Tourism may be defined as the movement of the people from their normal place of residence to another place ( with the intention to return) for a minimum period of twenty-four hours to a maximum of six months for the sole purpose of leisure and pleasure.
According to WTO (1993) ” Tourism encompasses the activities of persons traveling and staying in places outside their usual environment for not more than one consecutive year for leisure, business, and other purposes.”
According to the Tourism Society of Britain,” tourism is the temporary short-period movement of people to destination outside the places where they normally live, work; and activities during their stay at these destinations.” This definition includes the movement of people for all purposes.
TYPES OF TOURISM
Tourism has two types and many forms on the bases of the purpose of visit and alternative forms of tourism. Tourism can be categorized as international and domestic tourism.
Tourism has two types and various forms. On the basis of the movement of people tourism categorized into two types.
These are following as:
International Tourism
When people visit a foreign country, it is referred to as International Tourism. In order to travel to a foreign country, one needs a valid passport, visa, health documents, foreign exchange, etc.
International tourism further divides into two types;
- Inbound Tourism
- Outbound Tourism.
Inbound Tourism
This refers to tourists of outside origin entering a particular country. When people travel outside their host/native country to another country, then it is called inbound tourism for that country where he/she is traveling. For example when a tourist from Indian origin travels to Japan then it is Inbound tourism for Japan because foreign tourist comes to Japan.
Outbound Tourism
This refers to tourists traveling from the country of their origin to another country. When tourists travel a foreign region than it is outbound tourism for his own country because he/she is going outside their country. For example when a tourist from India travel to Japan then it is outbound tourism for India and Inbound tourism for Japan.
Domestic Tourism
The tourism activity of the people within their own country is known as domestic tourism. Traveling within the same country is easier because it does not require formal travel documents and tedious formalities like compulsory health checks and foreign exchange. In domestic tourism, a traveler generally does not face many language problems or currency exchange issues.
FORMS OF TOURISM
Tourism has various forms on the basis of the purpose of visit and alternative forms. These are further divided into many types according to their nature. Forms of tourism are following as :
Recreational: Recreational or leisure tourism takes a person away from the humdrum of everyday life. In this case, people spend their leisure time at the hills, sea beaches, etc.
Cultural: Cultural tourism satisfies cultural and intellectual curiosity and involves visits to ancient monuments, places of historical or religious importance, etc.
Sports/Adventure: Trips have taken by people with a view to playing golf, skiing and hiking, fall within this category.
Health: Under this category, people travel for medical, treatment or visit places where there are curative possibilities, for example, hot springs, spa yoga, etc.
Convention Tourism: It is becoming an increasingly important component of travel. People travel within a country or overseas to attend conventions relating to their business, profession or interest.
Incentive Tourism: Holiday trips are offered as incentives by major companies to dealers and salesmen who achieve high targets in sales. This is a new and expanding phenomenon in tourism, These are in lieu of cash incentives or gifts, Today incentive tourism is a 3 billion dollar business in the USA alone.