Types of Tourism

Types of Tourism: The travel and tourism industry plays a big role in many countries’ local economies. Before the pandemic, it made up 10.3% of the world’s total economic output (GDP), and it’s expected to bounce back.

Now, let’s explore the various types of tourism. The UNWTO (UN’s World Tourism Organization) categorizes tourism into three main types: domestic, inbound, and outbound tourism. In this article, we’ll look into the different types of tourism, examining how each is defined.

Let’s get started!

Three Tourism Categories

Domestic Tourism

Domestic tourism means traveling within your own country for business or fun. It’s usually easier to plan than going abroad because you don’t need extra paperwork or health checks. You can just take a domestic flight, bus, or train to your destination. For example, if you live in London and spend the weekend in Manchester, that’s domestic tourism.

Unlike international trips, you won’t face language barriers or culture shock in domestic tourism, which makes it less stressful, at least in most cases.

Inbound Tourism

When you go to a different country, it’s called inbound tourism for that place. For example, if you go from the USA to Spain, it’s inbound tourism for Spain. Inbound tourism is part of international travel. It’s important to get all the needed paperwork ready beforehand. Also, you may have to do extra things like vaccinations and health checks.

Outbound Tourism

Outbound tourism is when you leave your own country to visit another. Using the previous example, if you travel from the USA to Spain, it’s outbound tourism for the USA because you’re leaving the country.

This type of travel involves certain formal requirements, but travel agents know about them and can help make the journey smoother. However, if you prefer going solo, you can handle the paperwork on your own. Numerous online travel agencies specialize in outbound tourism.

Different Types of Tourism

Here’s a list of different types of tourism:

S. No.	Tourism Type	Description
1	Adventure Tourism	Adventure tourism involves the exploration of remote places where travelers can expect the unexpected. Activities may include day hiking, backpacking, zip-lining, free fall, rafting, mountain biking, skiing, and snowboarding.
2	Accessible Tourism	Accessible tourism ensures people have access to tourist destinations, products, and services regardless of physical limitations, disabilities, or age.
3	Agritourism	Agritourism occurs on farms, providing travelers with an opportunity to experience rural life, taste local genuine food, and engage in various farming tasks.
4	Alternative Tourism	Alternative tourism, also known as specific interest tourism (SIT), involves travel that encourages interaction with local government, people, and communities.
5	Atomic Tourism	Atomic tourism has recently emerged, where tourists learn about the atomic age by visiting sites such as museums with atomic weapons, missile silos, and vehicles that carried atomic weapons. Notable sites include The Trinity Site, Doom Town, The Titan Missile Museum, etc.
6	Benefit Tourism	Benefit tourism refers to non-British citizens, often from the EU, who come to the UK to live off social security and other entitlements, including child benefit, child tax credit, state pension credit, jobseeker’s allowance, and employment and support allowance. These benefits are only available to those who meet the UK’s “right-to-reside” test.
7	Birth Tourism	Birth tourism, also known as maternity tourism, is the practice of traveling to another country for giving birth. The main reason is to obtain birthright citizenship, with additional reasons including access to public schooling, healthcare, and sponsorship for the parents.
8	Boat Sharing	Boat sharing involves sharing boats with other people heading to the same destination. Costs, including the boat, captain or skipper, are shared among participants.
9	Booze Cruise	A booze cruise refers to a brief trip from Britain to France or Belgium for purchasing personal supplies like alcohol or tobacco in bulk. It is legally acceptable and should not be confused with smuggling.
10	Business Tourism	Business tourism involves traveling to a destination away from home or the normal workplace for professional purposes rather than personal reasons.
11	Birdwatching	Birdwatching is the observation of birds in their natural habitat using the naked eye or visual enhancement devices such as binoculars, telescopes, and listening devices. Top birdwatching destinations include South Georgia Island, Cape May, New Jersey, etc.
12	Camping	Camping is a popular outdoor activity involving an overnight stay in a tent or recreational vehicle. It is an affordable accommodation option, distinguishing it from day-tripping and other short-term activities.
13	Culinary Tourism	Culinary tourism, or food tourism, is for food enthusiasts exploring new food destinations. This involves learning new cooking techniques or attending food tastings.
14	Cultural Tourism	Cultural tourism involves travelers engaging with a country or religion’s culture, including lifestyle and elements that shaped people’s lives.
15	Dental Tourism	Dental tourism, or dental vacation, involves seeking dental care outside the local healthcare system, often combined with a vacation.
16	Disaster Tourism	Disaster tourism, also known as dark/black/grief tourism, involves visiting places affected by environmental disasters, whether natural or man-made. Attraction lies in the social, academic, or cultural aspects.
17	Domestic Tourism	Domestic tourism involves residents of a country traveling within the same country. For example, if someone living in Manhattan travels to Texas, it is considered domestic tourism.
18	Recreational Drug Tourism	Recreational drug tourism is travel for the purpose of using recreational drugs that may be unavailable, illegal, or expensive in one’s home country.
19	Enotourism	Enotourism, oenotourism, or wine tourism involves the tasting, consumption, or purchase of wine. Tourists visit wineries, taste wine, go on vineyard walks, or participate in the harvest.
20	Escorted Tour	An escorted tour is a type of tourism where travelers are guided in groups. Typically, it involves a guided walking tour to historical or cultural sites.
21	Experiential Travel	Experiential travel, or immersion travel, involves enthusiastically engaging with a country’s history, people, culture, and food.
22	Experimental Travel	Experimental tourism is an approach where travelers don’t visit ordinary attractions. This type involves humor, serendipity, and chance.
23	Extreme Tourism	Extreme tourism, or shock tourism, involves traveling to dangerous places such as mountains, jungles, deserts, caves, canyons, etc.
24	Eco Tourism	Eco tourism involves visiting undisturbed natural areas, promoting environmental conservation and improving the well-being of local people.
25	Fashion Tourism	Fashion tourism involves visiting a particular place to enjoy, experiment, discover, study, trade, and buy fashion. Popular fashion destinations include New York, Paris, Barcelona, London, Rome, Milan, Hong Kong, Los Angeles, Berlin, and Toronto.
26	Garden Tourism	Garden tourism is a niche tourism involving travel to botanical gardens and places with a rich history of gardening. Famous gardens attracting tourists include Sissinghurst Castle Garden, Stourhead, etc.
27	Genealogy Tourism	Genealogy tourism, or roots tourism, involves tourists traveling to their ancestral place to reconnect with their past or walk in the footsteps of their forefathers.
28	Geotourism	Geotourism sustains or enhances the distinctive geographical character of a place—its environment, heritage, aesthetics, culture, and the well-being of its residents.
29	Halal Tourism	Halal tourism is geared towards Muslim families following Islamic rules. Accommodations do not serve alcohol and have separate swimming pools and spa facilities for men and women.
30	Honeymoon Tourism	Honeymoon tourism is taken soon after a couple is married, with newlyweds often spending more on this than any other type of tourism.
31	Industrial Tourism	Industrial tourism involves visits to industrial sites, attracting tourists to industrial heritage and modern sites. Popular industrial tourism destinations include Kawasaki, Japan; Saint-Nazaire, France; Belle Isle, United States; etc.
32	International Tourism	International tourism involves traveling to places outside one’s usual environment for leisure, business, and other purposes.
33	International Volunteering	International volunteering, or voluntourism, involves people working for an organization or cause outside their home country.
34	Jungle Tourism	Jungle tourism is a subcategory of adventure tourism involving travel to the jungle regions of the earth. Top jungle tourism destinations include The Jungles of Kipling, Borneo, Brazilian Amazon, Sinharaja Forest Reserve, etc.
35	Justice Tourism	Justice tourism or solidarity tourism aims to create economic opportunities, positive cultural exchange, and political/historical education.
36	LGBT Tourism	LGBT tourism is niche tourism marketed to gay, lesbian, bisexual, and transgender people, usually open about their sexual orientation or gender identity.
37	Libel Tourism	Libel tourism involves suing a writer for alleged defamation in a foreign jurisdiction where libel laws are weak. Popular libel tourism destinations include England, Singapore, New Zealand, Kyrgyzstan, and Australia.
38	Literary Tourism	Literary tourism involves tourists visiting birthplaces, burial sites, museums, and other sites associated with authors or literary creations. Some scholars refer to this as a contemporary type of secular pilgrimage.
39	Militarism Heritage Tourism	Militarism heritage tourism involves people visiting former military sites. Famous militarism heritage tourism locations include World War (I, II), Pacific Wars, Holocaust remembrance, American Revolution, and more.
40	Motorcycle Touring	Motorcycle touring involves traveling with motorcycles equipped for long travel and luggage carrying. Popular motorcycle riding spots include Leh & Ladakh, Ceuta to Marrakesh loop, etc.
41	Music Tourism	Music tourism involves visiting a city or town to see musical festivals or performances. Popular music tourism destinations include Liverpool, Havana, Pune, Trinidad and Tobago, Tokyo, Vienna, Asheville, Essaouira, and Berlin.
42	Medical Tourism	Medical tourism refers to people traveling to another country to get medical treatment, often seeking lower-priced medical care.
43	Nautical Tourism	Nautical tourism combines sailing and boating with vacation activities, including marine tourism activities such as sailing, yachting, cruising, diving, coastal water sports, and boat shows.
44	Political Tourism	Political tourism involves journeys taken with political intent, focusing on areas of conflict to study circumstances, understand both sides’ situations, and develop knowledge about local history.
45	Religious Tourism	Religious tourism, also known as faith tourism, refers to traveling individually or in groups to holy sites. These sites are visited for cultural, historical, and religious significance.
46	River Cruise Tourism	River cruise is a voyage along inland waterways with several port stops along the way, typically lasting longer than a week.
47	Romance Tourism	Romance tours are organized by tour operators where men travel to countries to meet women for either romance or marriage. These tours initially took place in Russia and the CIA but have recently expanded to other parts of the world such as South America and Asia.
48	Rural Tourism	Rural tourism occurs in rural environments and involves experiencing rural life. Tourists visit these places to understand the lifestyle of the local people.
49	Wildlife Tourism & Safari Holidays	Wildlife tourism and safari holidays involve watching wild animals in their natural habitat to observe and photograph wildlife. This type of tourism generates significant revenue, particularly in several African countries.
50	Science Tourism	Science tourism involves visiting and exploring scientific landmarks such as museums, laboratories, observatories, and universities. It also includes viewing scientific events such as solar eclipses.
51	Self-Guided Tour	Self-guided tours, also known as solo trips, involve travelers taking responsibility for getting from point A to point B on their own.
52	Set-Jetting	Set-jetting is a trend that involves traveling to destinations seen in movies. Examples include visiting stately homes featured in Jane Austen movies or touring London in high-speed boats reminiscent of James Bond films.
53	Slum Tourism	Slum tourism, or ghetto tourism, involves visiting impoverished areas to provide tourists a glimpse of ‘non-touristy’ aspects of a country.
54	Space Tourism	Space tourism involves traveling into space for recreational purposes. While still considered futuristic, successful orbital space tourism has already taken place, facilitated by the Russian Space Agency. The different types of space tourism include orbital, suborbital, and lunar tourism.
55	Sports Tourism	Sports tourism involves either observing or participating in a sporting event, with events such as the Olympic Games, FIFA World Cup, F1 Grand Prix, World Tennis Championship, BWF World Championships, and Cricket World Cup attracting tourists.
56	Stag Party Tourism	Stag party tourism involves participating in a bachelor party, usually held in another country. Popular stag party tourism destinations include Central Europe and the Baltics, Amsterdam, the UK, and Spain.
57	Sustainable Tourism	Sustainable tourism or responsible tourism involves traveling to a place to make a positive impact on the environment, society, and the economy.
58	3D Virtual Tourism	3D virtual tourism allows travelers to explore a place without physically traveling, using smartphones or computers.
59	Dark Tourism	Dark tourism or tombstone tourism involves individuals interested in the history of famous deaths, cemeteries, epitaphs, and gravestone rubbing.
60	War Tourism	War tourism involves traveling to war zones for sightseeing or historical study. Tourists in this category seek thrills in visiting dangerous and forbidden places.
61	Water Tourism	Water tourism or nautical tourism combines sailing and boating with vacation and holidays. Popular water tourism destinations include Rome, The Grand Canyon, Indonesia, etc.
62	Wellness Tourism	Wellness tourism involves traveling to promote health through physical, psychological, or spiritual activities.
63	Whale Watching Tourism	Whale watching involves observing whales and dolphins in their natural habitat. Tourists visit such places for scientific and educational purposes.

Industries Related to Travel and Tourism

When people travel, they require specific facilities and services, leading to a variety of related industries in travel and tourism. These include:

1. Hotel and Lodging Services: Accommodations for travelers, such as hotels and lodges.
2. Food and Beverage Industry: Restaurants, cafes, and catering services for tourists.
3. Transportation: Services that help people move around, like airlines, buses, and rental cars.
4. Cultural Industries: Attractions like museums, historical sites, and entertainment venues.
5. Tour Operators: Companies that organize and manage guided tours and activities.
6. Travel Agencies: Businesses that assist with travel planning, bookings, and related services.
7. Industry dealing with Real Estate, Finance, Leasing, and Insurance: Services related to property, finances, rental agreements, and insurance for travelers.

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FAQs on Types of Tourism

What are the 4 types of tourism planning?

1) Socio-economic development of areas. 2) Increasing employment opportunities. 3) Developing domestic tourism especially for the budget category. 4) Preservation of National heritage and environment.

What is the 5 A’s of tourism?

The five vital components of tourism system are Attraction, Accessibility, Accommodation, Amenities and Activities.

What are the 5 C’s of tourism?

The 5 C’s of Luxury Travel are: Culture, Cuisine, Community, Content and Customization.

What is the difference between travel and tourism?

In simple terms, travel means moving from one place to another, while tourism is organized travel with a specific purpose. Travelers are individuals who prefer spontaneous journeys, avoiding organized tours. They might choose to book accommodation wherever they feel like staying at the moment. On the flip side, tourism comes in various forms, but the relevant ones usually include overnight stays. So, when we talk about tourism, we’re often focusing on the types of travel experiences that involve spending the night somewhere.

What is the most popular type of tourism?

Determining the most popular type of tourism is tricky because it depends on factors like where you are, the time of year, and personal interests. Yet, some widely enjoyed types of tourism include beach vacations, city breaks, cultural and historical tourism, as well as nature and wildlife tourism.

What is sustainable tourism?

Sustainable tourism is a kind of tourism that aims to reduce its harm to the environment and local communities. At the same time, it strives to aid in the preservation of natural and cultural heritage. This type of tourism means traveling in a manner that values and respects the local environment and culture while also promoting the well-being of the local people.