Social tourism

Abstract

Of great importance in world tourism flows is tourism deriving from the participation in tourist and leisure activities of those social groups with modest incomes. Such forms of tourism have required social and political intervention to transform the basic principles of the universal right to rest and leisure into practical reality — the promotion of ‘social tourism’. This article describes the evolution of social tourism from its roots in the first half of the 20th century when industrial workers obtained annual paid holidays, to the present when tens of millions of people both in the industrialised and developing countries are involved in tourist activities. Many groups still have need of intervention to obtain tourism goods. The main organisations involved in promoting social tourism are outlined, with observations made on its future evolution.