Urbanisation is a major force contributing to the development of towns and cities where people live,

work and shop. Towns and cities function as places where the population concentrates in a defined
area and economic activities locate in the same area of nearby to provide the opportunity for the
production and consumption of goods and services in capitalist societies.

Consequently, towns and cities provide the context for a diverse range of social, cultural and
economic activities which the population engage in and where tourism, leisure and entertainment
form major service activities. These environments also function as meeting places, major tourist
gateways, accommodation and transport hubs and as central places to service the needs of visitors.

Most tourist trips will contain some experience of an urban area; for example when an urban dweller
departs from a major gateway in a city, arrives at a gateway in another city region and stays in
accommodation in an urban area.

Within cities however, the line between tourism and recreation blurs to the extent that at times one is
indistinguishable from the other, with tourists and recreationalists using the same facilities, resources
and environments although some notable differences exist.

Therefore many tourists and recreationalists will intermingle in many urban contexts. Most tourists
will experience urban tourism in some form during their holiday, visit to friends and relatives,
business trip or visit for another reason.
Urban tourism; a relevant area for study?

Ashworth's (1989) landmark study of urban tourism acknowledges that "a double neglect has
occurred. Those interested in the study of tourism have tended to neglect the urban context in which
much of it is set, while those interested in urban studies have been equally neglectful of the
importance of the tourist function in cities".

While more recent studies have examined urban tourism research in a spatial context (Pearce 1998) it
still remains a comparatively unresearched area despite the growing interest in the relationship
between urban regeneration and tourism.

The problem is also reiterate din a number of subsequent studies as one explanation of the neglect of
urban tourism. Despite this problem which is more a function of perceived than real difficulties in
understanding urban tourism phenomena, a range of studies now provide evidence of a growing body
of literature on the topic.

Much of the research which is published on urban tourism research remains quite descriptive and
mainly case study driven.

Interestingly Ashworth (1992) argued that urban tourism has not emerged as a distinct research focus;
research is focused on tourism in cities. The strange paradox can be explained by the failure by
planners, commercial interests and residents to recognise tourism as one of the main economic
rationales for cities.

Tourism is often seen as an adjunct or necessary evil to generate additional revenue, while the main
economic activities of the locality are not perceived as tourism related unless tourism is a central
component of urban regeneration strategies. Such negative views of urban tourism have meant that the
public and private sector have used the temporary, seasonal and ephemeral nature if tourism to neglect
serious research on this theme.

Consequently a vicious circle exists; the absence of private and public sector research makes access to
research data difficult and the large scale funding necessary to break the vicious circle and underwrite
primary data collection using social survey techniques, is rarely available.

However, with the pressure posed by tourists in many European tourist cities this perception is
changing now that the public and private sector are belatedly acknowledging the necessity of visitor
management as a mechanism to enhance, manage and improve the tourist's experience of towns and
places to visit.

Understanding the nature and concept of urban tourism; theoretical debates