1.1 Tourism Systems

Question 1

Components of tourism systems

Answer 1

1. Tourism generating region
   - where tourists come from & where people and businesses that offer tourism products and experiences (like tour operators) may be based
   ———
2. Tourist destination regions
   - region which attracts tourists. Attractions, amenities and facilities which cater to needs of tourists are located here
   - also experiences the consequences of tourism development
   ———
3. Transit route
   - the region or route tourist travels through to reach destination
   - links the tourist destination regions to the tourist generating regions
   - include stopover points which might be used for convenience or because of the existence of attractions.
   ———
   - These components function to enable people to travel from the tourist generating to destination regions.
   - They are interconnected — each component can affect and be affected by other components.

Question 2

How availability of transit routes influences travel between regions

Answer 2

• influences the volume and direction of travel
• When there are limited or inconvenient transit routes, the volume of travel between the regions might be low.
• When there are more transit routes available, the volume of travel might increase.
• When there are convenient or attractive transit routes available, the direction of travel might change. Tourists might choose to travel via the transit route instead of travelling directly to the destination region.
  ———
  Example:
• lack of direct fights between Singapore and Brazil and the inconvenient transit routes between them result in fewer tourists travelling from Singapore to Brazil.
• Some travellers may find the eight-hour direct fight from New Delhi, India to Singapore too tiring. Also, there may not be direct fights that suit their schedules. Hence they may choose to take a shorter flight to Bangkok, Thailand (transit route) before continuing their journey to Singapore.

Question 3

Relationship between tourist generating and destination regions

Answer 3

1. Movement of tourists from generating to destination regions occurs due to a combination of push and pull factors
2. Tourists, businesses and organisations in tourist generating and destination regions are mutually dependent

Question 4

Movement of tourists from generating to destination regions due push and pull factors

Answer 4

• Tourist generating regions create push factors, while destination regions create pull factors.
• mix of push & pull factors result in motivation to travel
• each tourists decision to travel is due to different combinations of push and pull factors
  ———
  Push factors (generating regions) :
• Factors that cause a tourist to want to leave the generating region.
• caused by the environment in the generating region which include:
  1. Stressful work environments.
  2. Unpleasant living environments, including overcrowding and pollution.
  3. Lack of recreational and entertainment options.
  ———
  Pull Factors:
• Qualities in tourist destination regions that attract tourists.
• include:
  1. Places of scenic beauty.
  2. Special events such as concerts or festivals.
  3. Attractions, facilities, and amenities that provide positive experiences.

Question 5

Tourists, businesses, and organisations in tourist generating and destination regions are mutually dependent.

Answer 5

Example:
- Tourists require the services of tour operators in tourist destination regions to plan their trips.
- Tour operators depend on hotels in tourist destination regions in order to plan the accommodation for tourists.
- Hotels depend on tour operators to direct tourists to them in order to earn profits.

Question 6

How tourism interact w/ nature, communities and economies within the local environment and beyond

Answer 6

• interactions can be positive or negative
  ———
  Positive:
• tourism is now an global industry and influences local economies and beyond
• contributes more than US$4 trillion to global economy in 2020
• tourists can pay local villages to teach them how to create traditional pottery, they generate revenue for the villages—contributes to local economy and helps to preserve local tradition
  ———
  Negative:
• impacts environment beyond tourism
• contributes to 8% of global greenhouse gases
• when tourists visit a nature park and irresponsibly leave behind waste, the environment may be degraded

Question 7

How changes in nature, communities and economies within the environment affect tourism systems

Answer 7

• Events occurring in tourist generating regions affect the desire to travel among potential tourists, affecting the number of tourists travelling through transit routes and arriving at destination regions.
• Economic downturn in tourist generating regions results in less demand for travel.
• This means fewer tourists pass through transit routes.
• Incomes in the tourist destination region and transit routes decrease.
• Environmental damage is reduced.
• New attraction opens at a tourist destination region.
• Returning tourists share their positive experiences at the new attraction.
• there is an increase in motivation to travel to the destination region.
• The number of travellers increases.
• Greater incomes are generated at both transit routes and destination regions.