Who are tourists ?

Traveler who travel to another country or destination in tourism are described as tourists.

A term that constitutes the basic concept for the whole system of tourism statistics the term tourist may be further subdivided into same day visitors or vistors who stays nuber of days.

Visitors are defined as those people who travel to a country other than that in which they have their usual residence. It should be outside their usual environment, for a period not exceeding 12 months and whose main purpose of visit is other than the exercise of an activity remunerated from within the places visited.

Same-day visitors are visitors who do not spend the night in a collective or private accommodation in the country visited .

Tourists are visitors who stay in the country visited for at least one night.

These new definitions will when used by countries, greatly improve the current quality of tourism statistics, which are not easy to analyze due to the inconsistencies in definitions and classifications used.

Tourism is s acknowledged to be an activity of global economic and social importance movement.

Boundaries of tourism

Tourism industry has no clearly determined boundaries and no physical output. It is a provider of services which in range will vary between countries.

In Singapore shopping is a major tourist activity but not entertainment. in London.

Restaurants, recreations, spa, shopping and entertainment are important inputs to the tourism industry

Promotions

Sri Lanka tourism has to be promoted and is aiming for high growth. To achieve this, the industry believes it must improve air access, undertake up-market promotion and enhance regional cooperation.

The tourism industry is also aiming to reposition the country’s tourism image to the high value end of the market. There are various projects are underway.

Human resource development is required to ensure high service standards in all tourist hotels in the Island.

In future, facilities at the International Airport will need upgrading. Invigorated domestic air services, improved domestic airports and improved cruise ship facilities will also be required.

Many key tourism attractions in Sri Lanka are centered on cultural heritage and natural environment sites. Sri Lanka features seven World Heritage Sites, six dating back 2000 years. National parks are well developed, many linked to cultural attractions. This combination offers excellent opportunities for ecotourism.

Among the cultural heritage sites are important Buddhist places. A developing product trend is an emphasis on soft adventure tourism and health tourism, particularly incorporating the traditional practices of Ayurveda and spa.

World Tourism Organization

The rapid growth of international tourism is reflected in the growth in membership of the WTO, which in 2003 had 139 country members, 7 associate members, and 345 affiliate members. With few exceptions most countries will have established a National Tourism Organization (NTO), usually funded directly by government, for example, the British Tourist Authority, Australian Tourist Commission, and South African Tourist Board.

These NTOs are the focus of government and private sector activity to represent abroad the tourist assets of the country.

Government support for NTOs is based on the need to secure the economic benefits that tourism can generate. The importance of tourism as an earner of foreign exchange is seen in India and Thailand where tourism is the prime source of foreign exchange revenue. In labour terms it is probably the major source of employment in the United Kingdom.

Tourism industry of Sri Lanka

Sri Lanka is a beautiful Island off the South-Eastern shores of India approximately 880 km north of the equator.

It is well known as pearl of the Indian Ocean and for some it is a paradise on the planet earth.

This small Island only 65,610 square kilometers in extent, but it has a long stretched and proud history of over 2500 years.

The oldest tree in the world "Sri Maha Bo Tree" can be seen in Anuradhapura in Sri Lanka. Scenic beaches and mountains ,magnificent landscapes, exotic wild animals, natural ponds and water falls are abundant in Sri Lanka for the pleasure of the traveler.