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Kara Basenese
Mrs. Hensel
English 4
3 March 2016
The Impact of Tourism

As travelers, we focus more on why were visiting a location rather than the burden we
leave on the community and locals that reside there. Tourism is the organization and operation of
vacations and visits to places of interest. Tourist locations have to prepare every year for more
travelers by creating new recreational activities, expanding their roads, and housing
arrangements. Expansions on cities are great for the economy, but detrimental to the locals who
have to pay more to live there. The tourism industry forces cities to expand with constant
construction, making it impossible to advance local communities, and in the future will turn
scenic landscapes into areas of destruction.
Tourism is so major in today's society that the places we visit fall vulnerable to the
industry, Large corporations come in and take full advantage of lax regulation, low wages, and
corrupt officials (Matt). More and more cities are known as nothing more than an area to travel
to, the fact that people actually reside there is often overlooked, and even more overlooked is the
burden put on residents with constant advancements. Tourism is now so big that it will
inevitably be part of conversations about climate change, pollution, and migration (Becker), the
fact that our environment is falling victim to the industry is proof that there needs to be a
regulation on tourism. Not only does it damage our environment, it alters the history and original
settings of these locations. In some cities there are areas where tourists are not allowed in certain
historic places, take Denmark as an example, The quiet zones are emblematic of the Danish

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philosophy toward tourists: They should blend in the Danish way of life, not the other way
around (Becker). The problem is that the industry works around regulations, and it nearly
becomes impossible to for cities avoid tourism.
While visiting locations, we almost never think of the city as somewhere where people
live, basically because the location lacks local services and businesses and is outran by tourist
attractions, Now souvenir shops are replacing local artisans and essential local services from
schools to clinics to bakeries and greengrocers (Becker). Tourist demands are creating a higher
cost of living for the locals that have been there before the visitors, tourist dollars are rarely
restored back into the community making it harder to control poverty (Becker). New attractions
take away from potential local services, never allowing cities to become more than just a travel
location. If tourist locations restored more of their history, and created local zones then tourism
wouldnt require regulation and these areas wouldnt suffer with the higher cost of living.
Construction can affect more than the economy, and the locals that live in tourist areas.
Our naturally beautiful landscapes are being altered and changed to appeal to a travelers eye.
Transport emissions and emissions from energy production and use are linked to acid rain,
global warming and photochemical pollution (Tourism's Three Main Impact Areas), the places
we enjoy visiting are not going to be as pretty as they are now with the long term effects were
risking to make an extra dollar. Not only is the landscape at stake, but the massive overuse of our
local resources creates pressure on materials that may already be in short supply. Because of
the seasonal character of the industry, many destinations have ten times more inhabitants in the
high season as in the low season (Tourism's Three Main Impact Areas), the thousand of
travelers each year take advantage of our local resources not realizing that they're taking away
from the residents that live here.

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The Economy isnt the only effect on tourism, it takes a tole on locals, the environment of
these locations, and the complications of advancing local communities. Locals have to
compromise the way they live for tourist demands, but often receive nothing beneficial in return.
Regulating tourism may have a negative impact on the Economy, but in the long run will
preserve these landscapes, and in turn will protect our habitats. Regulation is the only way we
can enjoy the places we love forever.

Works Cited
Becker, Elizabeth. "How Tourism Can Destroy the Places We Love." The Daily
Beast. Newsweek/Daily Beast, 5 July 2013. Web. 06 Feb. 2016.
Becker, Elizabeth. "The Revolt Against Tourism." The New York Times. The New York Times,
18 July 2015. Web. 03 Mar. 2016.
Matt, Nomadic. "Why Tourists Ruin Places They Visit (and What You Can Do)." Nomadic

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Matts Travel Site. Nomadic Matt, Inc, 23 Apr. 2013. Web. 03 Mar. 2016.
"Tourism's Three Main Impact Areas." Impacts of Tourism Environmental Impacts.
United Nations Environment Programme, n.d. Web. 12 Feb. 2016.