In classical English Literature like 'Little Women' or 'What Katy Did' we see rich
aunts in America taking their nieces around the globe for their exposure to the international society. In literature written that era we fail to find words such as 'tourist' or 'tourism' in novels written in those times. This is because as far back as 1840 tourism was still a very new word in most parts of Europe.
This form of 'global travel' at that time was highly exclusive to the gentry which showed off their wealth on foreign spending. This concept has undergone a transformation over the last hundred and a half centuries as from something related to travel on sea cruises only it now encompasses much more under the banner of 'tourism industry'.
It has ushered in a new era of production and consumption where the tourism industry has given birth to other smaller industries. It includes: HoReCa -Hotel, restaurant and cafe, airline packages, weddings abroad, driving in-land, city tours etc. It has become such a phenomenon that tourism has become an academic discipline.
We find the first signs of development in this area in 1866. The first tourists landed at a resort on the Naples of the Pacific coast from a steamer coming from San Francisco. The phenomenon was so nascent and new that people had actually gathered to watch them descend from the ship.
This resort was being effectively marketed and a swimming tank had been built to provide lessons in swimming to the tourists. A train had started its services through the mountains too. This gave the impetus for further growth and development in this sector.
Finding a new opportunity for investment, people from San Francisco started to build summer cottages and holiday homes along the beach. Though sadly, over the next century these cottages have been taken over by colossal urbanization. Today lots of people travel all across the globe for vacations.