define tourist region

What Is Regional Tourism?

By Anna Duncan

Regional tourism is a type of travel that focuses on exploring and experiencing the local culture, history, and attractions of a particular region. It involves visiting destinations outside of major cities or tourist hotspots and immersing oneself in the local way of life. This type of tourism can be incredibly rewarding, as it allows travelers to gain a deeper understanding and appreciation for the region they are visiting.

Why Is Regional Tourism Important? Regional tourism plays a significant role in supporting local economies by generating revenue for small businesses, promoting cultural exchange, and preserving local heritage. It also helps to reduce the impact of overtourism in popular tourist destinations by diverting visitors to lesser-known regions.

Types Of Regional Tourism There are several types of regional tourism, including:

• Cultural tourism: This involves experiencing the art, music, food, and traditions of a particular region.
• Nature-based tourism: This involves exploring natural landscapes such as forests, mountains, lakes, and rivers.
• Adventure tourism: This involves participating in activities such as hiking, camping, kayaking, or rock climbing.
• Historical tourism: This involves learning about the history and heritage of a particular region through visits to museums, monuments, or other historical sites.

The Benefits Of Regional Tourism Regional tourism has numerous benefits for both travelers and locals. Some of these include:

1. Authentic Experiences: One of the biggest advantages of regional travel is that it provides an opportunity to experience authentic local culture. Visitors can interact with locals and learn about their traditions firsthand.

2. Economic Development: Regional tourism can support small businesses by providing them with a steady stream of customers. This helps to create jobs and boost economic growth in rural areas.

3. Environmental Preservation: By diverting visitors away from overcrowded cities and popular tourist destinations, regional tourism can help to reduce the environmental impact of tourism. It can also promote sustainable practices such as ecotourism and responsible travel.

4. Cultural Preservation: Regional tourism can help to preserve local culture and traditions by supporting community events, festivals, and art shows. It can also help to raise awareness about the importance of preserving cultural heritage.

Examples Of Regional Tourism

There are countless examples of regional tourism destinations around the world. Here are a few:

The Scottish Highlands:

The Scottish Highlands offer breathtaking natural landscapes, rich history, and unique cultural experiences. Visitors can explore ancient castles, taste local whisky, and hike through rugged mountains.

The Amalfi Coast, Italy:

The Amalfi Coast is a stunning region on the southern coast of Italy known for its colorful villages, rugged coastline, and delicious cuisine. Visitors can take boat tours along the coast or hike through lemon groves.

Chiang Mai, Thailand:

Chiang Mai is a vibrant city in northern Thailand known for its beautiful temples, night markets, and outdoor adventures. Visitors can take cooking classes or trek through nearby mountains to experience local hill tribe culture.

8 Related Question Answers Found

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Chapter 1. History and Overview

1.1 What is Tourism?

Before engaging in a study of tourism , let’s have a closer look at what this term means.

Definition of Tourism

There are a number of ways tourism can be defined, and for this reason, the United Nations World Tourism Organization (UNWTO) embarked on a project from 2005 to 2007 to create a common glossary of terms for tourism. It defines tourism as follows:

Tourism is a social, cultural and economic phenomenon which entails the movement of people to countries or places outside their usual environment for personal or business/professional purposes. These people are called visitors (which may be either tourists or excursionists; residents or non-residents) and tourism has to do with their activities, some of which imply tourism expenditure (United Nations World Tourism Organization, 2008).

Using this definition, we can see that tourism is not just the movement of people for a number of purposes (whether business or pleasure), but the overall agglomeration of activities, services, and involved sectors that make up the unique tourist experience.

Tourism, Travel, and Hospitality: What are the Differences?

It is common to confuse the terms tourism , travel , and hospitality or to define them as the same thing. While tourism is the all-encompassing umbrella term for the activities and industry that create the tourist experience, the UNWTO (2020) defines travel as the activity of moving between different locations often for any purpose but more so for leisure and recreation (Hall & Page, 2006). On the other hand, hospitality can be defined as “the business of helping people to feel welcome and relaxed and to enjoy themselves” (Discover Hospitality, 2015, p. 3). Simply put, the hospitality industry is the combination of the accommodation and food and beverage groupings, collectively making up the largest segment of the industry (Go2HR, 2020). You’ll learn more about accommodations and F & B in Chapter 3 and Chapter 4 , respectively.

Definition of Tourist and Excursionist

Building on the definition of tourism, a commonly accepted description of a tourist is “someone who travels at least 80 km from his or her home for at least 24 hours, for business or leisure or other reasons” (LinkBC, 2008, p.8). The United Nations World Tourism Organization (1995) helps us break down this definition further by stating tourists can be:

• Domestic (residents of a given country travelling only within that country)
• Inbound (non-residents travelling in a given country)
• Outbound (residents of one country travelling in another country)

Excursionists  on the other hand are considered same-day visitors (UNWTO, 2020). Sometimes referred to as “day trippers.” Understandably, not every visitor stays in a destination overnight. It is common for travellers to spend a few hours or less to do sightseeing, visit attractions, dine at a local restaurant, then leave at the end of the day.

The scope of tourism, therefore, is broad and encompasses a number of activities and sectors.

Spotlight On: United Nations World Tourism Organization (UNWTO)

UNWTO is the United Nations agency responsible “for the promotion of responsible, sustainable and universally accessible tourism” (UNWTO, 2014b). Its membership includes 159 countries and over 500 affiliates such as private companies, research and educational institutions, and non-governmental organizations. It promotes tourism as a way of developing communities while encouraging ethical behaviour to mitigate negative impacts. For more information, visit the UNWTO website .

NAICS: The North American Industry Classification System

Given the sheer size of the tourism industry, it can be helpful to break it down into broad industry groups using a common classification system. The North American Industry Classification System (NAICS) was jointly created by the Canadian, US, and Mexican governments to ensure common analysis across all three countries (British Columbia Ministry of Jobs, Tourism and Skills Training, 2013a). The tourism-related groupings created using NAICS are (in alphabetical order):

• Accommodation
• Food and beverage services (commonly known as “F & B”)
• Recreation and entertainment
• Transportation
• Travel services

These industry groups (also commonly known as sectors) are based on the similarity of the “labour processes and inputs” used for each (Government of Canada, 2013). For instance, the types of employees and resources required to run an accommodation business whether it be a hotel, motel, or even a campground are quite similar. All these businesses need staff to check in guests, provide housekeeping, employ maintenance workers, and provide a place for people to sleep. As such, they can be grouped together under the heading of accommodation. The same is true of the other four groupings, and the rest of this text explores these industry groups, and other aspects of tourism, in more detail.

It is typical for the entire tourist experience to involve more than one sector. The combination of sectors that supply and distribute the needed tourism products, services, and activities within the tourism system is called the Tourism Supply Chain. Often, these chains of sectors and activities are dependent upon each other’s delivery of products and services. Let’s look at a simple example below that describes the involved and sometimes overlapping sectoral chains in the tourism experience:

Before we seek to understand the five tourism sectors in more detail, it’s important to have an overview of the history and impacts of tourism to date.

Long Descriptions

Figure 1.2 long description: Diagram showing the tourism supply chain. This includes the phases of travel and the sectors and activities involved during each phase.

There are three travel phases: pre-departure, during travel, and post-departure.

Pre-departure, tourists use the travel services and transportation sectors.

During travel, tourists use the travel services, accommodations, food and beverage, recreation and entertainment, and transportation sectors.

Post-departure, tourists use the transportation sector.

[Return to Figure 1.2]

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• Front Desk by Staying LEVEL is licensed under a CC BY-NC 4.0 Licence .

Tourism according the the UNWTO is a social, cultural and economic phenomenon which entails the movement of people to countries or places outside their usual environment for personal or business/professional purposes.

UN agency responsible for promoting responsible, sustainable, and universally accessible tourism worldwide.

Moving between different locations for leisure and recreation.

The accommodations and food and beverage industry groupings.

someone who travels at least 80 km from his or her home for at least 24 hours, for business or leisure or other reasons

A same-day visitor to a destination. Their trip typically ends on the same day when they leave the destination.

A way to group tourism activities based on similarities in business practices, primarily used for statistical analysis.

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What is tourism?

Tourism is the business of providing tours and services for tourists. Tourism is a service industry which employs over 2 million people in Britain.

Tourism is an industry that drives people to travel for leisure and recreation. The growth of tourism has had a dramatic effect on many countries – not just economically, but also environmentally and socially. These impacts have been both positive and negative.

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Definitions and Key Concepts

• First Online: 01 January 2012

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• Guido Candela 3 &
• Paolo Figini 3  

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Tourism is a highly complex phenomenon and can be fully understood only by adopting a multidisciplinary approach. In fact, the tourism activity has been studied by many disciplines, being economics, geography, sociology, and history the most productive; however, this book will focus only on the analysis of the economic aspects surrounding the tourism activity. Hence, our approach should contribute to the deep understanding of tourism as an economic phenomenon, by leaving to other disciplines the task of providing a more complete picture of how tourism works.

• Tourism Activity
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• Tourism Output
• Tourism Flow

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To learn more about the functions, instruments, and objectives of the UNWTO, read Case Study 15.2, along with Sect. 15.5.2.

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Candela, G., Figini, P. (2012). Definitions and Key Concepts. In: The Economics of Tourism Destinations. Springer Texts in Business and Economics. Springer, Berlin, Heidelberg. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-642-20874-4_2

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Glossary of tourism terms

Tourism is a social, cultural and economic phenomenon which entails the movement of people to countries or places outside their usual environment for personal or business/professional purposes. These people are called visitors (which may be either tourists or excursionists; residents or non-residents) and tourism has to do with their activities, some of which involve tourism expenditure.

A B C D E F G H I J K L M N O P Q R S T U V W Y Z

Activity/activities : In tourism statistics, the term activities represent the actions and behaviors of people in preparation for and during a trip in their capacity as consumers ( IRTS 2008, 1.2 ).

Activity (principal): The principal activity of a producer unit is the activity whose value added exceeds that of any other activity carried out within the same unit ( SNA 2008, 5.8 ).

Activity (productive): The (productive) activity carried out by a statistical unit is the type of production in which it engages. It has to be understood as a process, i.e. the combination of actions that result in a certain set of products. The classification of productive activities is determined by their principal output.

Administrative data : Administrative data is the set of units and data derived from an administrative source. This is a data holding information collected and maintained for the purpose of implementing one or more administrative regulations.

Adventure tourism : Adventure tourism is a type of tourism which usually takes place in destinations with specific geographic features and landscape and tends to be associated with a physical activity, cultural exchange, interaction and engagement with nature. This experience may involve some kind of real or perceived risk and may require significant physical and/or mental effort. Adventure tourism generally includes outdoor activities such as mountaineering, trekking, bungee jumping, rock climbing, rafting, canoeing, kayaking, canyoning, mountain biking, bush walking, scuba diving. Likewise, some indoor adventure tourism activities may also be practiced.

Aggregated data : The result of transforming unit level data into quantitative measures for a set of characteristics of a population.

Aggregation : A process that transforms microdata into aggregate-level information by using an aggregation function such as count, sum average, standard deviation, etc.

Analytical unit : Entity created by statisticians, by splitting or combining observation units with the help of estimations and imputations.

Balance of payments : The balance of payments is a statistical statement that summarizes transactions between residents and non-residents during a period. It consists of the goods and services account, the primary income account, the secondary income account, the capital account, and the financial account ( BPM6, 2.12 ).

Bias : An effect which deprives a statistical result of representativeness by systematically distorting it, as distinct from a random error which may distort on any one occasion but balances out on the average.

Business and professional purpose (of a tourism trip): The business and professional purpose of a tourism trip includes the activities of the self-employed and employees, as long as they do not correspond to an implicit or explicit employer-employee relationship with a resident producer in the country or place visited, those of investors, businessmen, etc. ( IRTS 2008, 3.17.2 ).

Business tourism : Business tourism is a type of tourism activity in which visitors travel for a specific professional and/or business purpose to a place outside their workplace and residence with the aim of attending a meeting, an activity or an event. The key components of business tourism are meetings, incentives, conventions and exhibitions. The term "meetings industry" within the context of business tourism recognizes the industrial nature of such activities. Business tourism can be combined with any other tourism type during the same trip.

Business visitor : A business visitor is a visitor whose main purpose for a tourism trip corresponds to the business and professional category of purpose ( IRTS 2008, 3.17.2 ).

Central Product Classification : The Central Product Classification (CPC) constitutes a complete product classification covering goods and services. It is intended to serve as an international standard for assembling and tabulating all kinds of data requiring product detail, including industrial production, national accounts, service industries, domestic and foreign commodity trade, international trade in services, balance of payments, consumption and price statistics. Other basic aims are to provide a framework for international comparison and promote harmonization of various types of statistics dealing with goods and services.

Census : A census is the complete enumeration of a population or groups at a point in time with respect to well defined characteristics: for example, Population, Production, Traffic on particular roads.

Coastal, maritime and inland water tourism : Coastal tourism refers to land-based tourism activities such as swimming, surfing, sunbathing and other coastal leisure, recreation and sports activities which take place on the shore of a sea, lake or river. Proximity to the coast is also a condition for services and facilities that support coastal tourism. Maritime tourism refers to sea-based activities such as cruising, yachting, boating and nautical sports and includes their respective land-based services and infrastructure. Inland water tourism refers to tourism activities such as cruising, yachting, boating and nautical sports which take place in aquatic- influenced environments located within land boundaries and include lakes, rivers, ponds, streams, groundwater, springs, cave waters and others traditionally grouped as inland wetlands.

Coherence : Adequacy of statistics to be combined in different ways and for various uses.

Competitiveness of a tourism destination : The competitiveness of a tourism destination is the ability of the destination to use its natural, cultural, human, man-made and capital resources efficiently to develop and deliver quality, innovative, ethical and attractive tourism products and services in order to achieve a sustainable growth within its overall vision and strategic goals, increase the added value of the tourism sector, improve and diversify its market components and optimize its attractiveness and benefits both for visitors and the local community in a sustainable perspective.

Consistency : Logical and numerical coherence.

Country of reference : The country of reference refers to the country for which the measurement is done. ( IRTS 2008, 2.15 ).

Country of residence : The country of residence of a household is determined according to the centre of predominant economic interest of its members. If a person resides (or intends to reside) for more than one year in a given country and has there his/her centre of economic interest (for example, where the predominant amount of time is spent), he/she is considered as a resident of this country.

Country-specific tourism characteristic products and activities : To be determined by each country by applying the criteria of IRTS 2008, 5.10 in their own context; for these products, the activities producing them will be considered as tourism characteristic, and the industries in which the principal activity is tourism-characteristic will be called tourism industries ( IRTS 2008, 5.16 ).

Cultural tourism : Cultural tourism is a type of tourism activity in which the visitor's essential motivation is to learn, discover, experience and consume the tangible and intangible cultural attractions/products in a tourism destination. These attractions/products relate to a set of distinctive material, intellectual, spiritual and emotional features of a society that encompasses arts and architecture, historical and cultural heritage, culinary heritage, literature, music, creative industries and the living cultures with their lifestyles, value systems, beliefs and traditions.

Data checking : Activity whereby the correctness conditions of the data are verified. It also includes the specification of the type of error or of the condition not met, and the qualification of the data and their division into "error-free data" and "erroneous data".

Data collection : Systematic process of gathering data for official statistics.

Data compilation : Operations performed on data to derive new information according to a given set of rules.

Data confrontation : The process of comparing data that has generally been derived from different surveys or other sources, especially those of different frequencies, in order to assess and possibly improve their coherency, and identify the reasons for any differences.

Data processing : Data processing is the operation performed on data by the organization, institute, agency, etc., responsible for undertaking the collection, tabulation, manipulation and preparation of data and metadata output.

Data reconciliation : The process of adjusting data derived from two different sources to remove, or at least reduce, the impact of differences identified.

Destination (main destination of a trip): The main destination of a tourism trip is defined as the place visited that is central to the decision to take the trip. See also purpose of a tourism trip ( IRTS 2008, 2.31 ).

Destination management / marketing organization (DMO) : A destination management/marketing organization (DMO) is the leading organizational entity which may encompass the various authorities, stakeholders and professionals and facilitates tourism sector partnerships towards a collective destination vision. The governance structures of DMOs vary from a single public authority to a public/ private partnership model with the key role of initiating, coordinating and managing certain activities such as implementation of tourism policies, strategic planning, product development, promotion and marketing and convention bureau activities. The functions of the DMOs may vary from national to regional and local levels depending on the current and potential needs as well as on the decentralization level of public administration. Not every tourism destination has a DMO.

Documentation: Processes and procedures for imputation,  weighting,  confidentiality  and suppression rules, outlier treatment and data capture should be fully documented by the  survey provider.  Such documentation should be made available to at least  the body financing the survey.

Domestic tourism : Domestic tourism comprises the activities of a resident visitor within the country of reference, either as part of a domestic tourism trip or part of an outbound tourism trip ( IRTS 2008, 2.39 ).

Domestic tourism consumption : Domestic tourism consumption is the tourism consumption of a resident visitor within the economy of reference ( TSA:RMF 2008, figure 2.1 ).

Domestic tourism expenditure : Domestic tourism expenditure is the tourism expenditure of a resident visitor within the economy of reference, (IRTS 2008, 4.15(a)).

Domestic tourism trip : A domestic tourism trip is one with a main destination within the country of residence of the visitor (IRTS 2008, 2.32).

Domestic visitor : As a visitor travels within his/her country of residence, he/she is a domestic visitor and his/her activities are part of domestic tourism.

Durable consumer goods : Durable consumer goods are goods that may be used repeatedly or continuously over a period of a year or more, assuming a normal or average rate of physical usage. When acquired by producers, these are considered to be capital goods used for production processes, as is the case of vehicles, computers, etc. When acquired by households, they are considered to be consumer durable goods ( TSA:RMF 2008, 2.39 ). This definition is identical to the definition of SNA 2008, 9.42 : A consumer durable is a goodthat may be used for purposes of consumption repeatedly or continuously over a period of a year or more.

Dwellings : Each household has a principal dwelling (sometimes also designated as main or primary home), usually defined with reference to time spent there, whose location defines the country of residence and place of usual residence of this household and of all its members. All other dwellings (owned or leased by the household) are considered secondary dwellings ( IRTS 2008, 2.26 ).

Ecotourism : Ecotourism is a type of nature-based tourism activity in which the visitor's essential motivation is to observe, learn, discover, experience and appreciate biological and cultural diversity with a responsible attitude to protect the integrity of the ecosystem and enhance the well-being of the local community. Ecotourism increases awareness towards the conservation of biodiversity, natural environment and cultural assets both among locals and the visitors and requires special management processes to minimize the negative impact on the ecosystem.

Economic analysis : Tourism generates directly and indirectly an increase in economic activity in the places visited (and beyond), mainly due to demand for goods and services thatneed to be produced and provided. In the economic analysis of tourism, one may distinguish between tourism's 'economic contribution' which refers to the direct effect of tourism and is measurable by means of the TSA, and tourism's 'economic impact' which is a much broader concept encapsulating the direct, indirect and induced effects of tourism and which must be estimated by applying models. Economic impact studies aim to quantify economic benefits, that is, the net increase in the wealth of residents resulting from tourism, measured in monetary terms, over and above the levels that would prevail in its absence.

Economic territory : The term "economic territory" is a geographical reference and points to the country for which the measurement is done (country of reference) ( IRTS 2008, 2.15 ).

Economically active population : The economically active population or labour force comprises all persons of either sex who furnish the supply of labour for the production of goods and services as defined by the system of national accounts during a specified time-reference period (ILO, Thirteenth ICLS, 6.18).

Economy (of reference): "Economy" (or "economy of reference") is an economic reference defined in the same way as in the balance of payments and in the system of national accounts: it refers to the economic agents that are resident in the country of reference ( IRTS 2008, 2.15 ).

Education tourism : Education tourism covers those types of tourism which have as a primary motivation the tourist's engagement and experience in learning, self-improvement, intellectual growth and skills development. Education Tourism represents a broad range of products and services related to academic studies, skill enhancement holidays, school trips, sports training, career development courses and language courses, among others.

Employees : Employees are all those workers who hold the type of job defined as "paid employment" (ILO, Fifteenth ICLS, pp. 20-22).

Employer-employee relationship : An employer-employee relationship exists when there is an agreement, which may be formal or informal, between an entity and an individual, normally entered into voluntarily by both parties, whereby the individual works for the entity in return for remuneration in cash or in kind ( BPM6, 11.11 ).

Employers : Employers are those workers who, working on their own account with one or more partners, hold the type of job defined as a "self-employment job" and, in this capacity, on a continuous basis (including the reference period) have engaged one or more persons to work for them in their business as "employee(s)" (ILO, Fifteenth ICLS, pp. 20-22).

Employment : Persons in employment are all persons above a specified age who, during a specified brief period, either one week or one day, were in paid employment or self-employment (OECD GST, p. 170).

Employment in tourism industries : Employment in tourism industries may be measured as a count of the persons employed in tourism industries in any of their jobs, as a count of the persons employed in tourism industries in their main job, or as a count of the jobs in tourism industries ( IRTS 2008, 7.9 ).

Enterprise : An enterprise is an institutional unit engaged in production of goods and/or services. It may be a corporation, a non-profit institution, or an unincorporated enterprise. Corporate enterprises and non-profit institutions are complete institutional units. An unincorporated enterprise, however, refers to an institutional unit —a household or government unit —only in its capacity as a producer of goods and services (OECD BD4, p. 232)

Establishment : An establishment is an enterprise, or part of an enterprise, that is situated in a single location and in which only a single productive activity is carried out or in which the principal productive activity accounts for most of the value added ( SNA 2008, 5.14 ).

Estimation : Estimation is concerned with inference about the numerical value of unknown population values from incomplete data such as a sample. If a single figure is calculated for each unknown parameter the process is called "point estimation". If an interval is calculated within which the parameter is likely, in some sense, to lie, the process is called "interval estimation".

Exports of goods and services : Exports of goods and services consist of sales, barter, or gifts or grants, of goods and services from residents to non-residents (OECD GST, p. 194)

Frame : A list, map or other specification of the units which define a population to be completely enumerated or sampled.

Forms of tourism : There are three basic forms of tourism: domestic tourism, inbound tourism, and outbound tourism. These can be combined in various ways to derive the following additional forms of tourism: internal tourism, national tourism and international tourism.

Gastronomy tourism :  Gastronomy tourism is a type of tourism activity which is characterized by the visitor's experience linked with food and related products and activities while travelling. Along with authentic, traditional, and/or innovative culinary experiences, Gastronomy Tourism may also involve other related activities such as visiting the local producers, participating in food festivals and attending cooking classes. Eno-tourism (wine tourism), as a sub-type of gastronomy tourism, refers to tourism whose purpose is visiting vineyards, wineries, tasting, consuming and/or purchasing wine, often at or near the source.

Goods : Goods are physical, produced objects for which a demand exists, over which ownership rights can be established and whose ownership can be transferred from one institutional unit to another by engaging in transactions on markets ( SNA 2008, p. 623 ).

Gross fixed capital formation : Gross fixed capital formation is defined as the value of institutional units' acquisitions less disposals of fixed assets. Fixed assets are produced assets (such as machinery, equipment, buildings or other structures) that are used repeatedly or continuously in production over several accounting periods (more than one year) ( SNA 2008, 1.52 ).

Gross margin : The gross margin of a provider of reservation services is the difference between the value at which the intermediated service is sold and the value accrued to the provider of reservation services for this intermediated service.

Gross value added : Gross value added is the value of output less the value of intermediate consumption ( TSA:RMF 2008, 3.32 ).

Gross value added of tourism industries : Gross value added of tourism industries (GVATI) is the total gross value added of all establishments belonging to tourism industries, regardless of whether all their output is provided to visitors and the degree of specialization of their production process ( TSA:RMF 2008, 4.86 ).

Grossing up : Activity aimed at transforming, based on statistical methodology, micro-data from samples into aggregate-level information representative of the target population.

Health tourism : Health tourism covers those types of tourism which have as a primary motivation, the contribution to physical, mental and/or spiritual health through medical and wellness-based activities which increase the capacity of individuals to satisfy their own needs and function better as individuals in their environment and society. Health tourism is the umbrella term for the subtypes wellness tourism and medical tourism.

Imputation : Procedure for entering a value for a specific data item where the response is missing or unusable.

Inbound tourism : Inbound tourism comprises the activities of a non-resident visitor within the country of reference on an inbound tourism trip ( IRTS 2008, 2.39 ).

Inbound tourism consumption : Inbound tourism consumption is the tourism consumption of a non-resident visitor within the economy of reference ( TSA:RMF 2008, figure 2.1 ).

Inbound tourism expenditure : Inbound tourism expenditure is the tourism expenditure of a non-resident visitor within the economy of reference ( IRTS 2008, 4.15(b) ).

Innovation in tourism : Innovation in tourism is the introduction of a new or improved component which intends to bring tangible and intangible benefits to tourism stakeholders and the local community, improve the value of the tourism experience and the core competencies of the tourism sector and hence enhance tourism competitiveness and /or sustainability. Innovation in tourism may cover potential areas, such as tourism destinations, tourism products, technology, processes, organizations and business models, skills, architecture, services, tools and/or practices for management, marketing, communication, operation, quality assurance and pricing.

Institutional sector : An aggregation of institutional units on the basis of the type of producer and depending on their principal activity and function, which are considered to be indicative of their economic behaviour.

Institutional unit : The elementary economic decision-making centre characterised by uniformity of behaviour and decision-making autonomy in the exercise of its principal function.

Intermediate consumption : Intermediate consumption consists of the value of the goods and services consumed as inputs by a process of production, excluding fixed assets whose consumption is recorded as consumption of fixed capital ( SNA 2008, 6.213 ).

Internal tourism : Internal tourism comprises domestic tourism and inbound tourism, that is to say, the activities of resident and non-resident visitors within the country of reference as part of domestic or international tourism trips ( IRTS 2008, 2.40(a) ).

Internal tourism consumption : Internal tourism consumption is the tourism consumption of both resident and non-resident visitors within the economy of reference. It is the sum of domestic tourism consumption and inbound tourism consumption ( TSA:RMF 2008, figure 2.1 ).

Internal tourism expenditure : Internal tourism expenditure comprises all tourism expenditure of visitors, both resident and non-resident, within the economy of reference. It is the sum of domestic tourism expenditure and inbound tourism expenditure. It includes acquisition of goods and services imported into the country of reference and sold to visitors. This indicator provides the most comprehensive measurement of tourism expenditure in the economy of reference ( IRTS 2008, 4.20(a) ).

International Standard Industrial Classification of All Economic Activities : The International Standard Industrial Classification of All Economic Activities (ISIC) consists of a coherent and consistent classification structure of economic activities based on a set of internationally agreed concepts, definitions, principles and classification rules. It provides a comprehensive framework within which economic data can be collected and reported in a format that is designed for purposes of economic analysis, decision-taking and policymaking. The classification structure represents a standard format to organize detailed information about the state of an economy according to economic principles and perceptions (ISIC, Rev.4, 1).

International tourism : International tourism comprises inbound tourism and outbound tourism, that is to say, the activities of resident visitors outside the country of reference, either as part of domestic or outbound tourism trips and the activities of non-resident visitors within the country of reference on inbound tourism trips ( IRTS 2008, 2.40(c) ).

International visitor : An international traveller qualifies as an international visitor with respect to the country of reference if: (a) he/she is on a tourism trip and (b) he/she is a non-resident travelling in the country of reference or a resident travelling outside of it ( IRTS 2008, 2.42 ).

Job : The agreement between an employee and the employer defines a job and each self-employed person has a job ( SNA 2008, 19.30 ).

Measurement error : Error in reading, calculating or recording numerical value.

Medical tourism : Medical tourism is a type of tourism activity which involves the use of evidence-based medical healing resources and services (both invasive and non-invasive). This may include diagnosis, treatment, cure, prevention and rehabilitation.

Meetings industry : To highlight purposes relevant to the meetings industry, if a trip's main purpose is business/professional, it can be further subdivided into "attending meetings, conferences or congresses, trade fairs and exhibitions" and "other business and professional purposes". The term meetings industry is preferred by the International Congress and Convention Association (ICCA), Meeting Professionals International (MPI) and Reed Travel over the acronym MICE (Meetings, Incentives, Conferences and Exhibitions) which does not recognize the industrial nature of such activities.

Metadata : Data that defines and describes other data and processes.

MICE : See meetings industry.

Microdata : Non-aggregated observations, or measurements of characteristics of individual units.

Mirror statistics : Mirror statistics are used to conduct bilateral comparisons of two basic measures of a trade flow and are a traditional tool for detecting the causes of asymmetries in statistics (OECD GST, p. 335).

Mountain tourism : Mountain tourism is a type of tourism activity which takes place in a defined and limited geographical space such as hills or mountains with distinctive characteristics and attributes that are inherent to a specific landscape, topography, climate, biodiversity (flora and fauna) and local community. It encompasses a broad range of outdoor leisure and sports activities.

National tourism : National tourism comprises domestic tourism and outbound tourism, that is to say, the activities of resident visitors within and outside the country of reference, either as part of domestic or outbound tourism trips ( IRTS 2008, 2.40(b) ).

National tourism consumption : National tourism consumption is the tourism consumption of resident visitors, within and outside the economy of reference. It is the sum of domestic tourism consumption and outbound tourism consumption ( TSA:RMF 2008, figure 2.1 ).

National tourism expenditure : National tourism expenditure comprises all tourism expenditure of resident visitors within and outside the economy of reference. It is the sum of domestic tourism expenditure and outbound tourism expenditure ( IRTS 2008, 4.20(b) ).

Nationality : The concept of "country of residence" of a traveller is different from that of his/her nationality or citizenship ( IRTS 2008, 2.19 ).

Non-monetary indicators : Data measured in physical or other non-monetary units should not be considered a secondary part of a satellite account. They are essential components, both for the information they provide directly and in order to analyse the monetary data adequately ( SNA 2008, 29.84 ).

Observation unit : entity on which information is received and statistics are compiled.

Outbound tourism : Outbound tourism comprises the activities of a resident visitor outside the country of reference, either as part of an outbound tourism trip or as part of a domestic tourism trip ( IRTS 2008, 2.39(c) ).

Outbound tourism consumption : Outbound tourism consumption is the tourism consumption of a resident visitor outside the economy of reference ( TSA:RMF 2008, figure 2.1 ).

Outbound tourism expenditure : Outbound tourism expenditure is the tourism expenditure of a resident visitor outside the economy of reference ( IRTS 2008, 4.15(c) ).

Output : Output is defined as the goods and services produced by an establishment, a) excluding the value of any goods and services used in an activity for which the establishment does not assume the risk of using the products in production, and b) excluding the value of goods and services consumed by the same establishment except for goods and services used for capital formation (fixed capital or changes in inventories) or own final consumption ( SNA 2008, 6.89 ).

Output (main): The main output of a (productive) activity should be determined by reference to the value added of the goods sold or services rendered (ISIC rev.4, 114).

Pilot survey : The aim of a pilot survey is to test the questionnaire (pertinence of the questions, understanding of questions by those being interviewed, duration of the interview) and to check various potential sources for sampling and non-sampling errors: for instance, the place in which the surveys are carried out and the method used, the identification of any omitted answers and the reason for the omission, problems of communicating in various languages, translation, the mechanics of data collection, the organization of field work, etc.

Place of usual residence : The place of usual residence is the geographical place where the enumerated person usually resides, and is defined by the location of his/her principal dwelling (Principles and recommendations for population and housing censuses of the United Nations, 2.20 to 2.24).

Probability sample : A sample selected by a method based on the theory of probability (random process), that is, by a method involving knowledge of the likelihood of any unit being selected.

Production account : The production account records the activity of producing goods and services as defined within the SNA. Its balancing item, gross value added, is defined as the value of output less the value of intermediate consumption and is a measure of the contribution to GDP made by an individual producer, industry or sector. Gross value added is the source from which the primary incomes of the SNA are generated and is therefore carried forward into the primary distribution of income account. Value added and GDP may also be measured net by deducting consumption of fixed capital, a figure representing the decline in value during the period of the fixed capital used in a production process ( SNA 2008, 1.17 ).

Production : Economic production may be defined as an activity carried out under the control and responsibility of an institutional unit that uses inputs of labour, capital, and goods and services to produce outputs of goods or services ( SNA 2008, 6.24. ).

Purpose of a tourism trip (main): The main purpose of a tourism trip is defined as the purpose in the absence of which the trip would not have taken place ( IRTS 2008, 3.10. ). Classification of tourism trips according to the main purpose refers to nine categories: this typology allows the identification of different subsets of visitors (business visitors, transit visitors, etc.) See also destination of a tourism trip ( IRTS 2008, 3.14 ).

Quality of a tourism destination : Quality of a tourism destination is the result of a process which implies the satisfaction of all tourism product and service needs, requirements and expectations of the consumer at an acceptable price, in conformity with mutually accepted contractual conditions and the implicit underlying factors such as safety and security, hygiene, accessibility, communication, infrastructure and public amenities and services. It also involves aspects of ethics, transparency and respect towards the human, natural and cultural environment. Quality, as one of the key drivers of tourism competitiveness, is also a professional tool for organizational, operational and perception purposes for tourism suppliers.

Questionnaire and Questionnaire design : Questionnaire is a group or sequence of questions designed to elicit information on a subject, or sequence of subjects, from a reporting unit or from another producer of official statistics. Questionnaire design is the design (text, order, and conditions for skipping) of the questions used to obtain the data needed for the survey.

Reference period : The period of time or point in time to which the measured observation is intended to refer.

Relevance : The degree to which statistics meet current and potential users' needs.

Reliability : Closeness of the initial estimated value to the subsequent estimated value.

Reporting unit : Unit that supplies the data for a given survey instance, like a questionnaire or interview. Reporting units may, or may not, be the same as the observation unit.

Residents/non-residents : The residents of a country are individuals whose centre of predominant economic interest is located in its economic territory. For a country, the non-residents are individuals whose centre of predominant economic interest is located outside its economic territory.

Response and non-response : Response and non-response to various elements of a survey entail potential errors.

Response error : Response errors may be defined as those arising from the interviewing process. Such errors may be due to a number of circumstances, such as inadequate concepts or questions; inadequate training; interviewer failures; respondent failures.

Rural tourism : Rural tourism is a type of tourism activity in which the visitor's experience is related to a wide range of products generally linked to nature-based activities, agriculture, rural lifestyle / culture, angling and sightseeing. Rural tourism activities take place in non-urban (rural) areas with the following characteristics:

• Low population density;
• Landscape and land-use dominated by agriculture and forestry; and
• Traditional social structure and lifestyle

Same-day visitor (or excursionist): A visitor (domestic, inbound or outbound) is classified as a tourist (or overnight visitor), if his/her trip includes an overnight stay, or as a same-day visitor (or excursionist) otherwise ( IRTS 2008, 2.13 ).

Sample : A subset of a frame where elements are selected based on a process with a known probability of selection.

Sample survey : A survey which is carried out using a sampling method.

Sampling error : That part of the difference between a population value and an estimate thereof, derived from a random sample, which is due to the fact that only a subset of the population is enumerated.

Satellite accounts : There are two types of satellite accounts, serving two different functions. The first type, sometimes called an internal satellite, takes the full set of accounting rules and conventions of the SNA but focuses on a particular aspect of interest by moving away from the standard classifications and hierarchies. Examples are tourism, coffee production and environmental protection expenditure. The second type, called an external satellite, may add non-economic data or vary some of the accounting conventions or both. It is a particularly suitable way to explore new areas in a research context. An example may be the role of volunteer labour in the economy ( SNA 2008, 29.85 ).

SDMX, Statistical Data and Metadata Exchange : Set of technical standards and content-oriented guidelines, together with an IT architecture and tools, to be used for the efficient exchange and sharing of statistical data and metadata (SDMX).

Seasonal adjustment : Seasonal adjustment is a statistical technique to remove the effects of seasonal calendar influences on a series. Seasonal effects usually reflect the influence of the seasons themselves, either directly or through production series related to them, or social conventions. Other types of calendar variation occur as a result of influences such as number of days in the calendar period, the accounting or recording practices adopted or the incidence of moving holidays.

Self-employment job : Self-employment jobs are those jobs where remuneration is directly dependent upon the profits (or the potential of profits) derived from the goods or services produced.

Self-employed with paid employees : Self-employed with paid employees are classified as employers.

Self-employed without employees : Self-employed without employees are classified as own-account workers.

Services : Services are the result of a production activity that changes the conditions of the consuming units, or facilitates the exchange of products or financial assets. They cannot be traded separately from their production. By the time their production is completed, they must have been provided to the consumers ( SNA 2008, 6.17 ).

Social transfers in kind : A special case of transfers in kind is that of social transfers in kind. These consist of goods and services provided by general government and non-profit institutions serving households (NPISHs) that are delivered to individual households. Health and education services are the prime examples. Rather than provide a specified amount of money to be used to purchase medical and educational services, the services are often provided in kind to make sure that the need for the services is met. (Sometimes the recipient purchases the service and is reimbursed by the insurance or assistance scheme. Such a transaction is still treated as being in kind because the recipient is merely acting as the agent of the insurance scheme) (SNA 2008, 3.83).

Sports tourism : Sports tourism is a type of tourism activity which refers to the travel experience of the tourist who either observes as a spectator or actively participates in a sporting event generally involving commercial and non-commercial activities of a competitive nature.

Standard classification : Classifications that follow prescribed rules and are generally recommended and accepted.

Statistical error : The unknown difference between the retained value and the true value.

Statistical indicator : A data element that represents statistical data for a specified time, place, and other characteristics, and is corrected for at least one dimension (usually size) to allow for meaningful comparisons.

Statistical metadata : Data about statistical data.

Statistical unit : Entity about which information is sought and about which statistics are compiled. Statistical units may be identifiable legal or physical entities or statistical constructs.

Survey : An investigation about the characteristics of a given population by means of collecting data from a sample of that population and estimating their characteristics through the systematic use of statistical methodology.

System of National Accounts : The System of National Accounts (SNA) is the internationally agreed standard set of recommendations on how to compile measures of economic activity in accordance with strict accounting conventions based on economic principles. The recommendations are expressed in terms of a set of concepts, definitions, classifications and accounting rules that comprise the internationally agreed standard for measuring indicators of economic performance. The accounting framework of the SNA allows economic data to be compiled and presented in a format that is designed for purposes of economic analysis, decision-taking and policymaking ( SNA 2008, 1.1 ).

Total tourism internal demand : Total tourism internal demand, is the sum of internal tourism consumption, tourism gross fixed capital formation and tourism collective consumption ( TSA:RMF 2008, 4.114 ). It does not include outbound tourism consumption.

Tourism : Tourism refers to the activity of visitors ( IRTS 2008, 2.9 ).

Tourism characteristic activities : Tourism characteristic activities are the activities that typically produce tourism characteristic products. As the industrial origin of a product (the ISIC industry that produces it) is not a criterion for the aggregation of products within a similar CPC category, there is no strict one-to-one relationship between products and the industries producing them as their principal outputs ( IRTS 2008, 5.11 ).

Tourism characteristic products : Tourism characteristic products are those that satisfy one or both of the following criteria: a) Tourism expenditure on the product should represent a significant share total tourism expenditure (share-of-expenditure/demand condition); b) Tourism expenditure on the product should represent a significant share of the supply of the product in the economy (share-of-supply condition). This criterion implies that the supply of a tourism characteristic product would cease to exist in meaningful quantity in the absence of visitors ( IRTS 2008, 5.10 ).

Tourism connected products : Their significance within tourism analysis for the economy of reference is recognized although their link to tourism is very limited worldwide. Consequently, lists of such products will be country-specific ( IRTS 2008, 5.12 ).

Tourism consumption : Tourism consumption has the same formal definition as tourism expenditure. Nevertheless, the concept of tourism consumption used in the Tourism Satellite Account goes beyond that of tourism expenditure. Besides the amount paid for the acquisition of consumption goods and services, as well as valuables for own use or to give away, for and during tourism trips, which corresponds to monetary transactions (the focus of tourism expenditure), it also includes services associated with vacation accommodation on own account, tourism social transfers in kind and other imputed consumption. These transactions need to be estimated using sources different from information collected directly from the visitors, such as reports on home exchanges, estimations of rents associated with vacation homes, calculations of financial intermediation services indirectly measured (FISIM), etc. ( TSA:RMF 2008, 2.25 ).

Tourism destination : A tourism destination is a physical space with or without administrative and/or analytical boundaries in which a visitor can spend an overnight. It is the cluster (co-location) of products and services, and of activities and experiences along the tourism value chain and a basic unit of analysis of tourism. A destination incorporates various stakeholders and can network to form larger destinations. It is also intangible with its image and identity which may influence its market competitiveness.

Tourism direct gross domestic product : Tourism direct gross domestic product (TDGDP) is the sum of the part of gross value added (at basic prices) generated by all industries in response to internal tourism consumption plus the amount of net taxes on products and imports included within the value of this expenditure at purchasers' prices ( TSA:RMF 2008, 4.96 ).

Tourism direct gross value added : Tourism direct gross value added (TDGVA) is the part of gross value added generated by tourism industries and other industries of the economy that directly serve visitors in response to internal tourism consumption ( TSA:RMF 2008, 4.88 ).

Tourism expenditure : Tourism expenditure refers to the amount paid for the acquisition of consumption goods and services, as well as valuables, for own use or to give away, for and during tourism trips. It includes expenditures by visitors themselves, as well as expenses that are paid for or reimbursed by others ( IRTS 2008, 4.2 ).

Tourism industries : The tourism industries comprise all establishments for which the principal activity is a tourism characteristic activity. Tourism industries (also referred to as tourism activities) are the activities that typically producetourism characteristic products. The term tourism industries is equivalent to tourism characteristic activities and the two terms are sometimes used synonymously in the IRTS 2008, 5.10, 5.11 and figure 5.1 .

Tourism product : A tourism product is a combination of tangible and intangible elements, such as natural, cultural and man-made resources, attractions, facilities, services and activities around a specific center of interest which represents the core of the destination marketing mix and creates an overall visitor experience including emotional aspects for the potential customers. A tourism product is priced and sold through distribution channels and it has a life-cycle.

Tourism ratio : For each variable of supply in the Tourism Satellite Account, the tourism ratiois the ratio between the total value of tourism share and total value of the corresponding variable in the Tourism Satellite Account expressed in percentage form ( TSA:RMF 2008, 4.56 ). (See also Tourism share).

Tourism Satellite Account : The Tourism Satellite Account is the second international standard on tourism statistics (Tourism Satellite Account: Recommended Methodological Framework 2008 –TSA:RMF 2008) that has been developed in order to present economic data relative to tourism within a framework of internal and external consistency with the rest of the statistical system through its link to the System of National Accounts. It is the basic reconciliation framework of tourism statistics. As a statistical tool for the economic accounting of tourism, the TSA can be seen as a set of 10 summary tables, each with their underlying data and representing a different aspect of the economic data relative to tourism: inbound, domestic tourism and outbound tourism expenditure, internal tourism expenditure, production accounts of tourism industries, the Gross Value Added (GVA) and Gross Domestic Product (GDP) attributable to tourism demand, employment, investment, government consumption, and non-monetary indicators.

Tourism Satellite Account aggregates : The compilation of the following aggregates, which represent a set of relevant indicators of the size of tourism in an economy is recommended ( TSA:RMF 2008, 4.81 ):

• Internal tourism expenditure;
• Internal tourism consumption;
• Gross value added of tourism industries (GVATI);
• Tourism direct gross value added (TDGVA);
• Tourism direct gross domestic product (TDGDP).

Tourism sector : The tourism sector, as contemplated in the TSA, is the cluster of production units in different industries that provide consumption goods and services demanded by visitors. Such industries are called tourism industries because visitor acquisition represents such a significant share of their supply that, in the absence of visitors, their production of these would cease to exist in meaningful quantity.

Tourism share : Tourism share is the share of the corresponding fraction of internal tourism consumption in each component of supply ( TSA:RMF 2008, 4.51 ). For each industry, the tourism share of output (in value), is the sum of the tourism share corresponding to each product component of its output ( TSA:RMF 2008, 4.55 ). (See also Tourism ratio ).

Tourism single-purpose consumer durable goods : Tourism single-purpose consumer durables is a specific category of consumer durable goods that include durable goods that are used exclusively, or almost exclusively, by individuals while on tourism trips ( TSA:RMF 2008 , 2.41 and Annex 5 ).

Tourism trip : Trips taken by visitors are tourism trips ( IRTS 2008, 2.29 ).

Tourist (or overnight visitor): A visitor (domestic, inbound or outbound) is classified as a tourist (or overnight visitor), if his/her trip includes an overnight stay, or as a same-day visitor (or excursionist) otherwise ( IRTS 2008, 2.13 ).

Tourism value chain : The tourism value chain is the sequence of primary and support activities which are strategically fundamental for the performance of the tourism sector. Linked processes such as policy making and integrated planning, product development and packaging, promotion and marketing, distribution and sales and destination operations and services are the key primary activities of the tourism value chain. Support activities involve transport and infrastructure, human resource development, technology and systems development and other complementary goods and services which may not be related to core tourism businesses but have a high impact on the value of tourism.

Travel / traveller : Travel refers to the activity of travellers. A traveller is someone who moves between different geographic locations, for any purpose and any duration ( IRTS 2008, 2.4 ). The visitor is a particular type of traveller and consequently tourism is a subset of travel.

Travel group : A travel group is made up of individuals or travel parties travelling together: examples are people travelling on the same package tour or youngsters attending a summer camp ( IRTS 2008, 3.5 ).

Travel item (in balance of payments): Travel is an item of the goods and services account of the balance of payments: travel credits cover goods and services for own use or to give away acquired from an economy by non-residents during visits to that economy. Travel debits cover goods and services for own use or to give away acquired from other economies by residents during visits to other economies ( BPM6, 10.86 ).

Travel party : A travel party is defined as visitors travelling together on a trip and whose expenditures are pooled ( IRTS 2008, 3.2 ).

Trip : A trip refers to the travel by a person from the time of departure from his/her usual residence until he/she returns: it thus refers to a round trip. Trips taken by visitors are tourism trips.

Urban/city tourism : Urban/city tourism is a type of tourism activity which takes place in an urban space with its inherent attributes characterized by non-agricultural based economy such as administration, manufacturing, trade and services and by being nodal points of transport. Urban/city destinations offer a broad and heterogeneous range of cultural, architectural, technological, social and natural experiences and products for leisure and business.

Usual environment: The usual environment of an individual, a key concept in tourism, is defined as the geographical area (though not necessarily a contiguous one) within which an individual conducts his/her regular life routines ( IRTS 2008, 2.21 ).

Usual residence : The place of usual residence is the geographical place where the enumerated person usually resides (Principles and recommendations for population and housing censuses of the United Nations, 2.16 to 2.18).

Vacation home : A vacation home (sometimes also designated as a holiday home) is a secondary dwelling that is visited by the members of the household mostly for purposes of recreation, vacation or any other form of leisure ( IRTS 2008, 2.27 ).

Valuables : Valuables are produced goods of considerable value that are not used primarily for purposes of production or consumption but are held as stores of value over time ( SNA 2008, 10.13 ).

Visit : A trip is made up of visits to different places.The term "tourism visit" refers to a stay in a place visited during a tourism trip ( IRTS 2008, 2.7 and 2.33 ).

Visitor : A visitor is a traveller taking a trip to a main destination outside his/her usual environment, for less than a year, for any main purpose (business, leisure or other personal purpose) other than to be employed by a resident entity in the country or place visited ( IRTS 2008, 2.9 ). A visitor (domestic, inbound or outbound) is classified as a tourist (or overnight visitor), if his/her trip includes an overnight stay, or as a same-day visitor (or excursionist) otherwise ( IRTS 2008, 2.13 ).

Wellness tourism : Wellness tourism is a type of tourism activity which aims to improve and balance all of the main domains of human life including physical, mental, emotional, occupational, intellectual and spiritual. The primary motivation for the wellness tourist is to engage in preventive, proactive, lifestyle-enhancing activities such as fitness, healthy eating, relaxation, pampering and healing treatments.

What is tourism? A definition of tourism

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Whilst most of us have been tourists at some point during our lives, you might find yourself asking ‘what is tourism?’ or ‘what is the definition of tourism’?

Having studied, worked in and taught tourism management for many years, I can tell you that there is no straight-cut answer to this question! In fact, I do tell you- in this YouTube video below!

The tourism industry is argued to be the largest industry in the world, providing more employment than any other industry. Note, however, the use of the word ‘argued’. You see, the tourism industry is somewhat grey in nature. Elements that some may consider ‘tourism’, others may not. Some people believe they are ‘ tourists ‘, when others do not. Some things are black and white, and others are not.

In this post I will explain why there is no simple explanation in answer to the question ‘what is tourism?’. I will explain the diversity of the tourism industry and provide a range of definitions of tourism that have been developed by academics and practitioners.

What is tourism?

Tourism is the generic term used to cover both demand and supply that has been adopted in a variety of forms and used throughout the world. 

Tourism essentially refers to the activities undertaken by visitors, also known as the visitor economy. The tourism industry encompasses all activity that takes place within the visitor economy.

This includes activities that are directly related to the tourist, such as staying in a hotel, ordering a meal or visiting a tourist attraction. It also includes indirect activities, such as the transport company which delivers the food to the restaurant in which the tourist eats or the laundry company that has a contract with the hotel for cleaning bed sheets.

It is largely due to the indirect contributions to tourism, that defining and measuring the tourism industry is so difficult!

Tourism comes in many different shapes and sizes and there are many different types of tourism . There is mass tourism , niche tourism and special interest tourism. There is domestic tourism and international tourism . There is inbound tourism and outbound tourism .

Whilst there is a range of different forms of tourism, they all come under the broad tourism umbrella, nonetheless. This is because they all revolve around visitors and they all feed the visitor economy in one way or another.

A definition of tourism

Tourism is a phenomenon with no universally accepted definition, owing to the complexity and individualism of the travellers themselves and the activities that they choose to undertake.

The most widely utilised definition of tourism, proposed by the World Trade Organisation (WTO) and United States (UN) Nations Statistics Division (1994), prescribes that in order to qualify as a tourist one must travel and remain in a place outside of their usual residential environment for not more than one consecutive year for leisure, business or other purposes.

Matheison and Wall (1982) on the other hand, do not impose a timeframe, simply stating that one must travel to a destination temporarily.

Leiper (1979) believed that defining tourism is more complex than this, proposing that there are three approaches that can be taken. The economic stance focuses on tourism as a business, the technical stance focusses on the tourist in order to provide a common basis by which to collect data and the holistic stance attempts to include the entire essence of the subject.

The Cambridge Dictionary define tourism quite simply as; ‘the business of providing services such as transport, places to stay or entertainment for people who are on holiday’.

Read also: – The importance of tourism – Types of tourism: A glossary – Outbound tourism | Understanding the basics – The structure of the tourism industry – Domestic tourism tourism explained – The history of tourism

Whilst such attempts to define the concept of tourism may be useful from a generic perspective, the practical application of such definitions is difficult when applied to specific tourism types, such as those outlined in this post outlining the different types of tourism.

In fact, Robinson and Novelli (2007), in their introduction to the niche tourism phenomena, postulate that tourists have developed as consumers, becoming increasingly sophisticated in their needs and preferences as a result of an emergent culture of tourism.

Despite such acknowledgements of the progressive and adaptive nature of tourism, particularly evident through the limitless introduction of new and niche tourism forms, there appear to have been no attempts to develop the commonly accepted definitions of tourism in parallel.

As such, I would argue that there is a need the definition of tourism to be revisited by academics and industry practitioner, to ensure that it is representative of the tourism industry that operates today.

How would you define the term tourism?

For more information on what makes up the tourism industry, I recommend the key text Tourism: Principles and Practice by John Fletcher, available from Amazon here .

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• What is a Region?

Regions are the areas widely divided by physical geography (physical characteristics), human geography (human impact characteristics), and environmental aspects (the interaction between the environment and humanity). These areas are marked by numerous unique properties which are distinct from the outside and homogenous inside. The atmospheric regions and hydrospheric regions include the areas covered by the climate above water masses and land. These geographical sub-regions and regions are described by their defined transitional boundaries while the law defines jurisdiction areas like national boundaries.

Global Regions

Global regions are distinguishable from space. The two major terrestrial environments which distinguish the global area include water and land. The most significant land regions on Earth are called continents, and the largest water region is called an ocean. Other areas which do not belong to these classifications include archipelagos which belongs to the littoral zones or the earthquake region as described in geology. Human history and its attempt to reduce a large area into a convenient regionalization for studying purposes help define continental regions. The definition of some continents includes a unique continental feature such as the Sahara or the Amazon basin which occupy a considerable percentage of their respective part. Continental regions are constructs created by the consideration of an efficient method of defining a large area. Furthermore, academic studies, the media, and our personal experiences help us understand the world.

Regional Geography

Regional geography is a unique field of geology which studies regions. The idea of regions is crucial and widely used by different branches of geography with each describing an area in regional terms. The Cultural-region is the term used in cultural geography; environmental geography uses ecoregion and bioregion in biogeography. In physical geography, zoogeography, ecology, environmental geography, and biogeography regions are based on numerous natural features like mountain ranges, national regions, biomes, isotopes, and soil types. With human geography, sub-regions and regions are described by ethnography. Every region has a unique immovable type of nature. The first one is the natural environment which includes climate and landform. The second is immovable-nature in every region is the physical elements built in the past. The last is the socio-cultural context which cannot be replaced even by the coming of new immigrants. Regional geography focuses on regions of different sizes on Earth. The primary aim of geography is to define and describe the characteristics of various areas on the planet with both natural and human elements. Regional geography also focuses on regionalization which includes all the proper methods used in space delimitation into regions.

Human Geography

Another branch of regional geography, which focuses on how humans interact with the environment, is human geography. Human geography focuses mainly on the study of processes and patterns which shape up human interaction with their surroundings. Human geography includes the political, human, social, economic, and cultural aspect of a region. Environmental geology links Human geography and physical landscape. Human geography is divided into numerous categories including demography, geopolitics, social geography, tourism geography, and ethnography among others. Human geography has further split regions into different fields which include:

1) Historical Region

Historical regions include the study of the history of humans and how it relates to areas and places. Historical region is the study of how districts and sites have evolved. These areas include places which had an ethnic, cultural, political, and linguistic basis regardless of the current borders. Historical regions are used as the delimitation for analyzing and studying the social development of a specific culture without referencing the contemporary social, political, and economic organizations.

2) Tourism Regions

Tourism areas are geographical areas which the government has set aside because of their shared environmental or cultural characteristics. The government names these places after a former or current geographic region or they create a unique name for tourism purposes. These names evoke an exceptional quality of the area and even suggest a consistent touring experience. To attract visitors these states, provinces and even administrative regions are carved-up into a tourism region. Some of the areas created by government for tourism purposes include the Lake District in the United Kingdom and Wine Country in California.

3) Religious Regions

At times a place associated with a particular religion can be named after the belief like Christendom. The Muslim World is the term used to refer to countries where the Islamic faith is dominant. Within some major religions, there are numerous defined regions. The Eastern Orthodox Church, Church of England, and the Roman Catholic Church determine their ecclesiastical towns using names like Parish, diocese, eparchy, and ecclesiastical provinces. The Lutheran Church-Missouri Synod divides the United States into 33 geographical districts. The Roman Catholic Church divided the United States into 32 Ecclesiastical areas.

4) Political Regions

In political geography, sectors are based on different governmental units including township, territories, sovereign states, provinces, and counties. Political areas are also divided into multiple multinational groupings like the European Union and NATO, among others. Other informally defined regions include Middle East, Western Europe, and the third world.

5) Military Regions

In the military, a region is the name of a formation which is larger than the army group but smaller than the army theater. Their size varies from one million to two million soldiers. An army theater consists of over two army regions. The field marshal and a full general command this formation in the United States. Due to the size of this group, the government rarely uses a region and the last time this military formation participated in a war was in the WWII.

6) Informal or Traditional Regions

The traditional territorial divisions of numerous countries are referred to as ‘’regions’’ in English. These units rarely form the basis of the current administrative division of these nations, but they help define and even delimit numerous local regional identities while creating a sense of belonging. Some of these traditional regions include Japan, Korea, Slovakia, Finland, and Norway.

7) Administrative Regions

The term ‘’region’’ is derived from the Latin word

and different countries use this term as the official name of a sub-national entity. Some of these countries include Chile, Belgium, Chad, and England among other countries.

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Discover the 8 Regions of Colorado

January 15, 2021 By //  by  Marie Villaceran

Colorado’s “8 Regions” system encourages tourists to travel from more popular towns to its rural neighbors. This new system has been worked on by the state and the private sector.

It was established in 2018 by the Colorado Tourism Office and Colorado Tourism Board. What we ended up with were eight new travel regions with names like The Pioneering Plains instead of Northeast and Pikes Peak Wonders instead of South-Central.

The grouping is also related to the topology of these neighboring towns and cities. If you say “Pikes Peak,” then this is a blend of mountain landmarks as well as new shopping destinations around these locations. This helps both the travel agencies and the tourists create a more seamless itinerary.

“They’ll see a name like the Great West and say, ‘What kind of western experience might I find there?’”

Eight Colorado Tourism Regions

The creation of these regions allows tourists to break new grounds and to discover Colorado’s overlooked towns.

“What we would like to see is a lift in the amount of economic impact in those less visited counties. We have a lot of strategies that are pointing toward that goal and that would count for success.”

• The Great West – Includes dramatic canyons and marbled mountains. These include destinations like the Hot Sulphur Springs, Kremmling, the small town of Meeker, and the Dinosaur National Monument
• Denver City & the Rockies – The urban lifestyle of Denver mixed with the outdoors adventure near the Rocky Mountain. Get to unravel the beauty of Bellvue, Brighton, and Broomfield!
• Pikes Peak Wonders – Mix of urban lifestyle with a more laid back, country community. Learn about historic downtowns and some fantastic rivers in the region. You’ll also see geological destinations and beautiful prairies in this region.
• Mystic San Luis Valley – Welcome to the peaceful plains of Blanca, Creede, and Antonito. These are just a few of the beautiful small towns in this region. The region is also filled with iconic architecture inspired by Hispanic and European settlers during the pioneering era.
• Canyons & Plains – Eads, Cheraw, Chivington, and Lamar are just a few of the featured in this region. Roam the beautifully preserved grasslands in this Southeastern Colorado corner and imagine the cattle-ranching lifestyle of the past. This region has a vibrant agriculture economy, with about 3,000 farms in the area.
• Pioneering Plains – Live like a cowboy in Colorado’s adventurous region. Here you’ll discover the Pawnee National Grasslands, hunt at the Wray, and ride horses at the Brush Rodeo.
• Mountains & Mesas – This region is filed with Victorian-inspired historic structures and accommodations. Telluride and Montrose are the featured towns in the area. At the same time, visitors can also enjoy soaking at the natural pools in Ridgway and Ouray.
• Rockies Playground – This is for the ultimate outdoor lifestyle. Whether it’s trekking in Vail or snowmobile in Leadville during winter, travelers will enjoy the state’s most famous ski towns. They also have historic shopping downtowns located at the foot of the mountain.

Colorado Tourism on the Rise

Colorado is one of the country’s top tourist spots. In 2018, the state broke the record for traveler spending , which happened to be $22.3 billion on Colorado trips and vacations.

Tourism is one of the most significant economic facets in the state. Ever since the dominant rise in Colorado’s tourism economy, the state has doubled down their efforts and investment in the sector. In 2017, Denver gained 17.4 million overnight visitors who spent about $5.6 billion.

The tourism agencies are also focusing on leisure activities that will entice travelers to have overnight stays in Colorado instead of day trips. The top three sectors influenced by tourism in the city were accommodation, food, and transportation.

Colorado’s “Come to Life” advertising has been the top-performing tourism effort in the country. Its advertisement on multiple platforms like TV, radio, and online has garnered a total impact in the billions of dollars.

Over the past few years, many cities and towns have also improved their  public transport system . Others also offered free bus rides as well as more comprehensive travel guides. As tourists, it helps to have tech-enabled systems that allow you to navigate the city as safely as possible.

Colorado Economy on the Rise

Colorado used to be known as the “14ers:” 14 regions and 14 different industries . Connected by its rich pioneering roots and the massive scope of the Rockies, Colorado’s diversity is coined by the state’s beautiful landscapes. There are various plains, peaks, and valleys all over the state that attract tourists from across the globe.

Because of the remarkable statistics the state delivers ever year (consistently in an upward trajectory) businesses also flock to join in the Colorado boom. For instance,  Fort Collins is now one of the most stable cities in all of America, even beating national statistics on unemployment, job growth, and household income.

The state is adamant in partnering with local and international businesses. The strategic location in the Mountain West region gives business access to 25 international destinations linked to the Denver International Airport .

Colorado also has a range of programs that empower entrepreneurs. They have the Aviation Development Zone Tax Credit, which gives a tax credit of $1,200 for every new full-time employee hired under a maintenance and repairs business. Then there’s the Job Growth Incentive Tax Credit-Higher Education Program that allows businesses to partner with any State Higher Institution to enable local “academic development and economic expansion.” Various top universities in the state support the program, too.

As the Office of Economic Development and International Trade noted, the state is where “access meets advantage.”

“We sit just west of the center of the country, or for geography buffs, right on top of the Continental Divide, but that doesn’t mean we’re entirely made up of mountains. Our central location makes an ideal home base to cater to markets across North America and beyond.”

It’s because of this cumulative effort that contributes to the state’s success. But, what do businesses have to do with the growing tourism sector in the state?

Modernity, Embraced

According to Longwoods International research, just in Denver, overnight leisure trips generally come from “Feeder States.” These are the regions where more frequent flyers are coming from. A few of these states include California, Texas, Florida, Wyoming, New York, and Utah.

Aside from the highly improved transportation modes, the increase of modern businesses has also become a part of the state’s growing tourism economy.

For example, in Denver, paid admissions like the Denver Art Museum, the Dinosaur Ridge and the Children’s Museum of Denver have been few of the top attractions in the city. Shopping and entertainment areas in the city like Cherry Creek and Belmar have become a favorite destination for travelers.

Because the state has a strong backbone in supporting businesses, these companies create more sustainable, large-scale improvements in architecture and trade. As of writing, the sector supports more than 165,000 jobs and contributes about $1.2 billion tax revenues, in Denver alone.

Colorado is now evolving from just a backpacking “nation” to a full-fledged tourism magnet. The state is already supporting other industries that also attract a surge of visitors like arts, theater, sports, agriculture, and the energy sector.

Because of the variety of destination offerings in the state, travelers of various interests have discovered the beauty and richness of the Coloradoan culture.

Colorado’s historic and bespoke B&Bs have become another way for tourists to enjoy the state. These “staycations” create a heightened experience by mixing the beauty of Colorado’s natural landscapes with unique hotel experiences.

Now, it’s not just the Rockies that welcome tourists from all over the world. These local mom and pop businesses, as well as established hoteliers, have revamped the definition of what it means to “travel to Colorado.”

Come to Life Philosophy

“Come to Life,” Colorado’s 2016 marketing campaign, has been the most successful tourism ad in the country. The ethos is about the one-of-a-kind experiences guests have when they visit the state.

Strategic Marking & Research Executive Vice President Denise Miller said the campaign “achieved one of the highest returns on investment of any destination nationally.”

With the rise of a fast-paced lifestyle and “Insta-perfect” vacations, Colorado undoubtedly stands out. Coloradoan lifestyle, though now complemented with technology, is still deeply embedded with one’s relationship with nature. These outdoor activities provide a refreshing option for vacationers to enjoy nature and detox from the fast-paced lifestyle in the city.

“We really wanted to create some romance and interest around what a traveler might find,” Ritter said.

This is one of the reasons why it’s refreshing to visit Colorado. The lure of a relaxing destination is not a one-time marketing campaign; it’s a way of life.

About Marie Villaceran

Marie is a passionate journalist for nearly 10 years. Book junkie, coffee lover, and a hands-on mom of one. Join her in exploring the wonders of Colorado!

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Definition of tourist

• excursionist
• rubbernecker
• traveller
• tripper [ chiefly British ]

Examples of tourist in a Sentence

These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'tourist.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.

Word History

1775, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Phrases Containing tourist

• tourist trap

tourist attractions

• tourist class
• tourist season
• tourist card
• tourist court

Dictionary Entries Near tourist

Cite this entry.

“Tourist.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary , Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/tourist. Accessed 9 Apr. 2024.

Kids Definition

Kids definition of tourist, more from merriam-webster on tourist.

Nglish: Translation of tourist for Spanish Speakers

Britannica English: Translation of tourist for Arabic Speakers

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Example sentences tourist area

It's the main tourist area of the city but no less funky for that.

But they are crucial to the economy in a tourist area .

I want a safe hotel in the main tourist area , costing about 100 per night.

A former open-pit coal mine, it was flooded in 1999 with groundwater and developed in 2006 as a tourist area .

Redevelopment of the property was necessary, as many more shops were preferring on-street access in the burgeoning tourist area .

Definition of 'area' area

Definition of 'tourist' tourist

Cobuild collocations tourist area, browse alphabetically tourist area.

• tourist accommodation
• tourist agency
• tourist area
• tourist arrival
• tourist attraction
• tourist beach
• All ENGLISH words that begin with 'T'

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Definition of tourist noun from the Oxford Advanced Learner's Dictionary

• busloads of foreign tourists
• a popular tourist attraction/destination/resort
• the tourist industry/sector
• The tourist season here peaks in spring.
• The island attracts tourists from all over the world.
• The tourist information centre is right next to the mosque.
• The changing of the guard is popular with the tourists.
• package tour
• self-catering
• have/​take (British English) a holiday/ (North American English) a vacation/​a break/​a day off/ (British English) a gap year
• go on/​be on holiday/​vacation/​leave/​honeymoon/​safari/​a trip/​a tour/​a cruise/​a pilgrimage
• go backpacking/​camping/​hitchhiking/​sightseeing
• plan a trip/​a holiday/​a vacation/​your itinerary
• book accommodation/​a hotel room/​a flight/​tickets
• have/​make/​cancel a reservation/ (especially British English) booking
• rent a villa/ (both British English) a holiday home/​a holiday cottage
• (especially British English) hire/ (especially North American English) rent a car/​bicycle/​moped
• stay in a hotel/​a bed and breakfast/​a youth hostel/​a villa/ (both British English) a holiday home/​a caravan
• cost/​charge $100 a/​per night for a single/​double/​twin/​standard/ (British English) en suite room
• check into/​out of a hotel/​a motel/​your room
• pack/​unpack your suitcase/​bags
• call/​order room service
• cancel/​cut short a trip/​holiday/​vacation
• apply for/​get/​renew a/​your passport
• take out/​buy/​get travel insurance
• catch/​miss your plane/​train/​ferry/​connecting flight
• fly (in)/travel in business/​economy class
• make/​have a brief/​two-day/​twelve-hour stopover/ (North American English also) layover in Hong Kong
• experience/​cause/​lead to delays
• check (in)/collect/​get/​lose (your) (especially British English) luggage/ (especially North American English) baggage
• be charged for/​pay excess baggage
• board/​get on/​leave/​get off the aircraft/​plane/​ship/​ferry
• taxi down/​leave/​approach/​hit/​overshoot the runway
• experience/​hit/​encounter severe turbulence
• suffer from/​recover from/​get over your jet lag/​travel sickness
• attract/​draw/​bring tourists/​visitors
• encourage/​promote/​hurt tourism
• promote/​develop ecotourism
• build/​develop/​visit a tourist/​holiday/ (especially British English) seaside/​beach/​ski resort
• work for/​be operated by a major hotel chain
• be served by/​compete with low-cost/ (especially North American English) low-fare/​budget airlines
• book something through/​make a booking through/​use a travel agent
• contact/​check with your travel agent/​tour operator
• book/​be on/​go on a package deal/​holiday/​tour
• buy/​bring back (tacky/​overpriced) souvenirs
• sightseeing
• Recently Edinburgh has become a popular tourist centre.
• The Story of the Loch Ness Monster has attracted many tourists to the area.
• The city has unrealized tourist potential.
• The festival is accompanied by a huge influx of tourists.
• The theme park is the region's most popular tourist facility.
• The town is off the usual tourist route.
• Their economy is dependent on tourist dollars.
• the part of town most frequented by tourists
• He entered the country on a tourist visa.
• It was the beginning of the tourist season.
• Local roads cannot cope with the increase in tourist traffic.
• The Taj Mahal is one of the most important tourist sights in India.
• We have a large influx of tourists in the summer.
• We travelled on minor roads and tracks, away from the tourist trail.
• We visited all the usual tourist spots.
• come to something
• flock to something
• frequent something
• centre/​center
• destination
• influx of tourists

Questions about grammar and vocabulary?

Find the answers with Practical English Usage online, your indispensable guide to problems in English.

• (British English) a member of a sports team that is playing a series of official games in a foreign country

Other results

• the Tourist Trophy
• tourist traps
• Tourist Trophy
• tourist information office

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Knowledge repository and useful advices

What is regional tourism?

Table of Contents

• 1 What is regional tourism?
• 2 Which region is best known for tourism?
• 3 Which region is known for tourism?
• 4 Which is an example of a tourism typology?
• 5 Are there any non-profit organizations that promote tourism?

Regional tourism is tourism concentrated in a region. A regional tourist is a tourist visiting a region or province other than in which she/he has a normal residence but with a defined geographic region as a modification of the Wiki.com definition.

What is an example of tourism?

Tourism is the practice of traveling somewhere for fun. When someone goes on vacation, this is an example of tourism. The businesses that cater to visitors are an example of tourism.

Which region is best known for tourism?

Regions of the World, Ranked by Tourism Growth

• North Africa. The fastest-growing region in the world is North Africa, which welcomed nearly 24 million visitors in 2018.
• Middle East.
• South-East Asia.
• Southern/Mediterranean Europe.
• Central and Eastern Europe.
• Subsaharan Africa.
• North-East Asia.
• Western Europe.

What are the advantages of regional tourism?

If properly used, tourism generated income can be tremendously beneficial to the host country and it’s local communities. Tourism generated income can be used on a national and local level to better education, improve infrastructure, to fund conservation efforts, and to promote more responsible tourism.

Which region is known for tourism?

Some of the more famous tourism regions based on historical or current administrative regions include Tuscany in Italy and Yucatán in Mexico. Famous examples of regions created by a government or tourism bureau include the United Kingdom’s Lake District and California’s Wine Country in the United States.

Which is the best definition of regional tourism?

Which is an example of a tourism typology?

What are national and regional tourism organizations in Japan?

Are there any non-profit organizations that promote tourism?

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• Cambridge Dictionary +Plus

Meaning of tourist in English

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• I must look like the typical tourist with my shorts and my camera .
• My dad has a cottage which he rents out to tourists.
• The Caribbean is a popular tourist destination .
• Bus-loads of tourists pour into this place in the summer .
• A year after the hurricane , tourists are gradually beginning to come back to the region .
• air corridor
• amenity kit
• high season
• phrase book
• post-holiday
• put something up
• ranger station
• tourist trap
• trailer park
• youth hostel

You can also find related words, phrases, and synonyms in the topics:

tourist | American Dictionary

Tourist | business english, examples of tourist, translations of tourist.

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How and when to watch today’s total solar eclipse

The path of totality for Monday’s eclipse will sweep across 15 states, from Texas to Maine from 1.30pm CT and ending at about 3.35pm ET

• If you missed the total solar eclipse just wait … until 2044
• Millions witness rare total solar eclipse
• Total solar eclipse 2024 – in pictures

The total solar eclipse that will traverse a large chunk of the continental US on Monday, along with parts of Mexico and Canada, will be one of the most spectacular celestial events in recent memory. Here’s what you need to know:

What is a total solar eclipse?

The phenomenon occurs when the moon moves in front of the sun, and blocks its face completely, causing the bright sky to darken to twilight in just seconds. The track of the moon’s shadow is called the path of totality , which for Monday’s eclipse will be about 115 miles wide and sweep across 15 states in the US in a north-east direction, from Texas to Maine, for roughly an hour, beginning at 1.30pm CT and ending at about 3.35pm ET.

How rare is it?

The most recent total solar eclipse in the US was in 2017 , but an interval of only seven years is unusual. The previous one before that took place in 1979, and the next one visible in the contiguous US will not be until August 2044. Only 16 other total solar eclipses have occurred over at least a part of the lower 48 states in the last 155 years.

Didn’t we just have a solar eclipse?

Last October’s stunning “ring of fire” show was what’s called an annular solar eclipse, which occurs when the moon moves directly in front of the sun, but is at or near its farthest point from Earth, so is not large enough to entirely cover the sun’s face. You can find Nasa’s guide to the various types of eclipses here .

Why is this one special?

An estimated 31.6 million people, almost three times as many as in 2017, live in the path of totality – which is longer, and also wider than almost every other total eclipse before it, because the moon is closer to Earth and casts a broader shadow. The time of totality in any given location is also longer. Seven years ago, the longest duration anywhere was two minutes and 42 seconds. On Monday, it will be four minutes and 28 seconds in Torreón, Mexico, while almost every place along the path can expect between three and a half to four minutes of totality.

How can I watch it?

If you live anywhere in the path of totality, or can travel to it, congratulations, you have a front-row seat. Just remember you need eclipse glasses (more on that in a minute) to look up at all times other than the few minutes of full eclipse. But everyone in North America outside the path should be able to see at least a partial eclipse of varying percentages, and Nasa will be livestreaming the entire event here . Here’s the caveat: longer-range weather forecasts call for rain and clouds in many areas of the southern and central US on Monday, so the best viewing could be in the east.

And here is Nasa’s Eclipse Explorer , where you can enter any US address or zip code to find out what will be visible from that location.

What can I expect to see?

You can find Nasa’s guide to the stages of a total solar eclipse here . First contact is when the moon’s outer edge first appears to touch the sun, creating the beginnings of a partial eclipse and a crescent sun reducing in size until totality (second contact). In the moments before totality, look for (in order) shadow bands, Baily’s Beads and a diamond ring, three of the most memorable stages of a total eclipse.

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Shadow bands, says Nasa , are rapidly moving, long, dark bands separated by white spaces that can be seen on the sides of buildings or the ground just before totality; Baily’s Beads are short-lived light rays from the sun streaming through the valleys along the moon’s horizon, and give way to the diamond ring effect, the final, single spot of bright light immediately before the end of any direct sunlight.

The sun’s corona , the outermost part of its atmosphere, can only be seen during the total part of the eclipse, then, following totality, the same effects come in reverse. For most locations, the partial eclipse phase lasts from 70-80 minutes, according to Nasa.

How do I watch safely?

To look at the eclipse directly, you must have special eclipse glasses. Regular sunglasses, frosted or darkened glass, or any other method lacking the necessary eye protection just won’t cut it. Nasa’s must-read eclipse safety guide on the subject says: “Viewing any part of the bright sun through a camera lens, binoculars, or telescope without a special-purpose solar filter secured over the front of the optics will instantly cause severe eye injury.” Don’t do what Donald Trump did in 2017.

Many stores, businesses, schools and libraries are still offering glasses free or at low cost (Google is your friend here), but you need to make sure they are safety rated. The American Astronomical Society warned last month that unsafe fakes and counterfeits were circulating, and has published a handy list of suppliers of safe solar viewers and filters (certified ISO 12312-2 compliant).

Experts advise against taking photographs of the eclipse with a mobile phone (unless it’s protected by a solar filter) because it could damage the camera. Nasa has thoughts here .

What if I don’t have eclipse glasses?

You can make a box pinhole projector following the steps in this video , courtesy of Nasa’s Goddard space flight center. An even simpler method is using anything with a small hole, such as a kitchen colander, to project an image on to the ground. And remember that many places across the entire country, such as science centers and zoos, will be hosting special eclipse events so you can watch the action safely.

• Solar eclipses

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