Identify the main economic, environmental and social impacts of tourism.

Tourism can have social, environmental and economic
impacts that could benefit the tourist destination or cause a lot of
damage.

Tourism has become a very large industry in many
countries and is the primary means of earning money for a large percentage of the
population. This benefits the local economy, as people do not have to migrate to other
areas to earn money. But in times of economic crisis, tourism is an industry that is
affected the most, as tourists cancel visits to expensive foreign destinations. The
tourist destinations, without an alternate means for people to earn money are severely
impacted.

The environmental effects of tourism have for
long been very bad. It has been carried in an unsustainable manner, causing a lot of
damage to the local environment of the tourist destinations. In many places this has
resulted in tourism ceasing to be a viable source of income after a few years and
seriously affecting the local population.

The social
impacts of tourism vary, from being beneficial in the preservation of the local culture
and way of living. As tourists usually like to visit places that offer an experience
distinct from their normal life, the people of exotic tourist destinations have a reason
to preserve their culture. On the other hand, tourism has destroyed the local culture in
many cases with the population of tourist destinations changing itself to mimic the
tourists. The locals of many tourist destinations often feel they are being treated as
freaks by the tourists.