A key part of tourism is attractions. They are often called “tourist attractions” because they tend to attract tourists. Tourist attractions may contribute to the economic growth of a city or nation and have a direct effect on the promotion of that region. According to Wanhill (2008), a tourist attraction is the set of tangible or intangible values associated with a country. The unique values of that country or city also add to that country's tourist attraction. For example; Native animals such as Koala and Kangaroo, which are native to Australia and only live there, add to the tourist attraction of that country.

1. EXPLANATION OF TOURIST ATTRACTION AND THEIR
IMPORTANCE AROUND THE WORLD
By Ali Koray Ozguclu
10 November 2020

2. ALI KORAY OZGUCLU
EXPLAIN TOURIST ATTRACTION
1
A key part of tourism is attractions. They are often called “tourist attractions” because they tend
to attract tourists. Tourist attractions may contribute to the economic growth of a city or nation
and have a direct effect on the promotion of that region. According to Wanhill (2008), a tourist
attraction is the set of tangible or intangible values associated with a country. The unique values
of that country or city also add to that country's tourist attraction. For example; Native animals
such as Koala and Kangaroo, which are native to Australia and only live there, add to the tourist
attraction of that country. The distinctive values of that nation or town also contribute to the
tourist attraction of that region. The aim of this study is to highlight the importance of tourism
attractions for countries around the World and how they directly contribute to the growth of
countries, such as the economy and promotion of countries.
A tourist destination, also related to as a tourist attraction, is a site of significance that tourists
often visit. As they tend to attract tourists, they are also named "tourist attractions." Attractions,
as mentioned by Benckendroff (2016), are the sites, individuals, events, and things which make
up the tourist-looking attractions that attract tourists to destinations. Popular examples include
natural and cultural landmarks, historic sites, buildings, zoos, museums and galleries of art,
gardens, architectural structures, theme parks, recreational spaces, festivals and events. There
is a tourist attraction where a tourism system is developed to classify and raise it to an attraction
status. Sectors such as transport, hospitality and tourism are part of this process so they promote
the need of tourists to see attractions (Swarbrooke 2002).
There are several various types of tourist attractions that are located around the world, according
to Pike and Page (2014). Four main categories can be classified as tourist attractions. These are
natural attraction, heritage and historical attraction, purpose-built attractions and events.

3. ALI KORAY OZGUCLU
EXPLAIN TOURIST ATTRACTION
2
The first type of tourist attraction is natural attractions and these attractions are important for
around the World. Natural attractions are products of nature which are major factors in the
growth of tourist attractions and the arrival of more tourists. There are many types of natural
attractions around the World. For example; National parks and forests, beaches, mountains,
waterfalls, islands can be given as examples of natural attractions (Leask 2008). Examples of
natural attractions from around the World are, Yellowstone National Park (USA), Uluru-Kata
Tjuta National Park (Australia), Great Barrier Reef National Park (Australia) are examples of
natural parks and forests, Bondi Beach (Australia), Brighton Beach (United Kingdom), Santa
Monica Beach (USA) are examples of beaches. Himalayas (Nepal), Everest (Nepal), Blue
Mountains (Sydney) are examples of mountains. Niagara Falls (USA), Victoria Falls
(Zimbabwe), Iguazu Falls (Brazil) are examples of waterfalls, Bali (Indonesia), Jamaica
(Caribbean) are examples of islands which are popular in the World for tourist attractions, are
examples of natural attractions.
Heritage and historical attractions are the second type of tourist attraction and these attractions
are very important for countries. Heritage and historical attractions are ancient, historic and
often cultural in nature. Since heritage and historical attractions provide detailed information
about the past lives of people, this information has attracted the attention of some tourists, and
by visiting countries or cities where heritage and historical attractions are located, they ensure
that such places exist in our World in a sustainable way, and indirectly to activities such as the
economy and promotion of those countries contributes as. These attractions tend to represent
culture and heritage with historical significance to the area of location (Leipner 1990).
Examples of heritage and historical attractions from around the World are, Giza (Egypt),
Colosseum (Italy), Stonehenge (United Kingdom), Cappadocia and Ephesus (Turkey) are
examples of ruins and monuments, Dome of the Rock (Palestine), Holy Hill - Basilica and

4. ALI KORAY OZGUCLU
EXPLAIN TOURIST ATTRACTION
3
National Shrine of Mary Help of Christians (USA), Shrine of the Virgin of the Rosary of
Pompei (Italy) are examples of shrines and temples, Edinburgh Castle (Scotland), Topkapı
Palace (Turkey), Buckingham Palace (United Kingdom) are examples of castles and places,
The Great Wall (China), Berlin Wall (Germany), Gallipoli (Turkey) are examples of battlefields
which are popular in the World for tourist attractions, are examples of heritage and historical
attractions.
The third type of tourist attraction is purposefully built (man-made) attractions that are man-
made and deliberately built to attract visitors, and these attractions are specifically aimed at
developing tourism and elements such as the economy and promotion of those countries. This
could include a wide range of types of tourist attractions (Leask 2008). Examples of purposeful
built attractions from around the World are, Sea World, Florida (USA), Disney Land (France),
Universal Studios (USA) are examples of entertainment parks, San Diego Zoo (USA), Monkey
Island, Sanya (China), Atlantis Aquarium, Dubai (UAE) are examples of wildlife attractions,
Egyption Museum (Egypt), Louvre, Paris (France), Van Gogh Museum (Netherlands) are
examples of museums and art galleries, The Grand Canyon glass bridge (USA), Nevis Bungy
Jump (New Zealand), F1 car driving, Abu Dhabi race track (UAE) are examples of unique built
attractions, Football World Cup, Wimbledon Championships, Olympics are examples of sport
attractions which are popular in the World for tourist attractions, are examples of purposeful
built attractions.
In order to help countries, develop their economies and attract more tourism, the fourth and
final type of tourist attraction, activities and festivals that attract a large number of tourists, help
fill the gap in places devoid of natural or other important attractions are developed. However,
the most common types of special events are either markets, festivals and parades, exhibitions
or entertainment venues. Referring to Wanhill (2008), these events, held in almost every region,

5. ALI KORAY OZGUCLU
EXPLAIN TOURIST ATTRACTION
4
transform countries into an attraction hub for tourism and contribute to the economy of the
country. For example; Vivid Sydney 2019 broke all attendance and international visit records
with 2.4 million guests enjoying the largest festival of lights, music and ideas in the Southern
Hemisphere (Destination NSW 2016).
As stated by Pike and Page (2014), tourist attraction centres constitute an important part of the
economic value. These places directly contribute to the national economy. This contribution
may increase the welfare level of the people of the region as well as increase the employment
level of that region. In addition, effective promotion strategies for these tourist destinations can
attract more tourists to that area.
Moreover, for these tourist destinations, successful marketing strategy will attract more tourists
to that area. As specified by Benckendroff (2006), a tourist attraction's most significant feature
is that it is "consumed" at the destination rather than at the home of the tourist. The cultural and
historical traditions of that country or city should be converted into a tourist attraction hub with
successful management and advertising techniques in order to guarantee that visitors will visit
the product.
According to the report of the World Tourism Organization (2019); France, Spain and USA are
in the top three in the World list. These three countries have many tourist attractions that come
to mind. As a consequence, the fact that a country handles its tourism destinations well means
that more visitors are attract to those countries. In an opinion of Leask (2008), tourist attractions
can add to government revenues, provide employment, encourage biodiversity protection,
species and historic sites, encourage investment in infrastructure, contribute to local economies,
provide income from foreign currency. Therefore, when designing and overseeing the activities

6. ALI KORAY OZGUCLU
EXPLAIN TOURIST ATTRACTION
5
of a tourist attraction, an effective tourism strategy and a sustainable tourism mechanism should
be embraced.
As a result, tourist destination is a place of interest that people come, usually because of its
intrinsic or demonstrated natural or cultural importance, historical importance, natural or
designed elegance, providing relaxation and entertainment. In order to ensure the viability of
the growth of tourism in those areas, as the legitimate owners of their own societies,
communities should carefully preserve these resources. This demands that cities accomplish it
through a community-based, responsible cultural tourism growth approach. Tourist attractions
contribute significantly to the tourism industry. Usually, tourism's economic benefits and foster
local history, heritage, and environment. In addition, by handling their cultural and historical
attractions or their international special events with a successful and sustainable policy,
countries can get a higher share of their tourist revenue in order to benefit further from the
advantages of the tourism industry.

7. ALI KORAY OZGUCLU
EXPLAIN TOURIST ATTRACTION
6
Reference List
Benckendorff, P 2006, Attractions Megatrends In Tourism Business Frontiers: Consumers,
products and industry, Butterworth-Heinemann, Oxford.
Destination NSW 2019, Vivid Sydney 2019 breaks all records for visitation, Sydney,
viewed 25 October 2020, <https://www.destinationnsw.com.au/news-and-
media/media-releases/vivid-sydney-2019-breaks-all-records-for>.
Leask, A 2008, The Nature and Role of Visitor Attractions. In Managing Visitor Attractions:
New Directions, Butterworth-Heinemann, Oxford.
Leiper, N 1990, Tourist Attraction Systems. Annals of Tourism Research, 17: 367-384.
Pike, S and Page, S 2014, Destination Marketing Organizations and destination marketing:
A narrative analysis of the literature. Tourism Management, 41:1‐26.
Swarbrooke, J 2002, The Development and Management of Visitor Attractions.
Butterworth-Heinemann, Oxford.
UNWTO - World Tourism Organisation 2016, “What is a tourist attraction? / What is a
tourist destination?”, e-library, Madrid, viewed 20 October 2020, <https://www.e-
unwto.org/doi/abs/10.18111/9789284407101.4>
UNWTO – World Tourism Organisation 2019, International Tourism Highlights Report,
Madrid, viewed 23 October 2020, <https://www.e-
unwto.org/doi/book/10.18111/9789284421152 >.
Wanhill, S 2008, Interpreting the Development of the Visitor Attraction Product. In
Managing Visitor Attractions: New Directions, Butterworth-Heinemann, Oxford.