When talking about tourism, it is done to refer to the activity or set of activities carried out by human beings, which consist of traveling for pleasure outside of their usual environment. In other words, it is the action that includes traveling, staying or staying for a certain time in a specific place, which does not correspond to the usual one. There are different types of tourism, their classification depends on the travelers, their tastes and the activities they carry out during the given stay.
What is tourism
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It is a social phenomenon that consists of the voluntary and temporary displacement of people or groups of people who, mainly for reasons of recreation, rest, culture or health, move from their usual place of residence to another, in those places they carry out lucrative activities and / or are sometimes paid, generating multiple interrelationships of social, economic and cultural importance.
What is a tourist
It is the person who moves from their country to another or from one place to another and does so to increase their cultural knowledge, to learn about other cultures, to recreate, among other topics.
Tourism as an economic activity
For many countries, tourism represents an important income activity, either exclusively or complementary to the other economic activities of that nation.
In recent decades, tourism has had great growth, because its development influences the progress of communities. For example, in Mexico tourism is one of the most important economic activities in the country and one of the largest in the world. This is why a country or town with the ability to offer a wide variety of distractions to tourists around the world will cause a significant number of people to choose that place as a destination for the enjoyment of their days off, vacations, or it may even be a target of interest to large investors. This would translate into increased sales of various items in the town. In Mexico, tourism has been ranked sixth in the world in terms of international tourist arrivals, with 39.3 million visitors in 2017, it is the main tourist destination for foreigners in Latin America.
This activity currently represents 10% of economic activity worldwide, generating innumerable sources of employment. According to the UNWTO, one out of every eleven jobs worldwide belongs to some activity related to the subject; In addition, for each direct job that has been generated by this item, 1.5 additional jobs will be created in some additional or indirect work to tourism.
Likewise, this area offers a wide variety of opportunities to young people who wish to study tourism, which allows them to gain experience and skills, with which they can achieve better levels of quality of life.
However, young people who are attracted to this activity will take into account that the tourism career can last between 3 and 4 years, this will depend on the countries that offer it as an intermediate degree, however, the degree in tourism is and it will continue to be an excellent option with great opportunities.
Tourism benefits
There are innumerable benefits, some are detailed:
- It provides employment opportunities, both skilled and unskilled, as it is a labor intensive industry.
- Generate a significant money supply.
- Increases income (micro and macroeconomic).
- The Gross Domestic Product (GDP) increases.
- It can be built on the existing infrastructure.
- It develops infrastructures that can stimulate local commerce and that of large industries.
- It can build on existing local products and resources.
- Helps diversify the economy.
- It tends to be one of the economic development activities most compatible with other economic activities.
- Increase public revenue.
- It has a high multiplier impact.
- Expand the development economic and social.
- Extensive educational and cultural knowledge.
- Improve feelings of self - worth.
- Improves quality of life.
- Preserve cultural heritage and tradition.
- It justifies the protection and improvement of the environment.
- It provides employment to artists such as actors and musicians, as the visitor is interested in the local culture, thus enhancing the cultural heritage.
- A constructing facilities tourism and recreation can be used by the local population.
- Break down language, sociocultural, class, racial, political and religious barriers.
- Create a favorable global image for the destination.
- Promote a global community.
- It promotes international understanding and peace.
Causes of tourism
This economic activity has had a significant boom in recent decades due to various factors, for which travelers have decided to go tourism:
- The diversification of routes, schedules, lower costs of transfer and transportation.
- The attractive packages offered by lodging establishments that have included transportation services and other additional benefits for a low cost.
- The increase in the number of days off and enjoyment that workers have gained in recent years.
- The emergence of new mechanisms and means to reach the target have made marketing to promote these tourism products become more effective.
- The new consumer society has found greater value in collecting memories and experiences than objects, being the great provider of unforgettable moments.
- Rise in living standards in developed countries (USA, Europe, Japan) where the five-day week and paid holidays have become widespread. The combination of economic availability and free time has led to a boom in regions of the world.
- The improvement of transport, increasingly faster and relatively cheaper The generalization of the automobile or the massification of air traffic has allowed the displacement of millions of people in search of enjoying a period of leisure.
- The increase and improvement of tourist infrastructures: hotels, apartments, restaurants, shops, leisure centers.
- The increase of the cultural level that has implied a greater curiosity to know monuments, places, cultures. This factor is very important to explain the long-distance increase. Millions of people want to see the pyramids of Egypt, go to Chiapa tourism with so many places to visit, see the Statue of Liberty in New York, the Taj Mahal in India.
- The development of this industry capable of attracting millions of people through systematic.
Tourism elements
More than a simple activity that consists of traveling to a place different from its usual environment for at least 24 hours and a maximum of 365 days, it is a system belonging to the tertiary sector of the economy, better known as services, in which the following elements are interrelated:
Hospitality
It is the area that refers to all exercise of functions related to lodging and occasional food, most of it is related to this activity.
Consumption of products
A product can be from the stay in a lodging establishment and everything that this involves (their experience, the treatment of the staff, the benefits, the services offered and the pluses), to the guide packages and tours in the place that have chosen as a tourist destination.
It is of utmost importance for every entrepreneur and employee in the area to know their clients and their needs in order to innovate and create products that meet expectations, in order to establish a loyal relationship with them.
Transport
It is defined as any vehicle whose function is to move people or objects from one place to another for a specific purpose. It is a socioeconomic element, being a vital engine for the development of any economic area. Although it is true that this was not created for tourist purposes, it is an element that has become essential for its exercise.
Organization of recreational activities
Recreation in the field of activity is an area exercised mainly in hotels, companies and the general population, tourist guides develop skills to create and carry out entertainment activities that can be integrated into work responsibilities.
Thus, the tour guide has basic knowledge to manage projects that promote recreation in different media in a sustainable way. It is also prepared to organize group activities according to the characteristics, needs, surroundings and abilities of travelers, integrating them with the environment.
This type of work gives the recreational destination an added value in its attractions, giving it the opportunity to interact directly with the establishment or the town, in the destination they have selected for the enjoyment of their days off.
Types of tourism
According to tastes, hobbies and even the objective pursued by the tourist or visitor when choosing a grand tourism, there are various types adapted to the needs, characteristics and demands of each one. Among the main ones are:
cultural tourism
It is one through which the cultural aspects of a certain place are highlighted. These aspects are related to the knowledge of the customs and history of the space or of the society that lives there. This type of tourism lasts approximately 4 days, with historical places being the main objectives.
In this category are:
- The archaeological: visit destinations with archaeological heritage.
- Ethnographic: to learn about the traditions and customs of a town, an example is doing tourism in Oaxaca, in its beautiful historic center.
- Shopping: intended to make purchases of specific products in offers in a specific place.
- Literary: which is carried out by events of a bibliographic nature.
- Cinematographic: tours of filming sites, observing tourist images of famous films.
- Scientific: organized trips to conduct research or attend scientific conventions.
- Funerary: organized visits to cemeteries where the remains of famous people or architecturally recognized tombs lie.
- Oenological or wine tourism: to taste the wines of a locality.
- Sports: to attend sporting events such as Olympics or world cups, among others.
- Religious pilgrimages: visits to sanctuaries in Querétaro tourism, in the Cathedral of the city, with a striking facade and an astonishing interior.
Adventure trip
It consists of the set of distractions that challenge the physical capacities of those who choose this type of entertainment during their days off. It takes place in outdoor environments in natural settings and is characterized by being risky. It should be noted that there are many options worldwide, although in Chiapas tourism with its attractions such as the sinkhole canyon, the chasm of the parrots, among others, is a great option.
Additionally, it may involve exercises such as mountaineering, mountaineering, bungee jumping (bungee throwing), rafting (rafting or rafting down rapids), surfing, paragliding, skydiving, kite surfing, canoeing, kayaking, mountain biking, diving, zip-lining, horseback riding, canyoning, cycling, among others.
Beach tourism
It is one that is done with enjoyment on the beach. This type of destination must be characterized by:
- Excellent weather conditions.
- Quality of the beaches.
- Complementary services.
- Security.
Gastronomic tourism
This area is dedicated to the visitor's contact with the town they chose as their destination, through the native or typical gastronomy of the place. Gastronomy is one of the most significant expressions of the culture of a people or society, in which ingredients and techniques typical of the region are combined with traditions that each generation preserves.
Among the benefits of gastronomic tourism, the great economic impact that it generates for a locality stands out, since most of those who make this type of trips have an important source of income for this purpose, so they demand quality in services related; at the same time, it helps define the image of the destination, so there are opportunities to differentiate itself from the rest; It also represents an opportunity for rural communities by generating investments in them and employment opportunities for their inhabitants.
Urban tourism
It is a form of recreation that takes place within urban areas, especially in the large cities of each country, for example in Puebla tourism, it is famous for its gastronomic tradition, colonial architecture and ceramics. Talavera's painted tiles are produced locally and adorn many of its buildings. Puebla Cathedral is Renaissance style, it also has a high-rise bell tower overlooking the central square. The Amparo Museum houses an extensive collection of pre-Hispanic art, including pottery and fragments of murals.
Backpacking tourism
It is characterized by being the tourist's own initiative, since it will be he himself who plans places of destination, his means of transport, his stay, the length of stay, among other aspects. This type of tourism is characterized by being significantly cheaper than the rest of the more conventional types. It is called "backpacking", since the traveler carries his backpack, in which he will carry a limited luggage considering the time that the trip could take.
Sustainable tourism
It is a company dedicated to causing a low impact on the environment and local culture, while generating income and employment for the local population.
rural tourism
They are trips that aim to carry out activities of interaction and coexistence in a rural community, in all those daily social and productive cultural expressions of the same.
Alternative tourism
It refers to those outings that are intended to carry out recreational activities in direct contact with nature and the cultural expressions that surround you with an attitude and commitment to know, respect, enjoy and participate in the conservation of natural and cultural resources.
Business tourism
During business trips, people continue to work and get paid, but until now, both from their place of work and from their place of residence.
Study tourism in Mexico
Knowing the importance of said recreation as a fundamental pillar for the economic development of the countries, many universities have established a series of postgraduate programs that seek to specialize future professionals in the sector.
It is important to highlight that if you want to study tourism in Mexico, there are as options 14 universities that managed to position themselves among the best in the world, resulting in the National Autonomous University of Mexico (UNAM) and the Monterrey Institute of Technology and Higher Studies with the highest level.
