Tourism: Concepts and Practices was written to empower students and help them become future leaders in this great industry. It provides an overview of the world's largest and fastest growing industry groupings. Each chapter contains information about the numerous tourism segments, the many different areas of career opportunities, and career paths as well as profiles of industry practitioners and leaders. Tourism: Concepts and Practices features: Chapter learning objectives Check Your Knowledge questions throughout ""Focus On"" boxes offering unique personal perspectives Review questions for improving critical thinking skills Chapter Summaries ""Career Information"" describing the skills, challenges, and realities of various careers in the field Internet Exercises and Interesting Websites And much more! Tourism: Concepts and Practices is divided into five parts: 1. The Characteristics of Tourism This part introduces the characteristics of the tourism concepts and systems approach that forms the foundation of the text. 2. Organizing Tourism This part focuses on the organization of tourism. It examines the roles of international, national, regional, and state/local tourism organizations. 3. Operating Sectors 1 This part examines the first part of the operating sectors with an overview of the attractions and entertainment industry and the business of conventions, meetings, and expositions. 4. Social, Cultural, Heritage, and Eco-tourism This part highlights the social, cultural, heritage, and ecotourism impacts of tourism from the tourist's and host community's perspectives. 5. Operating Sectors 2 This part examines the second part of tourism operations. Distribution organizations are examined and their importance in the tourism system is explained.