Tourism and Inter-cultural Interaction

Dalit Bloch

The study of tourism explores a wide range of touristic phenomena, including institutionalized mass tourism, shopping tourism, ecotourism, sport tourism, sex tourism, backpacking and more.

In addition to that, various sociological phenomena which involve temporary transfer to foreign culture, permanent or temporal migration for study, work etc. - such as the case of sojourner, expatriate, or tourist-employee - share many similarities with tourism. The current course analyzes these and other experiences, while focusing on the intercultural interaction between the host culture and the guests/travelers (consumers).   We shall discuss questions such as: what sort of encounters do the travelers seek? What kind of cultural exchange takes place under the given circumstances? And what happens to the participants when their immediate contact comes to an end, and everybody returns home? What is the role played by the tourism industry in shaping and mediating these interactions?