Tourism's Economic Impact - Tourism: Principles, Practices, Philosophies - page 317

Seasonal fluctuations in tourism result in an uneven source of revenue. During the winter months, skiers

enjoy powder snow and make a signi

cant contribution to the Colorado economy. Here, skiers and
snowboarders have just arrived on Amtrak and are headed for Sunlight Mountain Resort and Ski Area.
PhotocourtesyofGlenwoodSpringsChamberResortAssociation,Colorado.

serious unemployment problems. Such areas find that the seasonal character of tourism leaves severe
economic and social effects on the host region.
Another very important reason relates to the source of demand for tourism. The demand for
tourism depends largely on the income and the tastes of tourists, both of which are beyond the control
of the host region. When the American economy goes through a slump, demand for travel to a foreign
destination by Americans will fall off. A destination area can do precious little, in this case, to increase
the level of demand. If the tastes of the people in the tourist-generating area change — that is, they

decide to travel to a new destination tourism in the old area will decline, causing economic and social

problems. Again, the destination can do little or nothing to avoid this. In fact, as Plog 10 points out,
there is reason to believe that such a decline in an area ' is popularity may be largely inevitable. Quite
clearly, then, tourism should not be allowed to grow to an extent that the destination area becomes
totally dependent on it.
In other words, total dependence on a single industrial sector is undesirable. If it cannot be avoided,
then dependence on domestic agriculture is in many ways preferable to dependence on tourism. The
country has presumably adapted itself economically and socially to dependence on agriculture over
several centuries. The demand for agricultural output is also unlikely to suffer from a secular decline,
because people must eat. Also, it is the residents, not foreigners as in tourism, who directly bene t
from agricultural production.

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Investment Priorities

Sometimes governments of developing countries take an overly optimistic view of tourism. They
undertake aggressive investment programs to develop tourism, assigning it top priority in their
development plans. In extreme cases, such an approach can lead to the neglect of more
fundamental investment needs of the country. For example, funds can be channeled into tourism
development at the cost of education, health, and other social services aspects of the social

well-being of the population that should be of primary concern for a developing country. Not

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