One of the great attractions of becoming a diplomat is the opportunity to live in different places abroad. Lots of people travel abroad but, unlike diplomats, they tend only to stay for a short period.
I notice there is a lot of argument in cyberspace about the differences between “a tourist” and “a traveller”: I liked the suggestion that “tourists go on holiday, travellers go travelling”. But both leave their homes to visit other places for leisure, rather than for necessity. How long they stay, how they pass their time in the place, and how they spend their money, may be very different.
Humans have travelled for leisure for centuries. But until the modern industrial age, most tourism was the preserve of a very few. Most travelled to trade, find work or, at the most extreme, to fight. Pilgrims travelled to visit holy sites or relics. Explorers travelled for adventure, and to make their fortune, which a few did spectacularly. But few travelled for leisure.
It was only after industrialisation, and the development of means of mass transport, that tourism as an activity and business took off. The first great British tour operator was Thomas Cook. The company he founded still bears his name, although ownership has passed through many hands. He organised trips in Britain on the new railways in the 1840s, and a few years later he started organising travel abroad.
Today, tourism is often thought of as travel abroad, although I think there is as much tourism within a country as there is across borders. Foreign tourists may be more important because they bring more money into a country, as they tend to need hotels and other services.
My sense is that Britons are more avid tourists of other countries than many other nationalities. But this may be my prejudice – I don’t know how.
The main reason is very simple: climate. Many Britons want to spend time in the sun as a change from our damp, mild and cloudy weather. Not surprisingly, Spain and other Mediterranean countries are by far the most popular destination.
We also have a very long history of travelling abroad by boat for trade. This strong maritime tradition was an important element of our industrial revolution. Not only did we develop industrial manufacturing, but we had the capacity to ship products around the world. Travelling for leisure was an extension of travelling for business.
Then there is the fact that we live on relatively small, crowded and homogenous islands. There may be some variety in our landscapes, if not so much in our weather. And there are many places of departure where we can leave by boat, plane, and, since 1994, by train.
Add to that, a romantic element. Many Britons still have the sense of adventure, of wishing to explore the wider world “out there”. And we seem to love writing about travel experiences. One of the first and most widely read novels is Daniel Defoe’s Robinson Crusoe, published nearly three centuries ago. It is the story of how a man survived his shipwreck.
Modern tourism has diversified from being merely a holiday in the sun. Now there are all sorts of tourism to cater for a wide range of interests and activities. So many people travel to see exotic wildlife, taste unfamiliar food and drink, look at different cultural heritages, and go hiking or other types of exercise – from the extreme of mountain climbing to the calm of yoga.
And perhaps British tourists are luckier than many because of the dominance of the English language. In Minsk, if not all over Belarus, there are many more signs now in English. And as I’ve found, the thirst to speak English with a native speaker is very high here.
The Belarusian government recently decided to reduce the visa fee for British citizens. Their calculation is that lower fees could tempt more tourists to visit the country. As the British government’s representative in the country, I’m very pleased that they have taken this step. I would welcome more visits from my fellow Britons to experience Belarus, and have some idea of what life is like here.
I can’t say that without reminding any British readers that they should plan before they travel. They can look at our travel advice – and “know before they go”.
I look forward to meeting more of them in Minsk, and maybe elsewhere in Belarus. There is a lot to see.