperature, lights, curtains, and the TV to playing music and answering simple questions about the hotel and surroundings.

The hotel was developed by the company’s online travel platform, Fliggy, in tandem with Alibaba’s AI Labs and Alibaba Cloud technology with the goal of “leveraging cutting-edge tech to help transform the hospitality industry, one that keeps the sector current with the digital era we’re living in,” according to the company.

Adoption of some digitally enhanced services was accelerated during the pandemic in the quest for safer, contactless solutions. During the Winter Olympics in Beijing, a restaurant designed to keep physical contact to a minimum used a track system on the ceiling to deliver meals directly from the kitchen to the table. 10 “This Beijing Winter Games restaurant uses ceiling-based tracks,” Trendhunter, January 26, 2022. Customers around the world have become familiar with restaurants using apps to display menus, take orders, and accept payment, as well as hotels using robots to deliver luggage and room service (see sidebar “Technology meets hospitality”). Similarly, theme parks, cinemas, stadiums, and concert halls are deploying digital solutions such as facial recognition to optimize entrance control. Shanghai Disneyland, for example, offers annual pass holders the option to choose facial recognition to facilitate park entry. 11 “Facial recognition park entry,” Shanghai Disney Resort website.

Automation and digitization can also free up staff from attending to repetitive functions that could be handled more efficiently via an app and instead reserve the human touch for roles where staff can add the most value. For instance, technology can help customer-facing staff to provide a more personalized service. By accessing data analytics, frontline staff can have guests’ details and preferences at their fingertips. A trainee can become an experienced concierge in a short time, with the help of technology.

Apps and in-room tech: Unused market potential

According to Skift Research calculations, total revenue generated by guest apps and in-room technology in 2019 was approximately $293 million, including proprietary apps by hotel brands as well as third-party vendors. 1 “Hotel tech benchmark: Guest-facing technology 2022,” Skift Research, November 2022. The relatively low market penetration rate of this kind of tech points to around $2.4 billion in untapped revenue potential (exhibit).

Even though guest-facing technology is available—the kind that can facilitate contactless interactions and offer travelers convenience and personalized service—the industry is only beginning to explore its potential. A report by Skift Research shows that the hotel industry, in particular, has not tapped into tech’s potential. Only 11 percent of hotels and 25 percent of hotel rooms worldwide are supported by a hotel app or use in-room technology, and only 3 percent of hotels offer keyless entry. 12 “Hotel tech benchmark: Guest-facing technology 2022,” Skift Research, November 2022. Of the five types of technology examined (guest apps and in-room tech; virtual concierge; guest messaging and chatbots; digital check-in and kiosks; and keyless entry), all have relatively low market-penetration rates (see sidebar “Apps and in-room tech: Unused market potential”).

While apps, digitization, and new technology may be the answer to offering better customer experience, there is also the possibility that tourism may face competition from technological advances, particularly virtual experiences. Museums, attractions, and historical sites can be made interactive and, in some cases, more lifelike, through AR/VR technology that can enhance the physical travel experience by reconstructing historical places or events.

Up until now, tourism, arguably, was one of a few sectors that could not easily be replaced by tech. It was not possible to replicate the physical experience of traveling to another place. With the emerging metaverse , this might change. Travelers could potentially enjoy an event or experience from their sofa without any logistical snags, and without the commitment to traveling to another country for any length of time. For example, Google offers virtual tours of the Pyramids of Meroë in Sudan via an immersive online experience available in a range of languages. 13 Mariam Khaled Dabboussi, “Step into the Meroë pyramids with Google,” Google, May 17, 2022. And a crypto banking group, The BCB Group, has created a metaverse city that includes representations of some of the most visited destinations in the world, such as the Great Wall of China and the Statue of Liberty. According to BCB, the total cost of flights, transfers, and entry for all these landmarks would come to $7,600—while a virtual trip would cost just over $2. 14 “What impact can the Metaverse have on the travel industry?,” Middle East Economy, July 29, 2022.

The metaverse holds potential for business travel, too—the meeting, incentives, conferences, and exhibitions (MICE) sector in particular. Participants could take part in activities in the same immersive space while connecting from anywhere, dramatically reducing travel, venue, catering, and other costs. 15 “ Tourism in the metaverse: Can travel go virtual? ,” McKinsey, May 4, 2023.

The allure and convenience of such digital experiences make offering seamless, customer-centric travel and tourism in the real world all the more pressing.

Three innovations to solve hotel staffing shortages

Is the future contactless.

Given the advances in technology, and the many digital innovations and applications that already exist, there is potential for businesses across the travel and tourism spectrum to cope with labor shortages while improving customer experience. Process automation and digitization can also add to process efficiency. Taken together, a combination of outsourcing, remote work, and digital solutions can help to retain existing staff and reduce dependency on roles that employers are struggling to fill (exhibit).

Depending on the customer service approach and direct contact need, we estimate that the travel and tourism industry would be able to cope with a structural labor shortage of around 10 to 15 percent in the long run by operating more flexibly and increasing digital and automated efficiency—while offering the remaining staff an improved total work package.

Outsourcing and remote work could also help resolve the labor shortage

While COVID-19 pushed organizations in a wide variety of sectors to embrace remote work, there are many hospitality roles that rely on direct physical services that cannot be performed remotely, such as laundry, cleaning, maintenance, and facility management. If faced with staff shortages, these roles could be outsourced to third-party professional service providers, and existing staff could be reskilled to take up new positions.

In McKinsey’s experience, the total service cost of this type of work in a typical hotel can make up 10 percent of total operating costs. Most often, these roles are not guest facing. A professional and digital-based solution might become an integrated part of a third-party service for hotels looking to outsource this type of work.

One of the lessons learned in the aftermath of COVID-19 is that many tourism employees moved to similar positions in other sectors because they were disillusioned by working conditions in the industry . Specialist multisector companies have been able to shuffle their staff away from tourism to other sectors that offer steady employment or more regular working hours compared with the long hours and seasonal nature of work in tourism.

The remaining travel and tourism staff may be looking for more flexibility or the option to work from home. This can be an effective solution for retaining employees. For example, a travel agent with specific destination expertise could work from home or be consulted on an needs basis.

In instances where remote work or outsourcing is not viable, there are other solutions that the hospitality industry can explore to improve operational effectiveness as well as employee satisfaction. A more agile staffing model  can better match available labor with peaks and troughs in daily, or even hourly, demand. This could involve combining similar roles or cross-training staff so that they can switch roles. Redesigned roles could potentially improve employee satisfaction by empowering staff to explore new career paths within the hotel’s operations. Combined roles build skills across disciplines—for example, supporting a housekeeper to train and become proficient in other maintenance areas, or a front-desk associate to build managerial skills.

Where management or ownership is shared across properties, roles could be staffed to cover a network of sites, rather than individual hotels. By applying a combination of these approaches, hotels could reduce the number of staff hours needed to keep operations running at the same standard. 16 “ Three innovations to solve hotel staffing shortages ,” McKinsey, April 3, 2023.

Taken together, operational adjustments combined with greater use of technology could provide the tourism industry with a way of overcoming staffing challenges and giving customers the seamless digitally enhanced experiences they expect in other aspects of daily life.

In an industry facing a labor shortage, there are opportunities for tech innovations that can help travel and tourism businesses do more with less, while ensuring that remaining staff are engaged and motivated to stay in the industry. For travelers, this could mean fewer friendly faces, but more meaningful experiences and interactions.

Urs Binggeli is a senior expert in McKinsey’s Zurich office, Zi Chen is a capabilities and insights specialist in the Shanghai office, Steffen Köpke is a capabilities and insights expert in the Düsseldorf office, and Jackey Yu is a partner in the Hong Kong office.

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Travel, Tourism & Hospitality

Global tourism industry - statistics & facts

What are the leading global tourism destinations, digitalization of the global tourism industry, how important is sustainable tourism, key insights.

Detailed statistics

Total contribution of travel and tourism to GDP worldwide 2019-2034

Number of international tourist arrivals worldwide 1950-2023

Global leisure travel spend 2019-2022

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Current statistics on this topic.

Leading global travel markets by travel and tourism contribution to GDP 2019-2022

Travel and tourism employment worldwide 2019-2034

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Countries with the most hotel construction projects in the pipeline worldwide 2024

Countries with the highest number of hotel construction projects in the pipeline worldwide as of the first quarter of 2024

• Premium Statistic Airports with the most international air passenger traffic worldwide 2022
• Premium Statistic Market value of selected airlines worldwide 2023
• Premium Statistic Global passenger rail users forecast 2017-2028
• Premium Statistic Daily ridership of bus rapid transit systems worldwide by region 2023
• Premium Statistic Number of users of car rentals worldwide 2019-2028
• Premium Statistic Number of users in selected countries in the Car Rentals market in 2023
• Premium Statistic Carbon footprint of international tourism transport worldwide 2005-2030, by type

Airports with the most international air passenger traffic worldwide 2022

Leading airports for international air passenger traffic in 2022 (in million international passengers)

Market value of selected airlines worldwide 2023

Market value of selected airlines worldwide as of May 2023 (in billion U.S. dollars)

Global passenger rail users forecast 2017-2028

Worldwide number of passenger rail users from 2017 to 2023, with a forecast through 2028 (in billion users)

Daily ridership of bus rapid transit systems worldwide by region 2023

Number of daily passengers using bus rapid transit (BRT) systems as of April 2023, by region

Number of users of car rentals worldwide 2019-2028

Number of users of car rentals worldwide from 2019 to 2028 (in millions)

Number of users in selected countries in the Car Rentals market in 2023

Number of users in selected countries in the Car Rentals market in 2023 (in million)

Carbon footprint of international tourism transport worldwide 2005-2030, by type

Transport-related emissions from international tourist arrivals worldwide in 2005 and 2016, with a forecast for 2030, by mode of transport (in million metric tons of carbon dioxide)

Attractions

• Premium Statistic Leading museums by highest attendance worldwide 2019-2022
• Basic Statistic Most visited amusement and theme parks worldwide 2019-2022
• Basic Statistic Monuments on the UNESCO world heritage list 2023, by type
• Basic Statistic Selected countries with the most Michelin-starred restaurants worldwide 2023

Leading museums by highest attendance worldwide 2019-2022

Most visited museums worldwide from 2019 to 2022 (in millions)

Most visited amusement and theme parks worldwide 2019-2022

Leading amusement and theme parks worldwide from 2019 to 2022, by attendance (in millions)

Monuments on the UNESCO world heritage list 2023, by type

Number of monuments on the UNESCO world heritage list as of September 2023, by type

Selected countries with the most Michelin-starred restaurants worldwide 2023

Number of Michelin-starred restaurants in selected countries and territories worldwide as of July 2023

Online travel market

• Premium Statistic Online travel market size worldwide 2017-2028
• Premium Statistic Estimated desktop vs. mobile revenue of leading OTAs worldwide 2023
• Premium Statistic Number of aggregated downloads of leading online travel agency apps worldwide 2023
• Basic Statistic Market cap of leading online travel companies worldwide 2023
• Premium Statistic Estimated EV/Revenue ratio in the online travel market 2024, by segment
• Premium Statistic Estimated EV/EBITDA ratio in the online travel market 2024, by segment

Online travel market size worldwide 2017-2028

Online travel market size worldwide from 2017 to 2023, with a forecast until 2028 (in billion U.S. dollars)

Estimated desktop vs. mobile revenue of leading OTAs worldwide 2023

Estimated desktop vs. mobile revenue of leading online travel agencies (OTAs) worldwide in 2023 (in billion U.S. dollars)

Number of aggregated downloads of leading online travel agency apps worldwide 2023

Number of aggregated downloads of selected leading online travel agency apps worldwide in 2023 (in millions)

Market cap of leading online travel companies worldwide 2023

Market cap of leading online travel companies worldwide as of September 2023 (in million U.S. dollars)

Estimated EV/Revenue ratio in the online travel market 2024, by segment

Estimated enterprise value to revenue (EV/Revenue) ratio in the online travel market worldwide as of April 2024, by segment

Estimated EV/EBITDA ratio in the online travel market 2024, by segment

Estimated enterprise value to EBITDA (EV/EBITDA) ratio in the online travel market worldwide as of April 2024, by segment

Selected trends

• Premium Statistic Global travelers who believe in the importance of green travel 2023
• Premium Statistic Sustainable initiatives travelers would adopt worldwide 2022, by region
• Premium Statistic Airbnb revenue worldwide 2017-2023
• Premium Statistic Airbnb nights and experiences booked worldwide 2017-2023
• Premium Statistic Technologies global hotels plan to implement in the next three years 2022
• Premium Statistic Hotel technologies global consumers think would improve their future stay 2022

Global travelers who believe in the importance of green travel 2023

Share of travelers that believe sustainable travel is important worldwide in 2023

Sustainable initiatives travelers would adopt worldwide 2022, by region

Main sustainable initiatives travelers are willing to adopt worldwide in 2022, by region

Airbnb revenue worldwide 2017-2023

Revenue of Airbnb worldwide from 2017 to 2023 (in billion U.S. dollars)

Airbnb nights and experiences booked worldwide 2017-2023

Nights and experiences booked with Airbnb from 2017 to 2023 (in millions)

Technologies global hotels plan to implement in the next three years 2022

Technologies hotels are most likely to implement in the next three years worldwide as of 2022

Hotel technologies global consumers think would improve their future stay 2022

Must-have hotel technologies to create a more amazing stay in the future among travelers worldwide as of 2022

• Premium Statistic Travel and tourism revenue worldwide 2019-2028, by segment
• Premium Statistic Distribution of sales channels in the travel and tourism market worldwide 2018-2028
• Premium Statistic Inbound tourism visitor growth worldwide 2020-2025, by region
• Premium Statistic Outbound tourism visitor growth worldwide 2020-2025, by region

Travel and tourism revenue worldwide 2019-2028, by segment

Revenue of the global travel and tourism market from 2019 to 2028, by segment (in billion U.S. dollars)

Distribution of sales channels in the travel and tourism market worldwide 2018-2028

Revenue share of sales channels of the travel and tourism market worldwide from 2018 to 2028

Inbound tourism visitor growth worldwide 2020-2025, by region

Inbound tourism visitor growth worldwide from 2020 to 2022, with a forecast until 2025, by region

Outbound tourism visitor growth worldwide 2020-2025, by region

Outbound tourism visitor growth worldwide from 2020 to 2022, with a forecast until 2025, by region

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Overtourism Is Out of Control. Here Are the New Rules of Travel.

Post-pandemic travel is surging, and overtourism is pushing popular places to their limits. How can you be a good traveler when some locals just want you to go home?

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I was in Hawaii with a group of friends, and a local screamed at us to go home. The island was overcrowded, and while I know tourists can be obnoxious and disrespectful, we were being conscientious. I don’t want to give up visiting the world’s most beautiful places, but I also don’t want to add to overtourism. Can I continue to wander where I want to? —Afraid of Anti-Tourists

I grew up in a tourist town on the Jersey Shore, so I understand the frustration of residents who live in vacation destinations. Each summer I’d grouse as throngs of visitors took over beaches, snarled traffic, and made parking impossible. But their tourism dollars were a boon to the local economy, and the tips I made waitressing during high season helped pay my way through college.

Now I split my time between Colorado and Maui and see how an influx of visitors impacts the environment and longtime residents. Peak season in either place—when it feels like tourists outnumber residents—is maddening, and it turns my typical routine upside down.

The local coffee shops where I sometimes work remotely from are mobbed, so I usually stay home. If I don’t do my grocery shopping as soon as stores open, I have to drive in circles indefinitely, searching for parking. Popular restaurants have hour-plus wait times, so my friends and I abandon hopes of dining out.

The Hawaiian Islands’ most recent Resident Sentiment Survey , conducted by Hawaii’s Department of Business, Economic Development, and Tourism, revealed that 67 percent believe their islands are being run for tourists at the expense of locals, and that many feel tourists show a lack of respect for them, culture, and the land. I often bike to Hana, a sleepy east-Maui town with a population of around 700, and I’ve seen residents native to Hawaii set up roadblocks and signs asking tourists to go home. I understand. This was their land.

Locals in other tourist towns have figured out ways of coping. “I avoid the downtown plaza all summer while tourists are here,” says Outside travel director Mary Turner, who lives in Santa Fe, New Mexico. “I’m happy that businesses are being supported by tourism, especially after the devastating affects of the pandemic on them. But I do get frustrated when I see visitors being disrespectful, like smoking on hiking trails during fire season.”

Kevin Rieke, a longtime local business owner in Leavenworth, Washington, who grew up hiking in the Cascade Mountains, blames Instagram for crowding his favorite trails. But he also sees the positive: thanks to a boost in tourist numbers, he says, the town now has a dozen really good restaurants that residents can enjoy in the slow seasons, and it’s easier for local kids to find jobs.

Global travel has made a comeback, and people are more eager than ever to get out in the world. According to UN Tourism , by the end of 2024, numbers will have returned to pre-pandemic levels. The International Air Transportation Association predicts that air travel this year will reach a historic high, with 4.7 billion people expected to take flight worldwide.

One of the biggest problems is that visitors continue to flock to the same places, like Venice and Paris, as well as the more popular national parks in the U.S. I include myself in that flock: I still feel compelled to visit places that are now overtouristed, like Rome and Bali. They’re bucket-list destinations for good reason.

So should you stop traveling to the world’s most beautiful places? As a travel journalist, I’m always going to encourage you to get out there and explore. But with heightened pressures on popular destinations around the globe, we could all stand to take a moment to learn how to be a more conscious tourist. Here are my suggestions.

Pay Tourist Fees to Support Local Economies

Travel meccas such as Amsterdam, Iceland, and Bali have started implementing a tourist tax for peak months to help temper visitation. Venice, which has a mere 50,000 residents, incredibly hosts 30 million visitors annually, many of them day-trippers who put little money back into the economy. Which is why, in April, the city introduced a trial fee of 5 euros ($5.45) per day on certain dates through July. The tariff has drawn criticism from residents who feel it makes visitors view their home like a park.

The town of Bend, Oregon, recently created a sustainability fund that puts revenue generated from a short-term-lodging tax—paid by visitors—into community-focused projects, such as a bike-park and trail improvements. “The idea is to use the money to address environmental degradation and invest in projects that locals and visitors can enjoy, so you have a social equilibrium that keeps a destination in balance,” says Todd Montgomery, the board chair for Visit Bend.

Paying a nominal fee to protect the places we love is the least we can do.

Expect to Plan Ahead and Make Reservations

The pandemic created a passion for outdoor recreation, and as a result, our national parks became overcrowded. An increasing number of popular parks in America, such as Yosemite, have implemented reservation systems for peak times. At first the planning seemed annoying, but the result is often a better quality experience for visitors and a lighter footprint on the land.

Learn Local Outdoor Etiquette

Many city dwellers were introduced to the joy of the outdoors during the pandemic, which is wonderful. But some hit the trails without basic knowledge about how to recreate responsibly.

“I’ve never seen more dog feces unpicked up, people going off route and trampling sensitive areas, Bluetooth-enabled speakers blaring out of backpacks, and Disney-like lines on sections of trails,” says Jim Deters, founder of the Gravity Haus hotels, which are located in more than a half dozen mountain towns across the West.

One of Deter’s goals with his properties is to provide visitors a truly local experience by creating an environment where they can mingle with residents—not just be served by them at a bar or restaurant. “We are the local’s gym, coworking space, and coffee shop,” says Deters. Sharing advice tends to happen organically in these settings.

Kayla Applebay, a resident and business owner in Leavenworth, Washington, says she won’t go to the rivers on summer weekends because tourists turn them into tube-clogged waterways. “You see people walking on salmon habitat, leaving trash everywhere,” she says. “Last summer a car caught on fire, and emergency services couldn’t access it because people had parked illegally.”

The town acted. In 2022, it launched a cheeky campaign called Give a Schnitzel (Leavenworth is known for its Bavarian heritage and Oktoberfest) to educate visitors on how to recreate responsibly. It also hired volunteer recreation ambassadors who post up at trailheads or river put-ins and take-outs, fielding questions and explaining rules. “They’ve probably saved quite a few lives by telling people to unleash from their paddleboards on the rapids,” says Troy Campbell, executive director of the Leavenworth Chamber of Commerce.

The upshot is: educate yourself on the area you’re going to. What’s happening there right now? What are locals concerned about? Keep up to date with issues by reading local news sites and magazines, visiting a local outdoor store and asking questions, or joining a local group-cycling ride or trail run.

If you screw up, always give a heartfelt apology. In Hawaiian culture, kids are taught Pa’a ka waha, ho’olohe ka pepeaio, nana ka maka , or “Shut your mouth, listen, watch,” says Kainoa Horcajo, a Maui-based cultural consultant. “This is how you can learn how to get along, how to fit in—and how to be a good tourist, citizen, human.”

Book Your Trip in the Offseason or a Shoulder Season

When you travel during these slower times, not only do you help reduce overcrowding but you’re also likely to have a more enjoyable experience and find better prices and more patient locals, says Amanda Ho, co-founder of Regenerative Travel, a booking platform with a collective of independently owned eco-hotels.

Spring, fall, and winter are good seasons to consider traveling to national parks and other popular places.

Stay and Play with Locally Owned Businesses

When you can be selective with the accommodations, tour guides, and experiences you’re booking, says Ho, it ensures your dollars are supporting residents as often as possible. Many locals’ livelihoods depend on tourism, so avoid big-box stores and chain restaurants in favor of eating and shopping at resident-owned places.

Some Other Rules to Travel By

• Don’t hold up traffic. This holds true from Manhattan to Maui. When you want to take photos, find an appropriate place for it that doesn’t slow down pedestrian or street traffic.
• Don’t create your own parking spaces. The lines are there for public safety and environmental protection. In Lake Tahoe, which straddles the California-Nevada border, illegal parking can create erosion and that runoff often ends up in the lake.
• Don’t use other people’s property as a bathroom. Would you want your kids to see a grown man’s behind poking out of the trees of your yard?
• Don’t go off-trail. It can disturb flora and fauna and pose safety risks to yourself.
• Don’t approach wildlife. Not the bison in our national parks or whales or dolphins while boating or snorkeling.
• Don’t geotag popular natural attractions on social media. It may be tempting to social-boast about your epic vacation, but a viral post can ruin a destination with Instagram-obsessed crowds.
• Don’t be rude to service workers. They’re employed to make your time safe and more enjoyable. Insulting them is about as inconsiderate as it gets.

Remember That Tourism Destinations Are Fragile

Yes, many economies depend on tourism, but too much of it is bad for everyone. Overcrowding adversely affects both locals and tourists, and in the long run it can ruin the natural beauty that made a destination desirable in the first place.

Todd Montgomery, who in addition to working for Visit Bend is the director of Oregon State University’s Sustainable Tourism Lab (which describes itself as “protecting tourist destinations for future generations of visitors and tourists”), got his start working for the mega-resort conglomerate Starwood Capital Group, where he was tasked with finding the next “it” destination in Southeast Asia between 1999 and 2006.

He and his colleagues would go into rural areas, promising the positive economic benefits of tourism to locals, only to have those areas “burn out” on visitation years later.

Initially, he says, travelers “paid for the culture and nature, but when that became diluted as the result of too many visitors, they weren’t inclined to pay as much,” he says. The visitor experience was negatively affected, but the destination also suffered from some combination of environmental damages, infrastructure wear and tear, and cultural damages, resulting in economic, social and environmental costs.

“Back then we assumed there was always another next destination,” Montgomery says. “If Phuket [in Thailand] got overrun, we’d go farther south. The reality was that there are only so many next destinations. You can’t have a turn-and-burn mentality. You have to protect places.” How do we do that, I ask him?

“It feels cliché,” he tells me, “but it starts with education.” 

Travel-advice columnist Jen Murphy wishes she could charge people a fee every time they try to take a selfie with a turtle on the beaches in Maui or a mountain goat while hiking in Colorado. 

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This New Book Is Reframing How We Think About Tourism

By Nora Biette-Timmons

The sun was finally peaking through the storm clouds when I cracked open The New Tourist on a train headed out of Amsterdam . I’d absolutely loved the city, even in pouring rain—canals around every corner, beautiful public parks, some of the most charming architecture I’d ever encountered. But I’d also spent the vast majority of my time outside the inner ring, venturing into the historic, heavily touristed city center just once, to hop on a boat tour. I’d wanted to avoid being part of the overcrowding that much of Amsterdam has experienced due to a surge in tourism in recent years. (In 2010, there were 5.3 million overnight hotel stays in the city. Last year, there were 9.4 million . Complaining about tourism is now a frequent refrain among locals and visitors alike.) Put less charitably, I wanted to avoid any possibility of being mistaken for a “tourist” in the most pejorative sense.

Right away in the introduction to The New Tourist , Paige McClanahan gently told me off. “A lot of people are uncomfortable with the word ‘tourist,’ at least when it’s aimed in their direction,” she writes. “It irks me that some people insist on a distinction between ‘travelers’ and ‘tourists,’ where the former are explorer types […] while the latter are philistines who are content with cliched, mass-market experiences.”

The New Tourist , by Paige McClanahan, reminds readers of the powers and perils of travel.

This nuanced approach to tourism is baked into the premise of The New Tourist, a new book perfectly summarized by its subtitle: “waking up to the power and perils of travel.” A “new tourist,” argues McClanahan, engages with the people who live in the place they’re visiting, and ideally does activities on locals’ terms, not those of corporate chains or extractive behemoths. A “new tourist” is also aware of the tourism industry’s impact on climate change (historically, at least 8% of greenhouse gas emissions come from tourism, a percentage that’s likely increased significantly in recent years), and how certain activities impact local ecosystems in places like Hawaii , Iceland, and the Alps.

McClanahan also considers the forces that drive us and our fellow tourists to head to a certain location (a government’s effective tourism campaign, for example, or our colleagues’ Instagram posts), in one chapter describing the policy choices that led Amsterdam to becoming the heavily-touristed, famed party city it is today—and recent attempts to reverse that reputation, including a campaign to tell bachelor parties to stay away.

Yet McClanahan remains unwavering in her belief that tourism can be a net good—for individual travelers, for destinations, and for the world. In her last chapter, she cites the British writer G. K. Chesterton, who wrote of the joy of “friendship between nations that is actually founded on differences,” in his 1922 book, What I Saw in America . Though it was published over 100 years ago, McClanahan says this idea perfectly illustrates her conception of a “new tourist.”

I sat down with the author to talk about the motivations behind this concept, her own traveling experiences, reporting visits to Kerala , Liverpool, Saudi Arabia, and Disneyland Paris, and how our attitudes towards tourism are slowly shifting.

A “new tourist,” argues McClanahan, engages with the people who live in the place they’re visiting, and ideally does activities on locals’ terms, not those of corporate chains or extractive behemoths.

There’s so much interesting reporting in The New Tourist , but I’m always very curious about what authors couldn’t fit in the book. What darlings did you have to kill?

I wrote two whole chapters that are nowhere in the book. The very first trip I took for the book was to Israel and Palestine. I had heard about a tour company that really tries to use tourism as a force for peace, and I wanted to go see this in action. I spent eight or nine days in Israel and Palestine; I joined a group trip that was really transformational, and I watched the people in this group—mostly American Jews visiting Palestine for the first time—have these really eye opening moments and it was super powerful. Then of course, the war broke out.

I also wrote a whole chapter on Pompeii , focusing on UNESCO heritage sites, and the political power of UNESCO—and also the kind of complex effects of UNESCO listing, because it's not always necessarily a good thing for a place. I ended up weaving a bit about UNESCO into the Liverpool chapter, and how [that city] walked away from the UNESCO listing. But I wanted to keep the book pretty tight and readable, and really whet people's appetites for these topics, so Pompeii also ended up on the cutting room floor.

You make the point that travel and tourism, which are so baked into the global economy, and obviously various global forces—whether economic or political or what have you—are changing on a regular basis. How did you approach these live issues?

I was really nervous going to Saudi Arabia first of all—and then to write about Saudi Arabia. I included in the book an example of a reader that was pushing back on [my article about tourism in Saudi Arabia for the New York Times ]. I was nervous to write about it in what's objectively a pretty positive light for all the reasons that you can imagine. I was kind of torn, thinking like, “Okay, this is a country that's known for its horrific human rights record, and I'm gonna go and write something positive.” But my guiding light in all of my writing and all my journalism is to give an accurate portrayal of what I experienced, or if I'm interviewing someone, give an accurate portrayal of that person's voice. And so the resulting chapter is what happened to me; this is the truth of my experience.

By Jessica Puckett

By Madison Flager

By Melissa Liebling-Goldberg

By Juliet Izon

Over the course of the week I was in Saudi Arabia, I had five or six really powerful interactions with women, very unexpectedly: one woman I was sitting next to train; another sort of like, a colleague of the guy who was sitting next to me on the flight as I was coming in to Jeddah. The story with Fatima [a female tour guide who showed me around Riyadh and told me, among other things, about her intent to divorce her husband, which a recent rule changed allowed her to do] wasn't that unique, really. So I thought, okay, this felt representative of other things I had experienced too. But I was nervous to put that in there. We'll see what the broader reactions are.

You share similar behind-the-scenes anecdotes throughout the book, and I really appreciate these peeks into your thought process and how editors and readers respond. It gives a very clear picture of what actually went on in the making of this book, and there's no omniscient “great white man” voice, which has often plagued travel writing.

That’s kind of what I wanted to say right out front in the introduction: Hey, I don't have the answers here . This is something that I really discussed with my agent and my book editor; should we have some prescriptive stuff at the end, a list of do's and don'ts? But like, who am I to tell people what to do? I really don't have the answers, but what I can do is encourage people to explore with a certain mindset and with a certain level of humility. I make bad decisions just like everybody else, but let's all try, right? Why don't you come along with me while I try? And let's see where that leads us together. I really want to invite the reader to come with me, and that's kind of why I wanted to show some of the behind the scenes stuff.

Your source in Barcelona used the word “gentrification” to describe how the city has become more and more unlivable for local residents. But then in Riyadh, you describe scenes very similar to what you experienced in Barcelona—“We're eating eggs Benedict, and I can get all the toiletries I want”—yet the locals you met there don’t take issue with these changes brought on by Westernization or gentrification. As a visitor, how did you experience this difference, or was there much difference at all?

Riyadh is at the earliest stages [of its tourism industry] and Barcelona’s at the overdone kind of stage [according to Butler's Tourism Area Life Cycle ]. So how do we know that Riyadh isn't going to turn into Barcelona in 20, 30 years from now? Or that we’re not going to be writing about the problem of over-tourism, or gentrification, or that locals can no longer live the way they want to live?

I wanted to show places at different points on that tourism spectrum [and treat them] as a sort of a cautionary tale. It’s the “yes, and…” Yes, there's huge opportunity: It can give a place an enormous amount of income, which can translate into reputation and power and control over the vision of a city and how it's going to develop. At the same time there are all these pitfalls, you know, and Amsterdam and Barcelona both went hard on tourism and then oversold and ended up with the consequences. As [worldwide] tourism is expected to just grow and grow faster than the global economy over the next several years, more places need to be paying very close attention to what's happening or what has happened in Amsterdam and Barcelona and Venice, places like that, so they can ride the high of that early promise of tourism without overdoing it.

A point I wanted to make in the book is that these are really policy challenges in the end. Something that bothers me is when I see media that seems to be blaming travelers for tourism challenges. Of course we're all implicated, and we all have agency, we all need to make informed decisions—but every single tourist who visited Barcelona and Amsterdam at the height of their popularity was doing exactly what the local government had paid an enormous amount of money to have them do. It’s that “yes, and” again: Yes, we should be careful and, governments, really, the buck stops with you.

Yes! We’re not pawns, but we exist within a system that points us within certain directions. That argument was one of the many sections in this book that spoke to things I’ve thought about a lot but never really looked into.

I can't tell you how many times in the last five, six years where I meet somebody at a party, or a parent at my kids’ school, and they ask what I do. And when I say, “I’m a journalist, I write about tourism,” people are automatically like, “Oh my god, I try to take the train whenever.” Or when I say I’m writing a book about tourism, they're like, “I always look for little boutique hotels.”

People are really thinking critically about their own travels in a way that I don't think many of us were five or 10 years ago. I think the pandemic—that pause and then restart—and [the increasing number of] headlines about the problems of tourism means a lot of us feel kind of implicated and maybe have a sense of shame or confusion about it. We're looking for guidance. I feel like my reader for this book is somebody who wants to travel, who loves to explore, and who has a little nagging voice in their head, like, “Oh god, did I make a bad decision that one time, or am I going about it the right way?” That's my reader. I feel like there are so many of us now who are in that position.

On that note, are there any other books you’d recommend for people who finish yours and want to read more about thoughtful tourism?

The Last Resort , by Sarah Stodola, about the history and the evolution of the beach resort. That’s one of the only other books I’ve seen that takes a sort of journalistic lens [on the travel industry], but she really focuses on beaches.

This interview has been edited and condensed for clarity.

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Tourism – Definition, Types & Forms, History & Importance of Tourism

Tourism is one of the world’s fastest-growing industries and a major foreign exchange and employment generation for many countries. It is one of the most remarkable economic and social phenomena.

The word ‘tour’ is derived from the Latin word tornus, meaning ‘a tool for making a circle.’ Tourism may be defined as the movement of people from their usual place of residence to another place ( with the intention to return) for a minimum period of twenty-four hours to a maximum of six months for the sole purpose of leisure and pleasure.

According to WTO (1993), ” Tourism encompasses the activities of persons traveling and staying in places outside their usual environment for not more than one consecutive year for leisure, business, and other purposes.”

The Rome conference on tourism in 1963 defined tourism as ‘ a visit to a country other than one’s own or where one usually resides and works. This definition, however, did not take into account domestic tourism, which has become a vital money-spinner and job generator for the hospitality industry.

The UNWTO defines tourists as ‘ people who travel to and stay in place outside their usual environment for not more than one consecutive year for leisure, business and other purposes not related to the exercise of an activity remunerated from within the place visited.

According to the Tourism Society of Britain ,” tourism is the temporary short-period movement of people to destination outside the places where they usually live, work; and activities during their stay at these destinations.” This definition includes the movement of people for all purposes.

The development of technology and transportation infrastructure, such as jumbos jets, low-cost airlines, and more accessible airports, have made tourism affordable and convenient. There have been changes in lifestyle – for example, now retiree-age people sustain tourism around the year. The sale of tourism products on the internet, besides the aggressive marketing of the tour operators and travel agencies , has also contributed to the growth of tourism.

27 September is celebrated as world tourism every year. This date was chosen as on that day in 1970, the Statutes of UNWTO were adopted. The purpose of this day is to raise awareness of the role of tourism within the international community.

History of Travel and Tourism

Inbound tourism, outbound tourism, domestic tourism, forms of tourism, classification of tourism, nature of tourism, importance of tourism, economic impacts, social impacts, cultural impacts, environmental impact, industries related to tourism, tourism products.

Travel is as old as mankind on earth. At the beginning of his existence, man roamed about the planet’s surface in search of food, shelter, security, and better habitat. However, with time, such movements were transformed into wanderlust.

About five thousand years ago, climate changes, dwindling food and shelter conditions hostile invaders made the people leave their homes to seek refuge elsewhere like the Aryans left their homes in Central Asia due to climate changes. Perhaps, this leads to the development of commerce, trade, and industry.

Religion, education, and cultural movement began during the Hindu and Chinese civilizations. Christian missionaries, Buddhist monks, and others traveled far and wide carrying religious messages and returned with fantastic images and opinions about alien people.

For centuries movement of people continued to grow due to the efficiency of transport and the assistance and safety with which the people could travel. By the end of the 15th century, Italy had become Europe’s intellectual and cultural center. It represented the classical heritage both for the intelligentsia and the aristocracy.

During the 16th century, travel came to be considered an essential part of the education of every young Englishman. Travel thus became a means of self-development and education in its broadest sense. The educational travel was known as the ‘ Grand Tour .’

The industrial revolution brought about significant changes in the pattern and structure of British society. Thus, the economy of Britain was greatly responsible for the beginning of modern tourism. It also created a large and prosperous middle class. Because of remarkable improvement in transportation systems in the latter half of the 18th century and the first quarter of the 19th century, an increasing number of people began to travel for pleasure.

Travel was inspired initially by the need for survival (food, shelter, and security), the desire to expand trade, and the quest to conquer. As the transportation system improved, the curiosity for transforming the vast and virgin world into a close neighborhood created a new industry, i.e., Travel and Tourism .

However, the developments of rails, roads, steamships, automobiles, and airplanes helped to spread technology across the globe. Earlier travel was a privilege only for wealthy people, but with the industrial revolution, the scenario altogether changed. Transportation, as well as accommodation, became affordable to middle and working-class citizens.

Essentially, with the development of jet travel, communication, new technology, tourism, and travel became the world’s largest and fastest-growing industry.

Travel and tourism have recently emerged as a dominant economic force on the global scene, accounting for more than 12% of total world trade and growing at 8 percent annually.

Types of Tourism

Tourism has two types and many forms based on the purpose of visit and alternative forms of tourism. Tourism can be categorized as international and domestic tourism .

Tourism has two types and various forms. Based on the movement of people, tourism is categorized into two kinds. These are the following:

International Tourism

When people visit a foreign country, it is referred to as International Tourism . To travel to a foreign country, one needs a valid passport, visa, health documents, foreign exchange, etc.

International tourism is divided into two types; Inbound Tourism & Outbound Tourism.

This refers to tourists of outside origin entering a particular country. Traveling outside their host/native country to another country is called inbound tourism for the country where they are traveling. For example, when a tourist of Indian origin travels to Japan, it is  Inbound tourism for Japan because foreign tourists come to Japan.

This refers to tourists traveling from the country of their origin to another country. When tourists travel to a foreign region, it is outbound tourism for their own country because they are going outside their country. For example, when a tourist from India travels to Japan, it is outbound tourism for India and Inbound tourism for Japan.

The tourism activity of the people within their own country is known as domestic tourism . Traveling within the same country is easier because it does not require formal travel documents and tedious formalities like compulsory health checks and foreign exchange. A traveler generally does not face many language problems or currency exchange issues in domestic tourism.

Tourism has various forms based on the purpose of the visit and alternative forms. These are further divided into many types according to their nature. Forms of tourism are the following:

Some most basic forms of tourism are the following:

• Adventure Tourism
• Atomic Tourism
• Bicycle Tours
• Beach Tourism
• Cultural Tourism
• Industrial Tourism
• Medical Tourism
• Religious Tourism
• Rural Tourism
• Sex Tourism
• Space Tourism
• Sports Tourism
• Sustainable Tourism
• Virtual Tourism
• War Tourism
• Wildlife Tourism

Tourism can be classified into six distinct categories according to the purpose of travel. These are the following:

1) Recreational : Recreational or leisure tourism takes a person away from the humdrum of everyday life. In this case, people spend their leisure time in the hills, sea beaches, etc.

2) Cultural tourism satisfies cultural and intellectual curiosity and involves visits to ancient monuments, places of historical or religious importance, etc.

3) Sports/Adventure : Trips taken by people with a view to playing golf, skiing and hiking, fall within this category.

4) Health : Under this category, people travel for medical, treatment or visit places where there are curative possibilities, for example, hot springs, spa yoga, etc.

5) Convention Tourism : It is becoming an increasingly important component of travel. People travel within a country or overseas to attend conventions relating to their business, profession, or interest.

6) Incentive Tourism : Holiday trips are offered as incentives by major companies to dealers and salesmen who achieve high targets in sales. This is a new and expanding phenomenon in tourism, These are in lieu of cash incentives or gifts, Today incentive tourism is a 3 billion dollar business in the USA alone.

Tourism as a socio-economic phenomenon comprises the activities and experiences of tourists and visitors away from their home environment and are serviced by the travel and tourism industry and host destination. The sum total of this activity experience and services can be seen as a tourism product.

The tourism system can be described in terms of supply and demand. Tourism planning should strive for a balance between demands and supply. This requires an understanding not only of market characteristics and trends but also of the planning process to meet the market needs.

Often tourists from core generating markets are identified as the demand side; the supply side includes all facilities, programs, attractions, and land uses designed and managed for the visitors. These supply-side factors may be under the control of private enterprises, non-profit organizations, and the government. New and innovative forms of partnerships are also evolving to ensure the sustainable development and management of tourism-related resources.

The supply and demand side can be seen to be linked by flows of resources such as capital, labor, goods, and tourist expenditures into the destination, and flows of marketing, promotion, tourist artifacts, and experiences from the destination back into the tourist generating region.

In addition, some tourist expenditures may leak back into the visitors generating areas through repatriation of profits of foreign tourism investors and payment for improved goods and services provided to tourists at the destination. Transportation provides an important linkage both to and from the destination.

For planning purposes, the major components that comprise the supply side are:

• Various modes of transportation and other tourism-related infrastructure.
• Tourist information.
• Marketing and promotion.
• The community of communities within the visitor’s destination area.
• The political and institutional frameworks for enabling tourism.

The tourism system is both dynamic and complex due to many factors linked to it and because of the existence of many sectors contributing to its success. These factors and sectors are linked to the provision of the tourist experience and the generation of tourism revenue and markets .

The dynamic nature of the tourism system makes it imperative to scan the external and internal environment of the destinations on a regular basis so as to make changes when necessary to ensure a healthy and viable tourism industry.

Thus, it is now an accepted fact that tourism development can no longer work in isolation of the environment and the local communities, nor can it ignore the social and cultural consequences of tourism.

Tourism and hospitality , which are inextricably linked to each other, are among the major revenue-earning enterprises in the world. They happen to be among the top employers too. There has been an upmarket trend in tourism over the last few decades as travel has become quite common. People travel for business, vacation, pleasure, adventure, or even medical treatments.

Tourism constitutes an important industry today. It has opened up new vistas for the play of economic emancipation. It provides a very potent contribution by strengthening and developing the financial resources of a country. Moreover, it is a process in which mutual material and mental benefits occur. Furthermore,

• Tourism fetches foreign exchange in the form of invisible exports, which results in the manifold progress of the nation.
• Tourism generates jobs. These employments are the main contribution of tourism to generating national income. But one should remember that employment in the tourism industry is often seasonal.
• Tourism often leads to the commercialization of art forms and especially handicrafts. Art items with cultural or religious meaning are sought by tourists as souvenirs. As more and more tourists visit a destination, souvenir production has increased, often leading to mass production. This production also generates income.

With several business-related activities associated with tourism, the industry has a tremendous potential to generate employment as well as earn foreign exchange. Many countries, such as Mauritius, Malaysia, Singapore, Fiji, and the Caribbean, whose economies are primarily driven by tourism. Tourism can contribute to the economic growth of a country in the followings ways:

Employment Generation

It creates a large number of jobs among direct services providers (such as hotels , restaurants, travel agencies , tour operators , guide and tour escorts, etc.) and among indirect services providers (such as suppliers to the hotels and restaurants, supplementary accommodation, etc.)

Infrastructure Development

Tourism spurs infrastructure development. In order to become an important commercial or pleasure destination, any location would require all the necessary infrastructure, like good connectivity via rail, road, and air transport , adequate accommodation, restaurants, a well-developed telecommunication network, and, medical facilities, among others.

Foreign Exchange

The people who travel to other countries spend a large amount of money on accommodation, transportation, sightseeing, shopping, etc. Thus, an inbound tourist is an important source of foreign exchange for any country.

The World Travel and Tourism Council (WTTC) predict in 1997 that the twenty-first-century economy would be dominated by three industries: telecommunications, information technology, and tourism. The travel and tourism industry has grown by 500 percent in the last 25 years.

Now withstanding this bright outlook and prospects, the tourism and hospitality industries are very vulnerable to the fluctuations of national economies and happenings in the world, especially terrorist attacks that have at times dealt severe blows to business.

In recent years, there have been a few setbacks in tourism, such as the terrorist siege of the Taj and Oberoi in Mumbai, India (26 November 2008); the attack on the World Trade Centre in the United States of America (11 September 2001); bombing in a hotel on the Indonesian island of Bali (12 October 2002); tsunami in Southeast Asia and South Asia on 26 December 2004, in which thousands of the lives where lost and consequently tourism was hit. Nonetheless, the sector is now getting back to business.

Impacts of Tourism

Tourism is a multi-dimensional activity. The scope of tourism activities is so wide and varied that it cannot be restricted to any particular field of activity. Tourism has ramifications in almost all sectors and is influenced by the performance of each of these sectors directly or indirectly. Tourism in any country can be an apt reflection of the nation’s economic and social endowment apart from its natural wealth.

Tourism has vast potential to bring about changes in the country’s economic, environmental, societal, and cultural edifice. Tourism has two basics: the supply of facilities and the demand for participation. The twin market forces of supply and demand interact to produce tourism patterns. These patterns are associated with economic, social, cultural, environmental, and ecological impacts.

Establishing or developing a tourism industry involves expenditure, gains, costs, and benefits. If these impacts are considered from the outset of planning, strengths and opportunities can be maximized while weaknesses and threats can be minimized.

Each destination will be different in terms of tourism characteristics . The cost and benefits of tourism will vary in each destination and can change over time, depending on tourism and other activities in a destination’s local and regional context.

Tourism activities impact the economy of the country as well as the local economy of the destination.

Economics Benefits

• Tourism generates local employment, directly in the tourism sector and in the support and resource management sectors.
• Tourism stimulates profitable domestic industries, hotels and other lodging facilities, restaurants and food services, transportation systems, handicrafts, and guide services.
• Tourism generates foreign exchange for the country and injects capital and new money into the local economy.
• Tourism helps to diversify the local economy.
• Improved tourism infrastructure.
• Increase tax revenues from tourism.

Economic Costs

• Higher demand created by tourism activity may increase the price of land, housing, and a range of commodities necessary for daily life.
• Demands for health services provision and police service increase during the tourist seasons at the expense of the local tax base.

Tourism also affects the society of the destination in good as well as bad ways. It benefits and costs the local communities.

Social Benefits

• The quality of a community can be enhanced by economic diversification through tourism.
• Recreational and cultural facilities created for tourism can be used by local communities as well as domestic/international visitors.
• Public space may be developed and enhanced through tourism activity.
• Tourism Enhances the local community’s esteem and provides an opportunity for greater understanding and communication among people of diverse backgrounds.

Social Costs

• Rapid tourism growth can result in the inability of local amenities and institutions to meet service demands.
• Without proper planning and management, litter, vandalism, and crime often accompany tourism development.
• Tourism can bring overcrowding and traffic congestion.
• Visitors bring with them material wealth and apparent freedom. The youths of the host community are particularly susceptible to the economic expectations these tourists bring which can result in complete disruption of traditional community ways of life.
• The community structure may change, e.g. community bonds, demographics, and institutions.
• The authenticity of the social and cultural environment can be changed to meet tourism demands.

Tourism activities also affect the culture of the host country. There are many positive and negative cultural impacts of tourism.

Cultural Benefits

• Tourism can enhance local cultural awareness.
• Tourism can generate revenue to help pay for the preservation of archaeological sites, historic buildings, and districts.
• Despite criticism about the alteration of cultures to unacceptable levels, the sharing of cultural knowledge and experience can be beneficial for hosts and guests of tourism destinations and can result in the revival of local traditions and crafts.

Cultural Costs

• Youth in the community begin to emulate the speech and attire of tourists.
• Historic sites can be damaged through tourism development and pressures.
• There can be long-term damage to cultural traditions and the erosion of cultural values, resulting in cultural change beyond a level acceptable to the host destination.

Tourism impacts the environment in positive as well as negative ways. These impacts are following below.

Environmental Benefits

• Parks and nature preserves may be created and ecological preservation supported as a necessity for nature-based tourism.
• Improved waste management can be achieved.
• Increased awareness and concern for the environment can result from nature-based tourism activities and development.

Environmental Costs

• A negative change in the physical integrity of the area.
• Rapid development, over-development, and overcrowding can forever change the physical environment and ecosystems of an area.
• Degradation of parks and preserves.

Over the years, tourism has become a popular global activity. Depending upon the nature and purpose of their travel, tourists, need and demand certain facilities and services. This has given rise to a wide range of commercial activities that have acquired industry proportions. Thus travel and tourism nowadays represent a broad range of related industries.

Hotels are a commercial establishment that provides accommodation, meals, and other guest services. In the travel and tourism industry, the hotel industry plays a very significant role, as all tourists need a place to stay at their destinations, and require many more services and facilities to suit their specific needs and tastes.

Restaurants

Restaurants are retail establishments that serve prepared food and beverages to customers. In the travel and tourism industry, restaurants and other food and beverage outlets are very important as tourists like to experiment with the local cuisines of the places they are visiting.

Retail and Shopping

The retail industry is very important as tourists shop for their day-to-day necessities as well as look for mementos and souvenirs. In recent years, some cities in the world have been promoted as shopping destinations to attract people with a penchant for shopping by offering various products, such as garments, electronic goods, jewelry, and antiques. New York, Paris, London, and Milan in Italy are famous as fashion havens of the world.

Transportation

It is the movement of people and goods from one place to another. A well-developed transport industry, as well as infrastructure, is integral to the success of any travel and tourism enterprise.

Travel Agencies

A travel agency is a retailing business that sells travel-related products and services, particularly package tours, to customers on the behalf of suppliers such as airlines, car rentals, cruise liners, hotels, railways, and sightseeing.

Travel agencies play a very important role as they plan out the itinerary of their clients and make the necessary arrangements for their travel, stay, and sightseeing, besides facilitating their passport, visa, etc.

Tour Operators

A tour operator assembles the various elements of a tour. It typically combines tour and travel components to create a holiday. Tour operators play an important role in the travel and tourism industry.

Tourist Destinations

A tourist attraction is a place of interest for tourists, typically for its inherent or exhibited cultural value, historical significance, nature or building beauty or amusement opportunities. These are the basic fundamentals of the tourism industry.

Cultural Industries

Cultural or creative industries are responsible for the creation, production, and distribution of goods and services that are cultural in nature and usually protected by intellectual property rights. As tourists like to visit places of cultural significance and soak in the culture of the area, the cultural industry is very important to travel and tourism.

Leisure, Recreation, and Sport

Leisure or free time is a period of time spent out of work and essential domestic activity. Recreation or fun is spending time in a manner designed for therapeutic refreshment of the body or mind. While leisure is more like a form of entertainment or rest, recreation requires active participation in a refreshing and diverting manner.

As people in the world’s wealthier regions lead an increasingly sedentary lifestyle, the need for recreation has increased. These play a significant role in the travel and tourism sector.

A tourism/tourist product can be defined as the sum of the physical and psychological satisfaction it provides to tourists, during their ‘traveling and sojourn’ en route at the destinations.

Since the travel and tourism industry is an agglomeration of too many sectors that promote travel-related services. These sectors are referred to as travel vendors and their services and goods are called ‘travel products’. A tourism product includes five main components such as physical plant, services, hospitality, freedom of choice, and a sense of involvement.

Thus, whatever the natural and man-made resources and services brought about the consumption of tourists are called tourism products .

Charecterstatics Of Tourism Products

By now, you must have understood what a tourism product is. Now let us look at some of its characteristics:-

1) Intangible : Tourism is an intangible product means tourism is such a kind of product that can not be touched or seen and there is no transfer of ownership, But the facilities are available for a specified time and for a specified use. For e.g. a room in the hotel is available for a specified time.

2) Psychological : The main motive to purchase a tourism products is to satisfy the psychological need after using the product, by getting an experience while interacting with a new environment. And experiences also motivate others to purchase that product.

3) Highly Perishable : Tourism product is highly perishable in nature means one can not store the product for a long time. Production and consumption take place while a tourist is available. If the product remains unused, the chances are lost i.e. if tourists do not purchase it.

A travel agent or tour operator who sells a tourism product cannot store it. Production can only take place if the customer is actually present. And once consumption begins, it cannot be stopped, interrupted, or modified. If the product remains unused, the chances are lost i.e. if tourists do not visit a particular place, the opportunity at that time is lost. It is due to tourism reason that heavy discount is offered by hotels and transport-generating organizations during the offseason.

4) Composite Product : Tourist product is a combination of different products. It has not a single entity in itself. In the experience of a visit to a particular place, various service providers contribute like transportation The tourist product cannot be provided by a single enterprise, unlike a manufactured product.

The tourist product covers the complete experience of a visit to a particular place. And many providers contribute to the tourism experience. For instance, the airline supplies seats, a hotel provides rooms and restaurants, travel agents make bookings for stay and sightseeing, etc.

5) Unstable Demand : Tourism demand is influenced by seasonal, economic political, and other factors. There are certain times of the year that see greater demand than others. At these times there is a greater strain on services like hotel bookings, employment, the transport system, etc.

Most popular countries among travelers: Europe tops tourist destinations

T he United Nations World Tourism Organization (UNWTO) has tracked which countries spend the most on the tourism industry, earn the most from tourism, and which destinations in the world have become the most visited and popular, reports Euronews Travel.

Germany, Italy, UK: Citizens that spent most on tourism

German, British, and Italian tourists spend the most money on travel, according to the UNWTO. European countries lead the ranking in several categories.

Chinese tourists spent the most: the total amount in 2023 reached about 183 billion euros. Having opened the borders for international travel after the COVID pandemic, Chinese tourists outspent Americans, who paid 114 billion euros last year. A year earlier, tourists from the United States took first place.

The Germans were third, spending 104 billion euros, while the British took fourth place with 102 billion euros. Canada, Italy, India, Russia, and South Korea round out the list of countries that spent the most on tourism in 2023, with Italy jumping from 10th to seventh place.

Photo: Germany is among the countries whose travelers spend the most on tourism (unsplash.com)

Which countries earn the most from tourism

In terms of tourism revenues, the United States leads the ranking. The country earned 164 billion euros in 2023. The United States is followed by Spain, which earned 86 billion euros, the United Kingdom with 69 billion euros, France with 64 billion euros, and Italy with 52 billion euros.

The United Arab Emirates, Türkiye, Australia, Canada, Japan, Germany, Saudi Arabia, Macau (China), India, and Mexico round out the list.

Which countries are most often visited by tourists

Two European countries ranked first in terms of the number of foreign travelers. France has once again become the most visited country in the world, with 100 million foreign tourists visiting it last year.

These figures are expected also in 2024, as the Olympic Games in Paris will take place in July-August, and will attract many travelers. Spain took second place with 85 million visitors.

Photo: China has become one of the countries where travelers go most often (unsplash.com)

In total, seven of the 10 most visited places were in Europe. Italy, Germany, and Austria round out the list of the most visited countries. This makes Europe one of the most popular regions. Europe attracts the largest number of foreign visitors worldwide.

China has also been a very popular destination for many years, but the number of visitors to the country has plummeted since strict entry requirements were introduced during COVID-19. They fell from 65.7 million in 2019 to only 35.5 million in 2023.

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This NYC Landmark Was Just Named the No. 1 Attraction in the World by Tripadvisor

The Empire State Building comes with 8,000 5-star reviews.

StockByM/Getty Images

There's a brand-new No. 1 Best Thing to Do in the world, according to Tripadvisor reviewers. 

Tripadvisor released its 2024 Travelers' Choice Awards Best of the Best Things to Do list, which showcases the highest-rated experiences and attractions around the globe. The team determines the rankings based on the "quality and quantity of traveler reviews and ratings posted on Tripadvisor over the 12-month period between April 1, 2023, through March 31, 2024," Tripadvisor explained in a statement provided to Travel + Leisure , and noted that it adds an extra layer of editorial decision-making to ensure each choice is top-notch. 

"With more than 1.4 million activities and experiences, Tripadvisor is a go-to resource for travelers to discover and book their next adventure, no matter what 'adventure' means to them," Kristen Dalton, the president of Tripadvisor, shared in a statement. "Experiences make a trip, and our Best of the Best Things to Do Awards offer some of the highest-rated activities from across the world, highlighted by our community of travelers. Whether you're a thrill seeker or a leisurely explorer, the 'Best of the Best' badge has the seal of approval from global travelers as a source of inspiration for an unforgettable vacation."

After looking at all the data, the Empire State Building in New York City took first place as the No. 1 attraction in the world for 2024. 

"Boasting 60,000 5-star reviews, the Empire State Building reinforces its claim as the 'World’s Most Famous Building' by rising to the No. 1 attraction in the U.S. and in the world," Tripadvisor shared in its statement. "Reviewers are wowed by the 360-degree view of New York, where they can point out all of their favorite landmarks and see up to six states on a clear day. Over 300 reviews deem it a 'once in a lifetime' experience." 

Other top attractions making the list include the Eiffel Tower in Paris in second, followed by the Anne Frank House in Amsterdam, the Basílica de la Sagrada Familia in Barcelona, and the Cayman Crystal Caves in the Grand Cayman, Caribbean, rounding out the top five. They're joined by the Colosseum in Rome, the Louvre Museum in Paris, the Gardens by the Bay in Singapore, the Duomo di Milano in Milan, and the Sheikh Zayed Grand Mosque Center in Abu Dhabi in the top 10. 

As for the other top attractions in the U.S. , Tripadvisor named Iolani Palace in Honolulu the No. 2, followed by Central Park in New York City; the John Pennekamp Coral Reef State Park in Key Largo, Florida; Stetson Mansion in DeLand, Florida; Alcatraz Island in San Francisco; Graceland in Memphis; the Brooklyn Bridge in New York City; the Chihuly Garden and Glass in Seattle; and Diamond Head State Monument in Honolulu to its top 10.

See more about the top attractions and the rest of the Traveler's Choice Awards picks at tripadvisor.com . 

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On Okinawa's Tokashiki Island, life's a beach — one of the best in the world

Rounding a corner on the lilting road that leads from the port in Tokashiki to Aharen Beach — Route 186, bisecting the island of Tokashiki, the largest of the Kerama Islands from northeast-to-southwest — my 50-something driver, Koji Yoshida, notices me craning my neck as the island’s namesake beach comes into view.

“Is that all right?” I ask him, revealing in my tone that I do.

“Of course. It’s beautiful now after the typhoon — you got really lucky.”

Yoshida smiles without looking back and pulls the van onto one of the many parking areas along the road. I slide the van door open and dart across the pavement to an observation area, snapping off a couple of shots and marveling at the particular blues of the sea and the purplish hues it casts on the sky.

This densely saturated blue, called “Kerama blue,” is the result of a fortunate confluence of natural phenomena. Plankton levels are low here, thanks to the nearby Kuroshio current, and there are no major rivers feeding sediment into the sea, thus the waters surrounding the Kerama Islands remain extremely clear, absorbing the entire spectrum of sunlight other than this purified shade of blue. I begin to worry my photos won’t do it justice.

The islands are also chock-full of wildlife: loggerhead, green and hawksbill sea turtles, and humpback whales that return to the warmer waters each year from January to April. (For budding cetologists, Tokashiki Village Folk and History Heritage Museum boasts a 5-meter-long baby humpback whale skeleton — one of very few that can be seen in Japan.) Both Tokashiki and the other 21 Kerama Islands were designated as part of Keramashoto National Park in 2014.

Standing along the guardrail, I take a couple of pics and then stop to simply take in the beauty of the emerald green of the forest paired with the Kerama blue panorama. As my eyes follow the waves, meeting white-yellow sands of this true island paradise less than an hour by ferry from Okinawa’s capital of Naha, I begin to picture American soldiers storming the beaches.

Tokashiki Beach was once a beachhead of the American invasion in World War II (along with the other islands), a staging ground for the subsequent Battle of Okinawa in 1945. That landing resulted in the mass suicides of native Ryukyuans — committed under the order of Japanese soldiers — that would come to define the conflict here.

Standing on this spot, I feel a subtle and inexplicable pang, like a memory and a premonition; a disappointment in human nature tempered with appreciation for how fortunate I am to be living in this generation and not that of my grandfather, who fought in the Pacific with the U.S. Army’s 11th Airborne Division.

It’s horrifying to imagine such violence taking place here, but it’s a scene that was repeated in other paradises across the Pacific Theater — from Saipan to Luzon to Okinawa.

Dark history aside, there are less weighty reasons as to why I have been tasked with journeying to these shores.

I return to the van to continue crossing the island’s interior to Aharen Beach and thank Yoshida for the “shutter chance” as it’s called in Japanese-English. I ask if he has heard about Aharen Beach being named one of the “ World’s 50 Best Beaches ,” a list that acts as a public relations scheme for the travel industry and which is sponsored by the sunscreen brand, Banana Boat.

“Of course!” he says with a laugh. “No. 13, not bad, eh? A lucky number!”

Is he at all worried about an increase in overtourism as a result of increased English media presence (like myself)?

He pauses a bit before answering. I’m already a buzzkill.

“Well, it’ll bring in money, which is good. It’ll also bring in folks who can’t follow the rules...” he trails off. “But we need it for the economy.”

Nobody, it seems, has the perfect answer to the double-edged sword of increased tourism across Japan, perhaps especially those like Yoshida whose livelihoods depend on it.

We arrive at Nirai Kanai Lodge , and I check-in. Other than Yoshida, the staff members are all in their 20s and could easily be mistaken for Japanese college students on spring break were they not standing behind the counters.

A couple of the young workers are sitting outside talking to an older white couple and an elderly Japanese man, who I presume is a local. Later, I see the same older white woman planting rows of red flowers in front of the hotel as if she’s the hotel gardener — perhaps she is.

There are so few people living in Aharen that the distinction between guest, staff, resident and tourist is sometimes hard to parse. Most of the folks living here work more than one job, often on the same day. They’ll be at the hotel in the morning and appear, wearing a different uniform or in plainclothes, somewhere else later on, like a cast of actors playing different characters in a little island play.

Walking toward Aharen Beach, I pass the main bus and taxi depot where I hear the twanging staccato sound of a sanshin , the traditional banjo-like instrument of the Ryukyu and Amami islands. I stop and try to locate the voice singing the minyō (Okinawan folk song) and finally discover the source inside a local Yonehama Kotsu branded taxi van.

The door of the van is open with an elderly woman seated on the floor of the vehicle and clapping along to the tune, which is being sung by the taxi driver herself, who is playing along to files of sheet music as she sings.

I stand there and watch the driver play. The elderly woman is completely absorbed in the music and doesn’t notice me standing nearby. When the driver finishes, I compliment her musicianship and ask if she’s originally from Aharen. Unlike everyone else I’ve met, Ms. Takanori, who goes by “Nori,” was actually born on Tokashiki 67 years ago.

How does she feel about the influx of visitors as one of the few taxi cab drivers here?

“The people who live here welcome tourism because the economy depends on it,” she says. “But I haven’t had a single taxi customer today, and you see how many people are boarding the bus. They all take the bus.”

Nori, who works another job to make ends meet, says most visitors come to take pictures and go home the same day — not ideal for the economy or the environment as many of them litter the beach or trample local plants and coral to get a better picture. They also contribute to the erosion of the famous white sand.

Nori thinks ecotourism may be the way forward.

“My hope is that we can start to attract travelers who want to learn about the ecosystem here,” she says earnestly. “I would like to teach people. For example, which plants and animals are edible and which are not — I know the land here. I want all of us to find a better balance and protect what we have while making a decent living.”

She has been studying the nature of Aharen Beach and Tokashiki Island since childhood, supplementing traditional knowledge with newer research to better explain her home to visitors. If they would only stop to listen.

At a restaurant near the beach called Octopus Garden, I order a taco rice and strike up a conversation with the manager Jun Shirasuka, 32, originally from Osaka. Shirasuka first visited Aharen Beach on a junior high class trip and never forgot it.

“I moved here when I was 18, about five months after I graduated. Without that trip, I probably wouldn’t have even known this island existed,” he says.

Now with two children, both born on Tokashiki, Shirasuka says he never dreamed he would make a life in such a remote place.

“We go back to Osaka about once a year to see my parents. I sometimes feel bad about living so far away from them,” he laments. “They come here, too. But the odd thing is when you leave Aharen and go back to the big city, counterintuitively, you feel lonely, despite all the people there.”

Shirasuka and a few others living on Aharen allude to the lack of privacy as a self-policing mechanism for behavior. There are no secrets on this island, which keeps people honest and conflicts to a minimum.

Aharen Beach itself is as advertised, 800 meters of white sands backed by green mountains to the left and rocky, weathered crags to right. Bright red parasols offer shelter from the sun and offset the blue of the sea. One of the world’s finest seas, with coral reefs and visibility 50 meters deep, snorkeling is one of the main draws. A young couple in masks and flippers emerge from the waters, dripping, smiling and exhilarated. Not prepared to snorkel, I take a swim. The water is warm and nearly transparent. The seafloor is covered with bleached piles of broken coral and white sand that shift and shuffle with the rhythm of the sea. Farther out, under the surface, is where the real beauty lies, offering a reason to return.

After a swim, I towel off and walk toward the rock formations, passing through a natural stony gateway. It’s like a portal to a prehistoric time. On the other side, I find myself completely alone in an open-air cathedral, built by time and the elements. As the sun begins to set, golden light reflects off the blue-black tidepools, illuminating the textured surfaces of the gray rock faces on both sides.

I tread on a chalk white frieze made of fossils and alabaster reliefs — skeletons of plants and corals past. I wonder how old they might be.

The angst I felt about humanity’s failings: the wars we continue to wage; the pollution we continue to release into the air and dump into the sea that sustains us; the litter we leave on the shores of our most beautiful natural treasures; the guilt of my small role in that just by existing, all fade into the background.

On a long enough timeline, even humanity’s mistakes will be made insignificant. The fossil graveyard awaits us as well and nature will continue on, altered perhaps, but it will continue — with or without us.

In this generation at least, we are fortunate enough to still have a chance to enjoy its bounty, and, if we choose, to maintain it for generations to come.

Getting to Tokashiki Island : After arriving in Naha, you'll need to go to Tomari Port. It takes about 20 minutes by taxi; 14 minutes by monorail to Miebashi Station and 10 minutes on foot to Tomari Port; and 25 minutes by bus from the bus stop on the first floor of Naha Airport to the Tomari Takabashi bus stop, taking the No. 99 Amakyu-Shintoshin Line. Upon arrival at Tomari Port, take the Ferry Tokashiki (once a day) or the Marine Liner Tokashiki (twice a day). Reservations can be made at the website, tickets must be purchased 30 minutes before departure.

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Travel & Tourism Development Index 2024

The Travel & Tourism Development Index (TTDI) 2024 is the second edition of an index that evolved from the Travel & Tourism Competitiveness Index (TTCI) series, a flagship index of the World Economic Forum that has been in production since 2007. The TTDI is part of the Forum’s broader work with industry and government stakeholders to build a more sustainable, inclusive, and resilient future for economies and local communities.

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