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History of Travel & Tourism
di Sarvajeet Chandra
600 years Before Christ, in India and Mesopotamia
Travel for trade was an important feature since the beginning of civilisation.
The earliest form of leisure tourism can be traced as far back as the Babylonian and Egyptian
empires. A museum of historic antiquities was opened to the public in Babylon. The Egyp-
tians held many religious festivals that attracted the devout and many people who thronged
to cities to see famous works of arts and buildings. In India, as elsewhere, kings travelled
for empire building. The Brahmins and the common people travelled for religious purposes.
Thousands of Brahmins and the common folk thronged Sarnath and Sravasti to be greeted by
the inscrutable smile of the Enlightened One – the Buddha.
500 BC, the Greek civilisation
The Greek tourists travelled to sites of healing gods. The Greeks also enjoyed their religious
festivals that increasingly became a pursuit of pleasure, and in particular, sport. Athens had
become an important site for travellers visiting the major sights such as the Parthenon. Inns
were established in large towns and seaports to provide for travellers’ needs. Courtesans
were the principal entertainment offered. This era also saw the birth of travel writing. Hero-
dotus was the worlds’ first travel writer. Guidebooks also made their appearance in the fourth
century covering destinations such as Athens, Sparta and Troy. Advertisements in the way of
signs directing people to inns are also known in this period.
The Roman Empire
With no foreign borders between England and Syria, and with seas safe from piracy due to
Roman patrols, the conditions favouring travel had arrived. First class roads coupled with
staging inns (precursors of modern motels) promoted the growth of travel. Romans travelled
to Sicily, Greece, Rhodes, Troy and Egypt. From 300 AD, travel to the Holy Land also became
very popular. The Romans introduced their guidebooks (itineraria), listing hotels with symbols
to identify quality. Second homes were built by the rich near Rome, occupied primarily during
springtime social season. The most fashionable resorts were found around the Bay of Naples.
Naples attracted the retired and the intellectuals, Cumae attracted the fashionable while Ba-
iae attracted the down market tourist, becoming noted for its rowdiness, drunkenness and
all-night singing.
Travel and Tourism were to never attain a similar status until modern times.
In the Middle Ages
Travel became difficult and dangerous as people travelled for business or for a sense of obli-
gation and duty. Adventurers sought fame and fortune through travel. The Europeans tried
to discover a sea route to India for trade purposes and in this fashion discovered America
and explored parts of Africa. Strolling players and minstrels made their living by performing
as they travelled. Missionaries, saints, etc. travelled to spread the sacred word. Leisure travel
in India was introduced by the Mughals. The Mughal kings built luxurious palaces and en-
chanting gardens at places of natural and scenic beauty (for example Jehangir travelled to
Kashmir drawn by its beauty). Travel for empire building and pilgrimage was a regular feature.
The Grand Tour
From the early seventeenth century, a new form of tourism was developed as a direct out-
come of the Renaissance. Under the reign of Elizabeth 1, young men seeking positions at
court were encouraged to travel to the continent to finish their education. Later, it became
customary for education of gentleman to be completed by a ‘Grand Tour’ accompanied by a
tutor, lasting for three or more years. While ostensibly educational, the pleasure seeking men
travelled to enjoy life and culture of Paris, Venice or Florence. By the end of the eighteenth
reading
unità 1
Il mercato del turismo: caratteristiche e diversità