Travel and tourism 'stories' have been told and recorded within every culture, in every period of oral and written history, and across the breadth of the fact/fiction continuum. Taking two broad themes as its starting point - travellers and their narratives, and place narratives in travel and tourism - the book has a deliberately wide scope, with different chapters addressing the subject through various relevant 'lenses' and in relation to a number of different contexts. The narratives discussed include both historical and contemporary, as well as 'real-life' and fictional, narratives contained within travel writing, travel and tourism stories and different types of media. In relation to the principal themes of the book, some chapters also explore the importance of collecting memorabilia and image making in the recording, remembering, writing, telling or disseminating of stories about travel and tourism experiences and some examine the ways in which travel and tourism narratives may construct and reinforce personal, collective and place identities. The whole book is marked by an over-arching concern for narrative interpretation as a means of understanding, and providing a new perspective on, travel and tourism.

Travel often inspires the creation of narratives about journeys and destinations, more so with the increasing availability of online platforms, applications for smartphones and tablets, and various other social media technologies. This book examines travel blogs and their associated social media as a form of self-presentation that negotiates the tensions between discourses of travel and tourism. As such, it addresses how contemporary travellers use online platforms to communicate their experiences of journeys and destinations, and how the traveller/tourist dichotomy finds expression in these narratives. Addressing the need for more in-depth analysis through a study of blogs, this exploration of networked narratives of an individual’s travel experience considers personal motivations, self-promotion, and self-presentation as key factors in the creation of both personal and commercial travel blogs. As this text applies concepts such as self-presentation and heteroglossia, it will be of interest to both students and scholars of tourism, new media, sociology, cultural studies, and discourse studies.

A much-needed contribution to the expanding interest in the history of travel and travel writing, Voyages and Visions is the first attempt to sketch a cultural history of travel from the sixteenth century to the present day. The essays address the theme of travel as a historical, literary and imaginative process, focusing on significant episodes and encounters in world history. The contributors to this collection include historians of art and of science, anthropologists, literary critics and mainstream cultural historians. Their essays encompass a challenging range of subjects, including the explorations of South America, India and Mexico; mountaineering in the Himalayas; space travel; science fiction; and American post-war travel fiction. Voyages and Visions is truly interdisciplinary, and essential reading for anyone interested in travel writing. With essays by Kasia Boddy, Michael Bravo, Peter Burke, Melissa Calaresu, Jesus Maria Carillo Castillo, Peter Hansen, Edward James, Nigel Leask, Joan-Pau Rubies and Wes Williams.

Travel and tourism 'stories' have been told and recorded within every culture, in every period of oral and written history, and across the breadth of the fact/fiction continuum. Taking two broad themes as its starting point - travellers and their narratives, and place narratives in travel and tourism - the book has a deliberately wide scope, with different chapters addressing the subject through various relevant 'lenses' and in relation to a number of different contexts. The narratives discussed include both historical and contemporary, as well as 'real-life' and fictional, narratives contained within travel writing, travel and tourism stories and different types of media. In relation to the principal themes of the book, some chapters also explore the importance of collecting memorabilia and image making in the recording, remembering, writing, telling or disseminating of stories about travel and tourism experiences and some examine the ways in which travel and tourism narratives may construct and reinforce personal, collective and place identities. The whole book is marked by an over-arching concern for narrative interpretation as a means of understanding, and providing a new perspective on, travel and tourism.

The books that we read, whether travel-focused or not, may influence the way in which we understand the process or experience of travel. This multidisciplinary work provides a critical analysis of the inspirational and transformational role that books play in travel imaginings. Does reading a book encourage us to think of travel as exotic, adventurous, transformative, dangerous or educative? Do different genres of books influence a reader's view of travel in multifarious ways? These questions are explored through a literary analysis of an eclectic selection of books spanning the period from the eighteenth century to the present day. Genres covered include historical fiction, children's books, westerns, science-fiction and crime fiction.

Recruited to be a lecturer on a group tour of Indonesia, Edward M. Bruner decided to make the tourists aware of tourism itself. He photographed tourists photographing Indonesians, asking the group how they felt having their pictures taken without their permission. After a dance performance, Bruner explained to the group that the exhibition was not traditional, but instead had been set up specifically for tourists. His efforts to induce reflexivity led to conflict with the tour company, which wanted the displays to be viewed as replicas of culture and to remain unexamined. Although Bruner was eventually fired, the experience became part of a sustained exploration of tourist performances, narratives, and practices. Synthesizing more than twenty years of research in cultural tourism, Culture on Tour analyzes a remarkable variety of tourist productions, ranging from safari excursions in Kenya and dance dramas in Bali to an Abraham Lincoln heritage site in Illinois. Bruner examines each site in all its particularity, taking account of global and local factors, as well as the multiple perspectives of the various actors—the tourists, the producers, the locals, and even the anthropologist himself. The collection will be essential to those in the field as well as to readers interested in globalization and travel.

Grounding this study in tourist theory, Melton explores how, in five travel books, Twain captures the birth and growth of a new creature who would go on to change the map of the world: the American tourist."--BOOK JACKET.

"Travel is no longer a past-time but a colossal industry, arguably one of the biggest in the world and second only to oil in importance for many poor countries. One out of 12 people in the world are employed by the tourism industry which contributes $6.5 trillion to the world's economy. To investigate the size and effect of this new industry, Elizabeth Becker traveled the globe. She speaks to the Minister of Tourism of Zambia who thinks licensing foreigners to kill wild animals is a good way to make money and then to a Zambian travel guide who takes her to see the rare endangered sable antelope. She travels to Venice where community groups are fighting to stop the tourism industry from pushing them out of their homes, to France where officials have made tourism their number one industry to save their cultural heritage; and on cruises speaking to waiters who earn $60 a month--then on to Miami to interview their CEO. Becker's sharp depiction reveals travel as a product; nations as stewards. Seeing the tourism industry from the inside out, the world offers a dizzying range of travel options but very few quiet getaways"--

This is a timely and easily accessible book that addresses a number of issues that are of central concern to the development of tourism studies. It will also be of interest to those in cultural studies, social geography and social anthropology who are concerned with the relationship between the production and consumption of place. - Kevin Meethan, University of Plymouth Sharp and engaging, Tourist Cultures presents valuable critical insights into tourism - arguing that within the imagined-real spaces of the traveller self it becomes possible to envisage tourist cultures and futures that will both empower and engage. Here is a framework for understanding tourism which is subject-centred, dynamic, and capable of dealing with the complexity of contemporary tourist cultures. The book argues that tourists are not passive consumers of either destinations or their interpretations. Rather, they are actively occupied in a multi-sensory, embodied experience. It delves into what tourists are looking for when they travel, be they on a package tour, or immersing themselves in the places, cultures and lifestyles of the exotic. Tourism is examined through a consideration of the spaces and selves of travel, exploring the cultures of meaning, mobilities and engagement that frame and define the tourist experience and traveller identities. This book draws on the explanatory traditions of sociology, human geography and tourism studies to provide useful insights into the experiential and the lived dimensions of tourism and travel. Written in an accessible and engaging style, this is a welcome contribution to the growing literature on tourism and will be important reading for students in a range of social science and humanities courses.

Art, in its many forms, has long played an important role in people’s imagination, experience and remembrance of places, cultures and travels as well as in their motivation to travel. Travel and tourism, on the other hand, have also inspired numerous artists and featured in many artworks. The fascinating relationships between travel, tourism and art encompass a wide range of phenomena from historical ’Grand Tours’ during which a number of travellers experienced or produced artwork, to present-day travel inspired by art, artworks produced by contemporary travellers or artworks produced by locals for tourist consumption. Focusing on the representations of ’touristic’ places, locals, travellers and tourists in artworks; the role of travel and tourism in inspiring artists; as well as the role of art and artwork in imagining, experiencing and remembering places and motivating travel and tourism; this edited volume provides a space for an exploration of both historical and contemporary relationships between travel, tourism and art. Bringing together scholars from a wide range of disciplines and fields of study including geography, anthropology, history, philosophy, and urban, cultural, tourism, art and leisure studies, this volume discusses a range of case studies across different art forms and locales.