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Tourism is one of the Caribbean's major economic sectors, with 25 million visitors contributing $49 billion towards the area's gross domestic product in 2013, which represented 14% of its total GDP.〔 It is often described as "the most tourism-dependent region in the world". The first hotel was built on the island of Nevis in 1778 and brought wealthy visitors, such as Samuel Taylor Coleridge. In the 19th century, resort hotels were also built on The Bahamas, Jamaica and Barbados to support an increasing tourist trade. Tourism increased dramatically when airplanes transported tourists to the region. This increased the numbers of people that were able to afford to vacation on the islands, but required costly infrastructure development. == History == The early seaside resorts were developed primarily for curative benefits of bathing in the sea and breathing the warm, ozone-laden air.〔Gmelch, p. 3.〕 Lawrence Washington (1718–1752) and his younger half-brother George Washington stayed at the Bush Hill House in Barbados in 1751 for two months to treat Lawrence's tuberculosis. According to an Anthropologist, Barbados was referred to as the "sanatorium of the West Indies" in guidebooks because of its fresh water, sea air, and absence of malaria.〔 The Bath Hotel and Spring House was built of stone along Bath Stream in 1778 on the island of Nevis.〔(【引用サイトリンク】title=Bath Hotel and Spring House )〕 It was the first official hotel to open in the Caribbean.〔 The mineral hot springs and the hotel attracted visitors such as Prince William Henry, Lord Nelson and Samuel Taylor Coleridge.〔 The Royal Victorian Hotel in the Bahamas opened in 1861, Crane Beach in Barbados opened in 1887, and the Jamaican Titchfield Hotel was another early one.〔Pattullo, p. 9.〕 By 1900, eleven or more steamships had regular routes to Barbados. In the 19th century, wealthy European tourists traveled across the Atlantic during the winter months for weeks or months at a time.〔〔Pattullo, p. 8.〕 The Caribbean islands were colonies of European countries, and early tourists went to their nation's colonies. Barbados and Jamaica were visited by the English, Curaçao by the Dutch, and Martinique by the French.〔Gmelch, p. 2.〕 American tourists traveled to The Bahamas and Cuba.〔 In the 1920s, tourists visited the Caribbean for pleasurable, sun-bathing vacations. Sun exposure was considered healthy at that time and tans were a symbol of "spontaneity and sensuality" among the wealthy.〔Gmelch, p. 5.〕 Before World War II, more than 100,000 tourists visited the region a year.〔Gmelch, p. 8.〕 Tourism became an economically important industry as Caribbean bananas, sugar, and bauxite were no longer competitively priced with the advent of free-trade policies.〔〔Gmelch, p. 7.〕 Encouraged by the United Nations and World Bank, many governments in the Caribbean encouraged tourism beginning in the 1950s to boost their third-world economies.〔 The Caribbean Tourist Association was founded in 1951. Tax incentives encouraged foreign development of hotels and infrastructure, cultivated by newly formed tourism ministries.〔 Regular non-stop international airplane flights in the 1960s made vacations to the Caribbean more affordable and increased the number of visitors.〔 Visitors from Europe could travel there in eight hours, whereas it used to take three weeks by ship.〔 After World War II, the expanding middle class had more time and money for vacations and travel agencies sold affordable vacation packages to the Caribbean. Friendly native people, a warm climate, very few pests or disease, and natural beauty made it an attractive holiday option. In addition, people could also select islands based upon the language spoken: Spanish, French, Dutch or English.〔 In 1959, 1.3 million people vacationed in the Caribbean, and by 1965 the number of visitors had risen to nearly 4 million per year.〔 Multinational hotel chains and tour operators began operating.〔 Tourism became a significant industry by 1985 when 10 million people vacationed on the islands.〔 Islands that had relied on oil production for their revenue, like Trinidad and Tobago, and Aruba, did not vigorously promote tourism until revenues from oil declined in the 1990s.〔 In 2007, the number of annual tourists rose to 17 million people.〔 抄文引用元・出典: フリー百科事典『 ウィキペディア（Wikipedia）』 ■ウィキペディアで「Tourism in the Caribbean」の詳細全文を読む スポンサード リンク
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