A Review of The Business of Leisure: Tourism History in Latin America and the Caribbean

Tourism has exploded in the last hundred years, becoming one of the largest and powerful sectors of Gross World Product (GWP). Caribbean tourism, in particular, has expanded greatly and quickly. Its impacts can no longer be overlooked.

The Business of Leisure: Tourism History in Latin America and the Caribbean edited by Andrew Wood (University of Nebraska Press, 2021, 342 pages)

The essays are written by multiple industry experts and historians who provide an excellent broad historical background. The authors discuss many of the economic and political policies that have shaped the area for the last hundred years.  Wood hopes that an understanding of the tourism industry’s evolution will help guide future policies to counter what he views as some of the negative impacts of the industry. 

Wood believes that current Caribbean tourism practices need not only to be rethought but are in desperate need of revolutionarily change. We are at a turning point, he says. He calls us to consider whether we as a society will continue down such a disastrous path for the sake of our pleasure, leisure and enjoyment.

These essays trace the history of Latin American and Caribbean tourism from its origins in Europe in the early 17th century to present day. They briefly cover the rise of different modes of travel, from steamship to railway to eventually air travel with the launch of Pan AM Airways in the late 1920’s. The essays are not arranged chronologically, but by topic, including burgeoning international travel, the development of national tourism, post war-politics and projects. Each essay crafts a contextual view of the growth and expansion of the industry while laying out various problems that began to arise along with the growth. He provides specific issues and the historical growth of tourism in various destinations including Peru, Chile, Ecuador, Cuba, Mexico, Guatemala and the Dominican Republic.

The various essays touch on how both politics and economics have played a role in the expansion. In, “Created by God” (or Columbus?) for Tourism: Building Tourism Fantasy in the Dominican Republic, 1966-1978, by Elizabeth Manley shows how the country’s leaders used tourism to bolster nationalism and post modern development as a means to economic growth. Dictator Rafael Trujillo and his successor Joaquin Balaguer, both pushed and developed a vast agenda to promote the Dominican Republic on the world stage as a fantasy idyllic playground to achieve national development of the country. From political to economic, there has always been a web of nations, businesses, and people groups all grappling over this vast area and its gold mines of riches, in both political and economic terms. This is just one example of many in the book that help the reader understand how complex and multifaceted the factors are that have given rise of tourism industry.

The volume successfully argues that tourism in Latin America and the Caribbean poses a significant political and scholarly problem. This growth and its negative impacts in the region are still expanding at an alarming rate. The essays included here are varied and provide a good background for someone looking to research or wanting an overview of the history of tourism in the region. The essays provide  insight on such significant topics as the use of domestic tourism as an economic driving force for development, as well as the different factors affecting that growth.

The volume would have benefited from including a few more recent perspectives. Woods highlights some very real issues facing the Caribbean today. However, most of the essays focus on the time period before the early 1980’s. 1990 to present day has seen drastic increases in both destinations and the number of travelers.  This has given rise to many more negative impacts. Real estate investment firms, cruise lines, venture capitalists and private businesses are exploiting the region and its people at an unfathomable pace, although the impact of Covid has caused some to question the region’s dependence on tourism.

The volume is a necessary read for anyone with an interest in sustainable tourism, humanitarian efforts and economic and social impacts on the Caribbean and Latin America.  It is extremely helpful in gaining a contextual historical background of the practices and policies that have shaped the industry of tourism in the region. Wood’s work provides a great understanding of tourism in Latin America and the Caribbean, but also highlights areas that he deems are in a state of crisis and need serious attention.

Much more scholarship, research and discussion among the major industries, entities and governments is needed to provide the necessary solutions for these rapidly expanding problems surrounding tourism. Wood’s edited volume is an excellent primer for anyone looking to gain a better understanding of the tourism industry in Latin America and Caribbean.