Types of alternative tourism

For some people, a week on a cruise ship or all-

inclusive beach resort is pure torture. Others prefer
museums and a posh hotel over a hike through a
national park. Ecotourism? ounds like a great way to
get a snake bite. For others however, absolute heaven.
The point of course is to illustrate that diverse catalysts
compel us to travel. !ifferent reasons motivate
different people to leave home and e"plore the world.
#ith that e"pressly in mind, here are five types of
alternative tourism$
%.&!isaster Tourism' is somewhat of a parado". (n the
name of self-preservation after all, most people flee
from natural disasters. ) slim, intrepid minority
however, prefer to fling themselves in the eye of the
storm, as it were, or show up to observe the aftermath.
*ess aid workers and more storm chasers, these
adrenaline fiends +ust like to watch.
ome notable disaster tourism sites include outh )sia
and outh East )sia after the (ndian Ocean earth,uake
and tsunami of -../, 0ew Orleans and the 1.. 2ulf
3oast post-4urricane 5atrina, and the -.%.
Ey+af+alla+okull eruption in (celand.
-.!ark tourism$ The name is self-e"planatory but to
e"pound further, dark tourism is travel to some of the
most somber and grim historical points of interest on
the planet. Think sites of unspeakable horror, like the
)uschwit6-7irkenau concentration camps in 8oland,
5hmer 9ouge &5illing Fields' of 3ambodia and 9obben
(sland off the 3ape Town coast.
Other noteworthy dark tourism destinations include
2round :ero in 0ew ;ork 3ity, the )merican 3emetery
and <emorial in 0ormandy and 4iroshima 8eace
<emorial 8ark. ;ad =ashem in >erusalem, 9wanda?s
<urambi 2enocide <useum, 2oree (sland off the
coast of !akar, enegal, 2hana?s 3ape 3oast 3astle
and the (nternational lavery <useum in *iverpool also
embody this austere, yet vital and significant, type of
travel.
3.Ghost tourism: ) fascination with the supernatural
drives some people to travel in search of the
paranormal. 7ehind many a famous landmark is a
great ghost story and indeed, popular tours in places
like !ublin, t. )ugustine, Florida, @uebec 3ity and
7risbane e"plore historic, &haunted' city ,uarters.
Offshoots of ghost tourism include proverbial ghost towns,
from barren mine, mill and railroad towns across America,
Canada and Australia to notorious places lie !onestown,
Gu"ana and Chernob"l, #raine. $alem, %assachusetts, of
infamous witch trial fame, and parts of &rans"lvania also fit
the bill.
'.$lum tourism: One of the most controversial types of
travel involves tours of vast urban slums in places like
9io de >aneiro, oweto, <umbai, <anila, 3airo and
<e"ico 3ity. &hanty tourism' or &poverty tourism' is
certifiably ,uestionable and on the ethical borderline
when the e"perience is utterly passive. (f however,
visitors engage in some kind of community outreach or
volunteer program, the collective positive impact falls
beyond the realm of mere &slum tourism'.
From the favelas of 9io to Orangi Town, 5arachi,
5hayelitsha township in 3ape Town to 3ite oleil, 8ort-
au-8rince, the ma+or slums of the world do manage to
lure tourists. (s slum tourism inherently good or bad?
The answer is comple" and elusive. 1ltimately, if areas
of dire poverty incur some immediate net benefit, the
pros may outnumber the cons. (f however, this
alternative form of travel veers on cheap voyeurism,
then we can safely call it like it is$ inhumane.
A.8op-culture tourism$ 8op-culture tourism, unlike
some other types of travel, is by definition, harmless
fun. imply put, it involves destinations with indelible
connections to popular books, films, television shows,
music, ma+or events or a particular celebrity.
Countless fans of &he (eatles who floc to Liverpool
hotels safel" fit the description of pop)culture tourists. *ulcan,
Alberta, so named in +,+- after the .oman god of fire, shot to
cult)lie prominence decades later because of Star Trek. &he
diminutive Canadian town now rans as a famousl" itsch"
sci)fi pilgrimage point.
Other significant pop)culture destinations include the town of
(uritsville, %ar"land /of Blair Witch Project fame0,
the Tatooine Star Wars sets of %atmata, &unisia and last but
not least, parts of 1ew 2ealand that evoe 3eter
!acson4s Lord of the Rings visions of Middle Earth.
$ource: www.hotelclub.com