ABSTRACT

The research work here seeks to examine in the impact of public awareness/enlightenment in tourism industry in Lagos state. Through the study, the researcher was able to discover that public enlightenment is an important factor in the promotion of tourism in Nigeria. It was discovered that Lagos state have a lot of tourism sites which represents ancient and recent histories in Nigeria and the Yoruba tribe in particular. Unfortunately, not everybody knows about the existence of these museums due to poor public enlightenment. The researcher therefore is of the opinion that public enlightenment should be integrated into the tourism world especially in Nigeria so as to boost the tourism industry which will directly boost the nation’s economy.

CHAPTER ONE INTRODUCTION

Tourism is defined as a composite of activities, services, and industries that delivers a travel experience to individuals and groups travelling fifty miles (about eighty kilometres) or more from their homes for purposes of pleasure. Tourism is travel for recreational, leisure or business purposes. The World Tourism Organization defines tourists as people who "travel to and stay in places outside their usual environment for more than twenty-four (24) hours and not more than one consecutive year for leisure, business and other purposes not related to the exercise of an activity remunerated from within the place visited. In 1941, Hunziker and Krapf defined tourism as people who travel "the sum of the phenomena and relationships arising from the travel and stay of non-residents, insofar as they do not lead to permanent residence and are not connected with any earning activity." In 1976, the Tourism Society of England's definition was: "Tourism is the temporary, short-term movement of people to destination outside the places where they normally live and work and their activities during the stay at each destination. It includes movements for all purposes." In 1981, the International Association of Scientific Experts in Tourism defined tourism in terms of particular activities selected by choice and undertaken outside the home. The terms tourism and travel are sometimes used interchangeably. In this context, travel has a similar definition to tourism, but implies a more purposeful journey. The terms tourism and tourist are sometimes used pejoratively, to imply a shallow interest in the cultures or locations visited by tourists. Tourism is one of the world‘s largest industries. For developing countries it is also one of the biggest income generators. But the huge infrastructural and resource demands of tourism (e.g. water consumption, waste generation and energy use) can have severe impacts upon local communities and the environment if it is not properly managed. Tourism is vital for many countries, such as Nigeria, France, Egypt, Greece, Israel, United States, Spain, Italy, and Thailand, and many island nations, such as The Bahamas, Fiji, Maldives, Philippines and the Seychelles, due to the large intake of money for businesses with their goods and services and the opportunity for employment in the service industries associated with tourism. These service industries include transportation services, such as airlines, cruise ships and taxicabs, hospitality services, such as accommodations, including hotels and resorts, and entertainment venues, such as amusement parks, casinos, shopping malls, music venues and theatres Wealthy people have always travelled to distant parts of the world, to see great buildings, works of art, learn new languages, and experience new cultures and to taste different cuisines. Long ago, at the time of the Roman Republic, places such as Baiae were popular coastal resorts for the rich. The word tourism was used by 1811 and tourist by 1840. In 1936, the League of Nations defined foreign tourist as "someone travelling abroad for at least twenty-four hours". Its successor, the United Nations, amended this definition in 1945, by including a maximum stay of six months. There has been an upmarket trend in the tourism over the last few decades, especially in Africa, where international travel for short breaks is common. Tourists have high levels of disposable income, considerable leisure time, are well educated, and have sophisticated tastes. There is now a demand for better quality products, which has resulted in a fragmenting of the mass market for beach vacations; people want more specialised versions, quieter resorts, family-oriented holidays or niche market-targeted destination hotels. The developments in technology and transport infrastructure, such as jumbo jets, low-cost airlines and more accessible airports have made many types of tourism more affordable. As of April 28, 2009 The Guardian article notes that, "the WHO estimates that up to 500,000 people are on planes at any time." There have also been changes in lifestyle, such as retiree-age people who sustain year round tourism. This is facilitated by internet sales of tourism products. Some sites have now started to offer dynamic packaging, in which an inclusive price is quoted for a tailor-made package requested by the customer upon impulse. Tourism has become a popular global leisure activity. In 2010, there were over 940 million international tourist arrivals, with a growth of 6.6% as compared to 2009. International tourism receipts grew to US$919 billion (euro 693 billion) in 2010, corresponding to an increase in real terms of 4.7%. As a result of the late-2000s recession, international travel demand suffered a strong slowdown beginning in June 2008, with growth in international tourism arrivals worldwide falling to 2% during the boreal summer months. This negative trend intensified during 2009, exacerbated in some countries due to the outbreak of the H1N1 influenza virus, resulting in a worldwide decline of 4% in 2009 to 880 million international tourists’ arrivals, and an estimated 6% decline in international tourism receipts. We have witnessed an exponential growth in global tourism over the past half century. 25 million international visitors in 1950 grew to an estimated 650 million people by the year 2000. Several factors have contributed to this rise in consumer demand in recent decades. This includes an increase in the standard of living in the developed countries, greater allowances for holiday entitlements and declining costs of travel. Tourism is an important export for a large number of developing countries, and the principal export for about a third of these. The business sectors comprising the tourism industry include: transportation, accommodations, eating and drinking establishments, shops, entertainment venues, activity facilities, and a variety of hospitality.