Since the approximated establishment of tourism in the seventeen hundreds, its growth has been both rapid and widespread. Due to advancements in technology, different areas becoming more accessible and people being generally more able to travel, tourism has developed drastically from the early days of the package tours by Thomas Cook in the 1840’s. Tourism nowadays comes in many forms; sport, recreation and business are just a few examples of tourism, all of which attracting different people to different environments along the way. Tourism has also created varied levels of national economic development across the globe; however the significance of its contribution varies from county to country and between regions within countries.
Tourism can bare great economic value to a country, due to a number of factors which can very from country to country. Firstly, tourism provides foreign exchange without exporting anything out of the country and it provides a more stable source of income for the country than any other industry. Secondly, the amount of visitor’s expenditure that remains in an area provides a source of income for local businesses and residents, as well as the increased development of the area and the possibility of new jobs being created.
An example of an MEDC being widely involved in the tourist industry is Iceland- a large volcanic island in the North Atlantic with a small population of 321, 875 people. Iceland is volcanically and geographically active. The interior consists of mainly sand and lava fields, and mountains and glaciers, while through the lowlands many glacial rivers flow out to sea. The majority of Iceland’s tourist interest is generated from its rugged coastline and glaciers, and also large sites of interest such as The Blue Lagoon and Thingvellir rift valley. There is also a large market for