The history of tourism began with pilgrimages and visits to spa towns by Greeks and Romans. In the 19th century, technological developments like railroads and steamships increased tourism's popularity by making travel easier. This coincided with social changes where families began vacationing together. After World War 2, advances in air travel, like commercial jets, made tourism accessible to the masses and its growth accelerated. However, global events like wars and health crises periodically slowed international tourism in subsequent decades.

1. History of Tourism
European and beyond

2. Earliest Tourism
 Greeks/Romans
 Pilgrimages
 Development of Spas:
 Bath/Leamington Spa/Harrogate Rome

3. Technological Developments
 The age of steam and rail
 Early Thomas Cook tours
 Creation of demand for accommodation at
rail termini leading to hotel construction

4. Social change in Victorian Society
 Sea bathing
 More importance of the family and going on
holiday with family
 Development of ‘resorts’ in Europe (eg
Monte Carlo)
 Desire to escape every day restricted moral
environment
 Establishment of ‘day trip’

5. Steamships
 Led by growth in worldwide trade
 Establishment of P & O shipping line
 Opening of Suez Canal in 1869 enables
routes to India & beyond

6. Late 19th century developments
 Desire for healthier outdoor life
 Development of bicycle
 Money Orders & Travellers Cheques
developed by Amex in USA
 Increased interest in photography as a
hobby
 Invention of guidebooks (Baedeker)

7. Early 20th century developments
 Ongoing expansion of travel for pleasure
 Increased wealth, curiosity and outgoing
attitudes
 Increasing ease of movement
 World War 1(WW1) led to introduction of
passports
 Post WW1 led to large scale migration boosting
international travel
 New forms of mass communication (cinema,
radio then tv)
 Increased use of private motor cars for travel
 Decline in rail travel

8. After World War 2 (WW2)
 Advances in aircraft technology
 Surplus aircraft after the war ended
 Commercial jet services started in early 1950’s
 Charter Air Services started in 1950 – to
Corsica
 Boeing 707 jets introduced in 1968 – air travel
for everybody!
 Demise of ocean liners by 1957
 By 1960’s mass market package tours were
launched
 Re-emergence of holidays by car as cars
became affordable
 Mid 1960’s cruise lines introduced fly cruises

9. 1960’s to 1980’s
 Changing social patterns
 Introduction of special interest holidays
 People provided with annual paid leave
 Rise in popularity of self-catering holidays
 Annual family holidays became a habit

10. 1980’s to 1990’s
 Increasing prosperity and declining inflation
 Availability of money
 Late 1980’s civil unrest around the world
slowed tourism growth (eg Iraq, Iran, Fiji,
Israel, Sri Lanka)
 Crash of New York stock market in 1987
had detrimental effect on world tourism

11. End of 1990’s
 By 1990 world spending on tourism
equaled 13% of worlds’ consumer
spending
 1993 the European Community (12
nations) removed border controls
resulting in free flow of goods/people
 1995 Middle East had dramatic increase in
tourism
 1990-2000 international tourism grew at
4.4% per annum despite Gulf War, break
up of Yugoslavia and Asian financial crisis

12. 2000 onwards
 9/11 attacks in USA in 2001 led to dramatic drops in
travel
 Personal safety concerns
 Foot + Mouth outbreaks
 NZ perceived safer resulting in 6.9% increase in
international visitor arrivals
 A return to confidence by 2002, but impacted by:
 SARS
 Avian Flu
 Wars in Afghanistan and Iraq
 Terrorist bombings in London, Bali, Mombasa
 Because of these global events, 2002/3 saw
international tourism fall back -1.5%
 2004 confidence and growth returned