There is currently no widely accepted definition of the term “tourist destination.” From the supply-side perspective of the tourism industry, a destination is usually defined by a geopolitical boundary, given that destination marketing is most commonly funded by governments. From the traveler’s perspective, a destination may be perceived quite differently.
A tourist destination is a city, town, or other area that depends to a significant extent on revenue from tourism, or “a country, state, region, city, or town that is marketed or markets itself as a place for tourists to visit.” It may include one or more tourist attractions and possibly some “tourist traps.” The town of Siem Reap, for example, is a popular tourist destination in Cambodia, mainly due to its proximity to the Angkor temples.
A tropical island resort is an island or archipelago that relies on tourism as its source of revenue. The Bahamas in the Caribbean, Bali in Indonesia, Phuket in Thailand, Hawaii in the United States, Palawan in the Philippines, Fiji in the Pacific, Vamizi Island, Santorini, and Ibiza in the Mediterranean are examples of popular island resorts.
