The history of British Tourism

The Medieval PilgrimageBritish tourism almost certainly started with the medieval pilgrimagePilgrims clearly saw the experience as a holiday away from their normal livesPilgrims were responsible for the idea of souvenirs, bringing back relics and reminders of their trips to shrinesReligious pilgrimages are still important to tourism – visits to places such as Lourdes or Knock in Ireland are still ongoing

The Grand TourThe sixteen century.An extended tour of Europe was seen as an

essential educational and cultural experience.

Spas-Fashionable SpasThe eighteenth centuryTourism for health became extremely important in

the Britain with many Spas offering health-giving mineral waters.

The nineteenth century British spas were facing stiff competition from continental health resorts such as Karlsbad and the spas gradually vanished and were soon to be replaced with holidays beside the sea.

The Seaside HolidayBrighton became the true home of the seaside

holiday, A major seaside resort, Brighton is an attractive town known for its many parks.

IndustrializationTravel became a lot easier and a lot more affordable

as Britain became more industrialized.Thomas CookThe father of modern mass tourism who, on 5 July

1841, organized the first package tour in history.The First Package TourCook saw the potential of a convenient 'off the peg'

holiday product in which everything was included in one cost. He organized packages inclusive of accommodation for the Great Exhibition, and afterwards pioneered package holidays

Victorian AgeRapid development-Middle class

Act of ParliamentThe Bank Holiday Act of 1871 introduced a statutory right for workers to take holidays, even if they were not paid at the time.Holiday Resort DisastersBlack pool England's greatest man-made tourist attraction became one of the top British tourist destinations but it wasn't without its disasters.

Holiday CampsThe holiday camp began to appear in the 1930s, but this

phenomenon really expanded in the post-war period.Towards the end of the 20th century the holiday camp

market has been successfully revived by the up market inland resorts owned by Dutch company Center Parks.

Mass TravelIt is worth noting that low cost mass tourism as we

know it today could not begin to develop until two things occurred:

Improvements in technology allowed the transport of large numbers of people in a short space of time to places of leisure interest.

Greater numbers of people began to enjoy the benefits of leisure time.

UK TodayBritain today

is one of the world’s foremost travel destinations, and tourism is an essential part of Britain’s income. It employed about 1.4 million people and contributed about 3.5 percent to the GDP.

Thank youPrepared by; SADIONA ABAZAJ