What this lesson teaches
I can describe the parts of a tourism system and explain how they affect each other and the wider environment.
Syllabus K329, Topic 2.1, Key Question 1. What is a tourism system?
Make a guess
International tourist arrivals collapsed during the COVID-19 pandemic. By 2024, how close were they to the 2019 level?
- Well above 2019, at about double the level.
- About half, as many people still avoided travel.
- About 99%, nearly back to the 2019 level.
Show the answer
About 99%, nearly back to the 2019 level.
UN Tourism counted about 1.4 billion international arrivals in 2024. Demand for travel returned quickly once borders reopened.
A named place with a date or figure, linked to your point, turns a general answer into a developed one.
This lesson collects the 3 named examples from the lessons in this chapter, so you can revise them in one place. Each one is also a recall card below, so you can save the whole set and review it before an exam.
The tourism system: International tourism, 2024 (UN Tourism).
Push and pull factors: Singapore's top visitor markets, 2024 (STB).
The tourism area life cycle: Boracay, Philippines.
To use a case, name the place or organisation, give its date or a figure, then say what it shows about the question. One developed case earns more than a list of names.
- International tourism, 2024 (UN Tourism)
- About 1.4 billion international tourist arrivals were recorded in 2024, about 99% of the 2019 level, after the collapse during the COVID-19 pandemic. Every one of those trips links a generating region, a transit route and a destination.
- Singapore's top visitor markets, 2024 (STB)
- Mainland China (3.08 million), Indonesia (2.49 million) and India (1.20 million) sent the most visitors to Singapore in 2024. Nearness, frequent flights and Singapore's attractions all pull visitors from these large, growing markets.
- Boracay, Philippines
- Boracay grew from a quiet island into a crowded resort. By 2018, sewage and overcrowding were so bad that the government closed it to tourists for six months to clean it up and limit visitor numbers.
Step by step
Name it
The place, event or organisation.
Prove it
A date, number or specific fact.
Link it
Say what it shows about the question.
Worked example: From a name to a developed point
Weak: "There are real examples, such as International tourism, 2024 (UN Tourism)." Strong: "About 1.4 billion international tourist arrivals were recorded in 2024, about 99% of the 2019 level, after the collapse during the COVID-19 pandemic. Every one of those trips links a generating region, a transit route and a destination." The strong version gives the place and the evidence, so it can earn a development mark.
Watch out for this
Naming a famous example is enough to earn the mark.
Examiners credit a developed case: a place, a date or figure, and a clear link to the question.
Check your understanding
Which is the strongest way to use a named example in an answer?
- List several example names, with no details.
- Give the place, a date or figure, and its link.
- Describe the example in general terms, without a place or figure.
Show the answer
Give the place, a date or figure, and its link.
Yes. A located, evidenced and linked case is what earns development marks.