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A resort town, resort city or resort destination is an urban area where tourism or vacationing is the primary component of the local culture and economy. A typical resort town has one or more actual resorts in the surrounding area. Sometimes the term resort town is used simply for a locale popular among tourists. One task force in British Columbia used the definition of an incorporated or unincorporated contiguous area where the ratio of transient rooms, measured in bed units, is greater than 60% of the permanent population. [1]
Generally, tourism is the main export in a resort town economy, with most residents of the area working in the tourism or resort industry. Shops and luxury boutiques selling locally themed souvenirs, motels, and unique restaurants often proliferate the downtown areas of a resort town.
In the case of the United States, resort towns were created around the late 1800s and early 1900s with the development of early town-making. [2] Many resort towns feature ambitious architecture, romanticizing their location, and dependence on cheap labor. [2]
If the resorts or tourist attractions are seasonal in nature (such as a ski resort), resort towns typically experience an on-season where the town is bustling with tourists and workers, and an off-season where the town is populated only by a small amount of local year-round residents.
In addition, resort towns are often popular with wealthy retirees and people wishing to purchase vacation homes, which typically drives up property values and the cost of living in the region. Sometimes, resort towns can become boomtowns due to the quick development of retirement and vacation-based residences. [3]
However, most of the employment available in resort towns are typically low paying and it can be difficult for workers to afford to live the area in which they are employed. [4] Many resort towns have spawned nearby bedroom communities where the majority of the resort workforce lives.
Resorts towns sometimes struggle with problems regarding sustainable growth, due to the seasonal nature of the economy, the dependence on a single industry, and the difficulties in retaining a stable workforce. [5]
Local residents are generally receptive of the economic impacts of tourism. Resort towns tend to enjoy lower unemployment rates, improved infrastructure, more advanced telecommunication and transportation capabilities, and higher standards of living and greater income in relation to those who live outside this area. [6] Increased economic activity in resort towns can also have positive effects on the country's overall economic growth and development. In addition, business generated by resort towns have been credited with supporting the local economy through times of national market failure and depression. [2]
In a study conducted by the Urban and Regional Planning Department of Istanbul Technical University, 401 local residents in the resort community of Antalya were interviewed and asked to give their opinion on the economic impacts of tourism. Among the participants, 67% had lived in Antalya for over ten years, 66% had at least a high school degree, and 30% reported jobs that were related to tourism. [7] The results are as follows:
Perceived impact on select economic impact items (Antalya)
Economic Item | % Totally agree | Standard deviation |
---|---|---|
Increase in cost of land and housing | 97 | 0.82 |
Increase in prices of goods and services | 97 | 0.81 |
More job opportunities in Antalya | 98 | 0.71 |
Better maintenance of Antalya | 96 | 0.86 |
Higher standard of roads and public facilities | 95 | 0.90 |
Increased income for local people | 92 | 0.94 |
Better appearance of Antalya | 86 | 1.17 |
More shopping opportunities | 85 | 1.03 |
Increased standard of living | 80 | 1.06 |
Economic gains for ordinary people | 17 | 1.12 |
More recently, resort towns have come under greater scrutiny by local communities. Instances where resort towns are poorly managed have adverse effects on the local economy. One example is the uneven distribution of income and land ownership between local residents and businesses. During tourist season, increased demand for accommodation may raise the price of land, causing a simultaneous increase in rent for local residents whose income in invariably lower than foreign residents. [6] This results in a preponderance of foreigners in the land market and an erosion of economic opportunities for local residents.
The revenues amassed from tourism typically do not benefit the host country or the local communities. Income to local communities generated by tourism are all of the expenditures accrued after taxes, profits, and wages are paid out; however, around 80% of traveler's expenditures go to airlines, hotels, and international companies, not to local businesses. [8] These funds are referred to as leakages. Tourism has also been blamed for other negative economic impacts to local communities. Although resort towns usually boast more improved infrastructure than surrounding areas, these developments usually present high costs to local governments and tax payers. [8] Reallocating government funds to subsidize infrastructure and tax breaks to firms shift available funding to local education and health services. In addition, resort towns typically do not have dynamic economies, resulting in an over dependence on one industry. Economic dependence on tourism poses particular challenges to resort towns and its local residents given the seasonal nature of the job market in some areas. [8] Local residents of resort towns face job insecurity, difficulties in obtaining training, medical-benefits, and housing.
Cape May County is the southernmost county in the U.S. state of New Jersey. Much of the county is located on the Cape May peninsula, bound by the Delaware Bay to its west and the Atlantic Ocean to its south and east. Adjacent to the Atlantic coastline are five barrier islands that have been built up as seaside resorts. A consistently popular summer destination with 30 miles (48 km) of beaches, Cape May County attracts vacationers from New Jersey and surrounding states, with the summer population exceeding 750,000. Tourism generates annual revenues of about $6.6 billion as of 2018, making it the county's single largest industry. The associated leisure and hospitality industries are Cape May's largest employers. Its county seat is the Cape May Court House section of Middle Township. The county is part of both the Jersey Shore and South Jersey regions of the state.
A tourist attraction is a place of interest that tourists visit, typically for its inherent or an exhibited natural or cultural value, historical significance, natural or built beauty, offering leisure and amusement.
South Padre Island is a resort town in Cameron County, Texas, United States. It is part of the Brownsville–Harlingen Metropolitan Statistical Area. The population was 2,066 at the 2020 census. The town is located on South Padre Island, a barrier island with the Laguna Madre situated to the leeward of the island and the Gulf of Mexico on the windward flank, along the Texas Gulf Coast. South Padre Island is accessible via the Queen Isabella Causeway from the town of Port Isabel. South Padre Island is named after José Nicolás Ballí, a Catholic priest and settler.
Tourism in Puerto Rico attracts millions of visitors each year, with more than 5.1 million passengers arriving at the Luis Muñoz Marín International Airport in 2022, a 6.5% increase from 2021, the main point of arrival into the island of Puerto Rico. With a $8.9 billion revenue in 2022, tourism has been a very important source of revenue for Puerto Rico for a number of decades given its favorable warm climate, beach destinations and its diversity of natural wonders, cultural and historical sites, festivals, concerts and sporting events. As Puerto Rico is an unincorporated territory of the United States, U.S. citizens do not need a passport to enter Puerto Rico, and the ease of travel attracts many tourists from the mainland U.S. each year.
Puerto Vallarta is a Mexican beach resort city on the Pacific Ocean's Bahía de Banderas in the Mexican state of Jalisco. Puerto Vallarta is the second largest urban agglomeration in the state after the Guadalajara Metropolitan Area. The City of Puerto Vallarta is the government seat of the Municipality of Puerto Vallarta, which comprises the city as well as population centers outside of the city extending from Boca de Tomatlán to the Nayarit border. The city is located at 20°40′N105°16′W. The municipality has an area of 681 square kilometres (262.9 sq mi). To the north, it borders the southwest of the state of Nayarit. To the east, it borders the municipality of Mascota and San Sebastián del Oeste, and to the south, it borders the municipalities of Talpa de Allende and Cabo Corrientes.
A seaside resort is a city, town, village, or hotel that serves as a vacation resort and is located on a coast. Sometimes the concept includes an aspect of official accreditation based on the satisfaction of certain requirements, such as in the German Seebad. Where a beach is the primary focus for tourists, it may be called a beach resort.
The Jersey Shore, commonly referred to locally as simply the Shore, is the coastal region of the U.S. state of New Jersey. Geographically, the term encompasses about 141 miles (227 km) of oceanfront bordering the Atlantic Ocean, from Perth Amboy in the north to Cape May Point in the south. The region includes Middlesex, Monmouth, Ocean, Atlantic, and Cape May counties, which are in the central and southern parts of the state. Located in the center of the Northeast Megalopolis, the northern half of the shore region is part of the New York metro area, while the southern half of the shore region is part of the Philadelphia metro area. The Jersey Shore hosts the highest concentration of oceanside boardwalks in the United States.
Cabo San Lucas, also known simply as Cabo, is a resort city at the southern tip of the Baja California peninsula, in the Mexican state of Baja California Sur. As of the 2020 Census, the population of the city was 202,694. Cabo San Lucas, together with the famous San José del Cabo are collectively known as Los Cabos. Together, they form a metropolitan area of 351,111 inhabitants.
In the United States, tourism is a large industry that serves millions of international and domestic tourists yearly. Foreigners visit the U.S. to see natural wonders, cities, historic landmarks, and entertainment venues. Americans seek similar attractions, as well as recreation and vacation areas.
The Florida panhandle is the northwestern part of the U.S. state of Florida. It is a salient roughly 200 miles (320 km) long, bordered by Alabama on the north and the west, Georgia on the north, and the Gulf of Mexico to the south. Its eastern boundary is arbitrarily defined. It is defined by its southern culture and rural geography relative to the rest of Florida, as well as closer cultural links to French-influenced Louisiana, Mississippi, and Alabama. Its major communities include Pensacola, Navarre, Destin, Panama City Beach, and Tallahassee.
Tourism in Mexico holds considerable significance as a pivotal industry within the nation's economic landscape. Beginning in the 1960s, it has been vigorously endorsed by the Mexican government, often heralded as "an industry without smokestacks," signifying its non-polluting and economically beneficial nature.
Robert Trent "Bobby" Jones Jr. is an American golf course architect. He is the son of golf course designer Robert Trent Jones and the brother of golf course designer Rees Jones.
Shoobie is a New Jersey, Delaware, and Southern California slang term for a tourist who visits the seashore for a day or summer-only residents. Shoobie is used in the Southern New Jersey coast, and resort towns in California. The term is also used to describe daytrippers on Nantucket Island in Massachusetts. A similar term is benny, which is mostly used in the Monmouth County and northern Ocean County resort towns of the Jersey Shore.
Tourism in Turkey is focused largely on a variety of historical sites, and on seaside resorts along its Aegean and Mediterranean Sea coasts. Turkey has also become a popular destination for culture, spa, and health care. Since 2021, Turkey is the fourth most visited country in the world.
Kemer is a seaside resort, municipality and district of Antalya Province, Turkey. Its area is 412 km2, and its population is 49,383 (2022). It is on the Mediterranean coast, 43 km (27 mi) west of the city of Antalya, on the Turkish Riviera.
A hotel tax or lodging tax is charged in most of the United States, to travelers when they rent accommodations in a hotel, inn, tourist home or house, motel, or other lodging, generally unless the stay is for a period of 30 days or more. In addition to sales tax, it is collected when payment is made for the accommodation, and it is then remitted by the lodging operator to the city or county. It can also be called hotel occupancy tax in places like New York City and Texas. Despite its name, it generally applies to the same range of accommodations.
Labuan Bajo is a fishing town located at the western end of the large island of Flores in the East Nusa Tenggara province of Indonesia. It is in Komodo district. It is the capital of the West Manggarai Regency, one of the eight regencies of Flores.
This is a list of the most popular individual tourist attractions in the United States, lists of tourist attractions organized by subject region, and a selection of other notable tourist attractions and destinations.
Welcome centers, also commonly known as visitors' centers, visitor information centers, or tourist information centers, are buildings located at either entrances to states on major ports of entry, such as interstates or major highways, e.g. U.S. Routes or state highways, or in strategic cities within regions of a state, e.g. Southern California, Southwest Colorado, East Tennessee, or the South County region of Rhode Island. These welcome centers, which first opened on May 4, 1935 next to U.S. Route 12 in New Buffalo, Michigan, are locations that serve as a rest area for motorists, a source of information for tourists or new residents that enter a state or a region of a state, and a showcase for the state. These features make welcome centers, visitors centers, and service plazas, which are similar to welcome centers, distinct from rest areas. In Alaska and Hawaii, their unique geographical locations preclude them from having welcome centers as known in the rest of the U.S.
During the decades of segregation in the United States, African Americans established various resorts. The resorts were self-contained commercial establishments. Varying resort accommodations included rooms for rent, meals and fine food, cocktail bars, dancing, sporting facilities, and beaches. Also in some cases entire communities were known as resort areas for African Americans. The Negro Motorist Green Book helped guide African Americans to accommodating and safe places, including Idlewild, Michigan, which was among the most well known.