Turning points in tourism’s development: 1946-2095, a perspective article

Abstract

Purpose This paper sets out to identify when, how and why tourism has changed from 1946 to 2020 using historical and future turning points. Design/methodology/approach Using the evolutionary paradigm from future studies and the authors’ expertise, this paper aims to provide a focussed review of the history of tourism to identify turning points drawing upon examples from Tourism Review that have transformed or will be of significance in the evolution of tourism. Findings This paper identifies three historical turning points which are mobility, Fordism and mass tourism and a modern-day leisure class. Three future turning points are identified including the political importance of tourism, footprint and transformational technologies. Originality/value By undertaking a historical analysis of the tourism literature, we can determine that Hobsbawm’s (1995, p. 46) proposition that “the future is a replication of the past” is true, as many of the debates about tourism from the past are relevant today and will be in the future. Thus, this paper identifies six turning points that are of significance to historians and futurists in understanding the evolution of tourism from 1946 to 2095.