Abstract.
In the introduction to our volume, we discuss the need for philosophical reflection on tourism as a cultural and human phenomenon. We give a brief account of the conference which was the starting point of the discussion and papers contained in this volume. We consider pressing social and environmental issues associated with the phenomenon of tourism, tracing its roots from antiquity to the present. Consideration of the peculiar connection between tourism and human behaviour, tourism and culture, provides insights into the causes and possible solutions of problems arising from mass tourism, overtourism, “revenge tourism” in the post-pandemic world – problems of social justice, environmental protection, sustainability, economic and political security, human happiness and well-being. The journey of the tourist reveals itself as a journey of self-exploration and self-discovery in a world whose natural resources, biological and cultural diversity, and capacity to sustain humans’ pursuit of happiness and pleasure are fast diminishing. Despite the “breather” afforded by the global Covid-19 pandemic to all those engaged in the practice of tourism, whether as consumers or providers, lasting improvements have yet to be implemented. Instead, tourists and tourist providers everywhere are rushing to recoup their losses and make up for lost time. The papers in this volume examine crucial social, physical, psychological and cultural factors influencing tourism practice and their significance for the nurturing of human happiness and well-being, in order to help assure the preservation of the necessary conditions for life on earth.
Access this chapter
Tax calculation will be finalised at checkout
Purchases are for personal use only
Similar content being viewed by others
Notes
- 1.
On the history of tourism in Hvar cf. Marinko Petrić’s contribution to this volume.
- 2.
https://ec.europa.eu/eurostat/statistics-explained/index.php?title=Tourism_statistics_at_regional_level Accessed 07 January 2023.
- 3.
“In many cases tourism proceeds in an essentially unplanned and barely controllable way. Hence, it is possible to appropriate Giddens’ idea to talk about Runaway Tourism. This is because, like most things, tourism is delivered in a largely uncontrolled neoliberal market environment, which often precedes and overpowers attempts at planning and management.” (Tribe 2009, 4).
- 4.
Some philosophically relevant titles include: Matthew Niblett and Kris Beuret, eds. Why Travel? Understanding our Need to Move and How it Shapes our Lives. Bristol: Bristol University Press, 2021; John Tribe, ed. Philosophical Issues in Tourism. Bristol: Channel View Publications, 2009; Anthony Carrigan, Postcolonial Tourism: Literature, Culture, and Environment. New York: Routledge, 2010. Urry, John & Jonas Larsen, The Tourist Gaze 3.0. London: Sage Publications Ltd., 2012 explores the pleasurable experience of journeys undertaken for leisure and fundamental notions such as “work,” “leisure,” “departure,” “journey,” “stay,” “signs,” and the “tourist gaze” from a socio-cultural, historical, and geographical point of view; Emily Thomas, The Meaning of Travel. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2020 considers the relationship of philosophy and travel and notes the lack of a philosophy of travel, as well as the lack of books, university courses, and conferences on the subject. (cf. ibid. 2). Thomas’ book is a kind of travelogue of her own journey to the Alaskan wilderness, during which she explores the historical motivation of travel primarily in authors from the early modern period to the present, comparing their experiences with the motivation of modern and contemporary leisure travel. She points to contact with “otherness,” i.e., with the diversity and variety of the world, as a reason for travel which is in itself philosophical and highlights the reduced opportunities for such an encounter which ease of travel today has brought about, concluding that today there is no longer travel, only tourism (Thomas 2020, 8). This is one of the issues our volume, in an attempt to understand the phenomenon of tourism, wishes to confront.
References
Azuma, Hiroki, 2023. Philosophy of the Tourist. Trans. John D. Person. Falmouth: Urbanomic Media Ltd.
Carrigan, Anthony. 2010. Postcolonial Tourism: Literature, Culture, and Environment. New York: Routledge.
de Montaigne, Michel. 1958. The Complete Works of Montaigne. Essays. Travel Journal. Letters. Newly translated by Donald F. Frame. Stanford: Stanford University Press.
Eurostat. Statistics Explained. Tourism Statistics at the Regional Level. https://ec.europa.eu/eurostat/statistics-explained/index.php?title=Tourism_statistics_at_regional_level Accessed 9 Jan 2023.
Niblett, Matthew, and Kris Beuret, eds. 2021. Why Travel? Understanding our Need to Move and How it Shapes our Lives. Bristol: Bristol University Press.
Roberts, Tomos. 2020. The Great Realisation. With art by Nomoco. London: Egmont Books. Cf. The Great Realisation. Tomfoolery | A bed time story of how it started, and why hindsight’s 2020 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Nw5KQMXDiM4 Accessed 19 June 2022
Thomas, Emily. 2020. The Meaning of Travel. Oxford: Oxford University Press.
Tribe, John. 2009. Philosophical Issues in Tourism. Bristol: Channel View Publications.
Urry, John, and Jonas Larsen. 2012. The Tourist Gaze 3.0. London: Sage Publications Ltd.
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Corresponding author
Editor information
Editors and Affiliations
Rights and permissions
Copyright information
© 2023 The Author(s), under exclusive license to Springer Nature Switzerland AG
About this chapter
Cite this chapter
Dillon, J., Zovko, MÉ. (2023). Introduction: Mass Tourism, Overtourism, and Post-Pandemic Revenge Tourism: The Need for a Philosophical Approach to Tourism as a Global Cultural Phenomenon Today. In: Zovko, MÉ., Dillon, J. (eds) Tourism and Culture in Philosophical Perspective. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-031-36659-8_1
Download citation
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-031-36659-8_1
Published:
Publisher Name: Springer, Cham
Print ISBN: 978-3-031-36658-1
Online ISBN: 978-3-031-36659-8
eBook Packages: Religion and PhilosophyPhilosophy and Religion (R0)