Tourism involves people taking trips to a place or places outside their home communities for any purpose except daily commuting to and from work.And the travel industry would certainly be much smaller if people were not interested in touring – spending leisure time relaxing, sightseeing, and participating in their favorite resort and vacation activities.

Although the economics of tourism is a topic closely related to the material presented earlier, it tackles somewhat different issues and analyzes supply and demand for travel from a perspective that differs from those of the previous chapters. Here, the interest is often expressed in terms of potential for regional economic development or environmental impact or need for government to implement transportation policies. This chapter provides an overview of the economics of tourism – a global business that, if all related activities are included, accounted for around 9% (in 2011) of international trade, total employment, and world GDP (as estimated by the World Travel & Tourism Council).

Don’t leave home without it

Money, that is. Promotion of tourism has always been based on the idea that a region or city could grow economically – provide jobs and business opportunities for its citizens – if tourists spend time and money. For this, a region or city needs something that attracts visitors from other areas. The attraction could be historic old ruins such as the Parthenon in Greece, mystical mountain top scenery such as Macchu Piccu in Peru, the beaches of the Mediterranean coast, the skyscraper canyons of Manhattan, or the gaming tables of Las Vegas and Monte Carlo. Any old steel mill will not do.