Socio-Cultural Impacts of Tourism on Shanghai Research Paper

Socio-Cultural Impacts of Tourism on Shanghai - Research Paper Example Shanghai is the most industrialized metropolis in China and is counted as one of the major metropolitan cities of the world. Shanghai has more than 5,800 square kilometers. Most tourists visiting Shanghai are usually advised to travel with maps in order not to get lost. The metropolis is not only identified as a financial, economic, and trade center, but is also admired for its cultural as well as historical heritage. The capital city, Beijing, is approximately 1460 km away from Shanghai. Most tourists in China, who wish to visit Shanghai, usually take the two hour flight from the capital to Shanghai, or take a 17 hour train journey that allows them to enjoy the scenery. Shanghai tourist attractions are easy to get to from its main center. Some of these include the Yuyuan Gardens, the Bund, which is the embodiment of Shanghai's history in prominent architectural structures, the lake Dianshan Hu, and the Four Cornered Pagoda, which is locally referred to as the Fang Ta. Shanghai, which is China's business and financial headquarters, has in the recent past benefitted from a double-digit growth. The city got over 80 million foreign and domestic tourists in 2001, alone. No town in China has fully embraced modernity and technology in the same way as Shanghai has. When in Shanghai, a tourist may get the illusion that he or she is in Europe or America and not Communist China. Shanghai radiates a cosmopolitan quality that is characterized by the contemporary lifestyles of its citizens, busy industrial and financial districts, skyscrapers, one of the busiest harbors in the area and ultra-chic business centers like museums, hotels, and shopping malls. While Be ijing is recognized as the center of the political government of China, which sponsors the Chinese academic institutions, Shanghai is known worldwide as China’s economic center and an incredibly enterprising city. Once a tiny and sleepy fishing rural community in the 1800s, Shanghai has been turned into a most enchanting, decadent and refined Chinese city. According to (Moscardo 3), â€Å"Shanghai has been dubbed as the "Paris of the East." International tourism takes place when citizens from different nations travel across intercontinental borders outside their normal homes as well as places of work, and stay for more than 24 hours in their places of visitation. The motivations for such trips are diverse, but usually recognized as being largely influenced by health, recreation, friendship and family visits, education, business, sports, and religion. As one of the most significant sources of foreign exchange revenue, and an investment catalyst, knowledge disseminator, and em ployment generator, international tourism has grown to be one of Shanghai’s most significant industries. Tourism has developed swiftly in Shanghai. At present, China is investing a lot of capital in promoting tourism and revising laws that govern its tourist industry. In the coming years, China expects to experience even more growth in this area, with the lion share of this development taking place in Shanghai. China’s tourism industry was somewhat affected by SARS scare but recovered swiftly. China is projected to be the world’s most fashionable tourist destination in the next decade. According to (Pike and Ryan 333), â€Å"tourism in Shanghai is a colossal labor intensive business that