"With reference to one or more case studies consider the impact oftourism in the last 30 years on urban areas in the MEDW."

tourists. This includes adequate accommodation, catering,entertainment, as well as an investment into the improvement ofinfrastructure, (roads, train networks, and public transport services)All this is essential if the country or urban centre wants to be asuccessful "honeypot" for tourists, and this is due to carryingcapacities. Carrying capacities are the level of development or degreeof tourist activity that a place can tolerate before negative effectsoccur, (without suffering decline) Although having a lot of touristsmay seem to show an urban centre as being successful, if thesetourists are not comfortable they may not want to return again. Thisis the perceptual capacity of an urban centre. When congestion becomestoo high tourists will return home with a negative image of that placedue to their discomfort on their holiday, and will discourage othersfrom going.By the same token, the physical capacity of an urban centre is alsoimportant. This is the maximum number of users a facility, site, orurban centre can physically hold without causing discomfort or longqueuing etc. This is the main cause of the perceptual capacity beingbreached.On the other hand, the economy must be fed adequately. If not there isa financial deficit, and the place is making less money than itrequires, the economic carrying capacity will not be reached, and thusthe services will degrade. Degradation of the primary and secondaryresources will have negative effects on a tourist's perception of theplace, and also could possibly destroy the very thing that thetourists come to see.In the same way, ecologically, too many tourists can damage theenvironment of an area, having severe effects on the physicalenvironment. It can also harm the built environment with increases inlitter etc. which again, can harm the perceptual capacities of thevisitors.The impacts of tourism on urban centres in the MEDW, can be brokendown into 3 separate categories, these being: Economic, Social andEnvironmental, all of which can be both positive and negative.The economic advantages of urban tourism in the MEDW are great.Infrastructure is improved, with particular attention to transport.This was the case in London where the Jubilee Line of the undergroundwas extended for the Millennium Dome, enabling better access, becauseroad routes were hard to navigate and not satisfactory for the scaleof traffic required, (They expected 12 million visitors in a year.)Urban tourism also brings a massive increase in revenue. At the Domethis was expected to be £500 million, and although this was not met,it gives an idea of the money which tourism brings in to an urbanarea. The London Eye, has made over £20 million since itsestablishment earlier this year.With greater tourist activity, the local councils receive more moneywhich they can recirculate to directly benefit the local people inlocal improvements. Also, in making these local improvements theybenefit the tourist industry attracting even more visitors.With the aim of improving the aesthetics of the local area so that thetraditional perceptions of London, (smelly, dirty, awash withgraffiti.) are not those taken back when tourists return, landscapingand the addition of new parkland, and greenery is used to this end.Also, widescale combating of graffiti is something undertaken in manycities, including New York, where there are heavy fines in place fordaubing walls in such bright colours.London has always had a problem with litter, especially since the IRAbomb attacks of the 1980s and more recently the fears of Muslimfundamentalist bombings in the primary cities of the Western world.This is because dustbins provide ideal sites to place explosivedevices without being detected. Thus, litter levels have risen. Withnew policies, including on-the-spot fines for litter dropping,announced by Tony Blair in the past few days, this problem can in someway be targeted.The inclusion of cleaners with mobile dustbins is also a help, and inLondon Liverpool Street Station this is a move that they have takenup.By tidying up the built environment, not only do the tourists have abetter perception and experience of a city, but also the localresidents` quality of life is greatly improved, so this is a socialadvantage as well.With questionable fitness levels in the youth of Britain today, newparks and recreational grounds in our most urban areas where there iseven less opportunity for exercise would be ideal. Also the buildingof new leisure and fitness centres can improve the health and fitnessof all ages in the local population which is another social benefit,as well as providing for the tourists whilst they are there.Urban tourism provides jobs for local residents, with a wide varietyof skills, and a wide age-range, as well as plentiful in number tocombat the unemployment often found in large cities. There are alsojob opportunities for the construction trade because tourism oftenrequires large-scale construction of new facilities, infrastructure,roads etc.The Millennium Dome created over 7,000 jobs, 2,000 of which were inconstruction.It is true however that many tourism jobs are low paid, although theyare quick to train for, thus quick to attend to the problem ofunemployment.Tourism is a great encouragement for urban regeneration. This isbecause, tourism in an urban centre requires facilities within thaturban area, and thus brownfield sites get redeveloped, because theseare in closest proximity to the tourist centres. The renovation andrestoration of old buildings in particular has a great positive socialand cultural impact, as the historic nature of the old city ispreserved.With widescale tourism and the development which accompanies it, theprofile of the city is raised both globally and nationally, attractingmore tourists, new business, and new custom. Sometimes, it only takesone event to rejuvenate an area. For instance, The Commonwealth gamesheld in Manchester this year has really benefited the city's globalprofile in proving that it can handle such a large event even betterthan London. It also brought huge income into the local area, wherelocal business thrived from the huge influx of tourists. Temporaryjobs were created two-fold, providing some ease on the unemployment ofManchester for a short while. It is likely that future events may befavoured at this location, so in the long term, more income is likelyto come from it.There are a number of social problems caused by a large tourismindustry in an urban area.Doxey`s framework for the measurement of social impacts,indicatesan"irritation index" with 4 stages. The first is the stage ofeuphoria, where tourism is welcomed, and there is mutual satisfaction,in that tourism benefits the locals and the visitors are happy withtheir holiday.The next is the stage of apathy, where tourists are taken for granted,and interactions with them become more formal. They are the"money-bringers to bring us profit."Then follows the stage of irritation, when the numbers of touristscannot be handled without expansion of facilities and degrading of thebuilt environment and what the locals consider "their own facilities,"above the tourists.There is then a level of antagonism, when overt displays of irritationbecome evident. The locals no longer cherish the presence of tourists,and see them as the bringer of all the ills of their local community.For example, "Taxes are on the up because of tourists," and, "Theyhave no respect for our property or our city." Although not linked totourism there was a great level of antagonism when refugees came toseek asylum in Britain, during the Kosovo conflict in the 90s, becauseof the large influx of new people with different culture, anddifferent language. To some extent I believe this is true withtourists also.Environmentally, large scale tourism development can help, as I havealready discussed, with new greenery being put in place to improve theaesthetics. However, the built environment can be degraded throughover-use, or over congestion, and when it's past looking its best,perception of the area could decrease. More tourists does not overlyincrease pollution levels because many will use the usual publictransport services, and only relatively few hire cars.In conclusion, with all impacts taken into account, I believe positiveeconomic impacts outweigh all the other concerns. As long as thesocial and environmental issues are not totally ignored, a boost tothe economy is always beneficial, and with the money from it, socialand environmental issues can be addressed, with the finances to attendto them successfully.