Jourism Shangri-La or Paradise Lost? — It is wonderful to travel and discover new cultures and landscapes, but do you ever think about the effects tourism can have on the places you visit? Countries with fr and infrastructure may see tourism as a great opportunity for economic and social development. However. tourism developments IWways be the answer to a country’s economic woes and they can some- times do more harm than good. Every around 140 million people travel from an industrialized country to a developing one. Many will be on a holiday that will have thousands of dollars, The money spent by holidaymakers is an important source of the people living in the destination countries. However, often less than half” the from the trip actually stays in that country sometimes. the jeakage can be as much as 80 percent cost income to revenue In addition, moderate or tourism can put a huge strain on the developing country's society and its infrastructure ‘such as. roads, water, electricity, and sewage 42 Unit 2 treatment. That's not to mention the environmental impact. Take for example, Jamaica. This Caribbean island paradise has been ‘a mass tourist destination for many years and its economy is partly dependent on tourism. Yet tourism has put a huge strain on the natural resources of the country and is, in part, responsible for pollution, loss of animal and plant species, coral reef destruction, deforestation, and erosion of bea The local community suffers from loss of natural public water shortages, and a sig beaches, food used by the hotels is imported rather than being purchased from local A lot of the hotels are gated from the rest of the community because amount of the p crime rates, but in some ways this further isolates the tourists from the local population — other than those employed as staif at the resorts, Bhutan’s approach to tourism is at the other end of the scale. Long closed to the outside world because of geography and political policy. Bhutan has only allowed air travel since 1974 When the country was opened to tourists, the rulers set out to retain the K traditions by only allowing for small numbers of very controlled tourism developments, mainly catering to a limited number of higher-income visitors, Additionally jom’s unique culture and visitors must go through one of the limited number of licensed Bhutanese tour operators so more of the revenue will stay within the country Travel to such an exotic and remote destination has become popular in recent years and pressures have ‘or now, the policy of restricting tourism to keep the environmental and cultural impact minimal appears 10 be working though.VOCABULARY Here are some words that will be usefull in this unit. How many do you know? Work with a partner to figure out the meaning of any words that you don’t know. all in one have an impact on revenue leakage activity supplements infrastructure shortages the other end of the scal isola strain exclusive tour mountain trek sustainable tourism extinction natural resources traditional fragile economy paradise vacation package What other words and phrases do you know related to the topic? VOCABULARY ACTIVITIES \. Read each definition. Fill in the blank with the opposite word o phrase from the list above. Remember to use the correct word form 1. mass tourism 2. robust business and healthy government 3. hellish 4, man made products 5. surpluses 6, individualized travel 7 8 9, I money coming into the economy large, healthy population to be surrounded 0. to have no effect B. Write sentences using ten of the words or phrases above. Work with a partner to compare your sentences. GRAPHIC ORGANIZER Consider the positive or negative effects of tourism. Complete the table. Work with a partner. Compare your answers Positive Effects Negative Effects Tourism 13POINTS OF VIEW New developments are good for the community. PRE-LISTENING QUESTIONS 1. Think of a tourist development you know well. What is it like? 2. Has the overall impact of the development been positive or negative for the local people? For the environment? For tourists? SITUATION: Jenny and Ryan are discussing a Jenny Ryan Jenny Ryan Jenny Ayan Jenny Ayan Jenny Ayan Jenny yon Jenny WY 14 Unit 2 Its so calm and peaceful. It's really lovely here, isn't it? Yeah, and itll be even better next year. They/te planning to build a new tourist resort over on the other side of the lake. Excuse me, but how can you say that's @ good thing? Itll be a wonderful place to stay and more people will get to really enjoy the lake. They'll have boats, windsurfers, a supervised beach, waterslides, and great facilities like a spa, a super restaurant, and even a small casino. new tourist resort. Don't you think that building such facilities will destroy everything that brings people here in the first place? It won't be very peaceful if t's full of motor boats, will it? It's a big lake, and it can absorb that kind of activity. There's nowhere to stay around here that's very nice. But you have to accept that you can't have nature and tranquility with a huge resort around you. | think you're mistaken. If it's done sensitively, the two things can go hand in hand. Haven't you heard about sustainable tourism? Yeah, but that soon disappears when it comes to the bottom line. Do you think that the local community really wants to be overrun with tourists from the city? The local people have been struggling to make a living here for years and the younger ones are leaving. | think most people would really welcome a development lke this. Just because tourists come to an area, doesn't mean that the money will stay here, though. A lot ‘would go to the owners of the development. And what about the roads? They're in a terrible state now. ‘Well that's the advantage of the new development. They're going to contribute to building new roads. That'll help both locals and tourists. | just think things like the new roads will do more harm than good. CHECK FOR UNDERSTANDING wawne Cras Reece figures, tourist Pencrn) aa What kind of new development is being planned? What kind of things does Jenny worry about? What does Ryan see as the advantages? Why have young people been leaving? Why are developments like this a compromise? Work with a partner. Compare your answers.PRACTICE AND DISCUSSION PERSONALIZATION Complete these sentences with your own ideas. If people plan a new resort, they should think about. Tourism is/isn t necessarily Tourism can be ... for a community Tourists do/dont have a responsibility to. Now share your sentences with a classmate. DISCUSSION STRATEGIES - Asking critical questions When discussing an issue or situation, sometimes you disagree with the other person’s point of view and you might want to ask a slightly critical question or make an interjection in order to point out the weak- nesses in her/his argument. Here are some ways of doing this How can you say...? Don't you think...? You have to accept... | think you're mistaken... What about...? What makes you so sure...? "tit? You can also use question tags e.g. Think of | jore examples. Discussion Strategy in Action Listen to the conversations. Write down the question and the point of view of the person asking the question. Question Point of view nv Discussion Practice Work with a pa +. Discuss these statements using the critical questioning strategies above. 1. Tourism really helps economically deprived areas, 2. Developing new transport infrastructure, such as roads or cheap flight services, helps bring tourism to isolated areas. 3. When tourism comes to an area, everyone benefits. 4. Tourism can help promote the protection of endangered species by allowing more people to see animals in the wild. Tourism 15FURTHER ACTIVITIES ROLE PLAY Brainstorming: What are the social and environmental consequences of tourism? What possible impact could tourism have on the local community? A new tourist resort is going to open in an area of great beauty, The area is also well known for the small communities of people who maintain the cultural traditions and live in a way that has remained unchanged for many years. Work with a partner. One person plays the role of a resort developer who wants to convince the local community of your company’s good intentions. The second person is a local community leader who is anxious to encourage new developments, but also wants any development to be very sensitive to the unique environment and the way of life of the local population, Discuss the implications of the new resort. Consider ways to maximize the benefits and make suggestions for minimizing any environmental damage and anything that will disturb the local population. ACTIVITY Work with a partner, Make a list of the jobs different kinds of tourism ean create, Consider the following: + Travel to and from a destination + Attractions, events, activities + Travel while at a destination + Advertising + Food, lodging + Resources Choose one of the jobs. Work with a partner, Describe the job. Include how it could be carried out with maximum sensitivity to the environment and the local community SPEECHES - A new development model that works An international hotel chain wants to build a resort in an environmentally sensitive area. It is important to develop the area and you want to make sure that this is the right kind of development, Give a speech as part of a debate with the developers and the local planners. C nsider the following: + What is special about the area and needs to be protected, + How big the development should be. + How it would affect local infrastructures + How the community could be more involved. + How you can protect the local environment and natural resources. + How the effects of the development can be monitored. + Ways of working together to find a solution that works for everyone. Give your speech toa group of students who are playing the roles of hotel developers and local plenners, They should critically question you afterwards and engage in debate. 16 Unit2CONSOLIDATION AND RECYC BUILDING VOCABULARY Fill in the blanks. Ten years ago, low-cost vacation | Were encouraging too many people to come to this island, It became over- 2. and unpleasant. It soon lost its popularity. More and more people started looking at going on different types of vacations such as 3. tours, 4 trekking, and 5, tourism. However, recently the 6 ‘economy really improved when investors opened up a new golf and conference center. On the downside, as a result of the huge complex going up, there is a shortage of a lot of the 7, resources of the island such as wood and fresh water. WRITING Write a marketing brochure for a new, sustainable tourist resort. The resort has been designed to be environmentally friendly and the company running the development works in cooperation with the local community. As you plan your brochure, consider the following + Where itis and why people would want to go there, + What kind of people you want to attract and how you would do it, + How expensive it is e.g. if it is more expensive than other types of resorts, how can you justify the cost and make it more attractive to the tourists? + What impact it will have on the local environment and how to make this into a marketing feature. + What impact it will have on the local community, how to involve them positively in the resort, and how to make this into a marketing feature. + What key features enable it to work as a ‘sustainable resort"? Show your brochure to your classmates and ask for their feedback. What do they think works best in the brochure? What is less successful? REFLECTION 1. How responsible do you feel you are for the impact you have as a traveler? Think of examples, and discuss them with your group. 2. Do tourists have a big impact on your community? Think of some examples and discuss them with your group. 3. Would you pay more to stay in a resort hotel that is “environmentally friendly”? Tourism 17