Travel Destinations Geography and Tourism in North America

● Geographically North America includes Canada, the U.S. and Mexico ● Mexico, however, is usually included with Central-Latin America

North America ● The U.S. and Canada are similar because they have the same general ethnic origins and a product of the Industrial Revolution

North America ● Is a major food supplier because of its fertile soils ● Has a high total per capita consumption of resources and consumer goods ● Is more dependent on the automobile than any other country in the world

North America ● Tourism is a major element of life ● One of the largest origin regions for international tourism ● One of the largest destination regions ● Millions of attractions

North America ● Wealthy ● Mobile ● Highly Educated ● Lots of Leisure time ● Buy lots of consumer goods ● World leaders in international and domestic travel

Landform in North America ● Canadian Shield: Rolling hills of igneous rock once covered by glaciers, has high content of mineral resources ● Atlantic Coastal Plain: along Atlantic seaboard, often sunken areas, may have poor drainage ● Piedmont: transition zone between Appalachian mountains and Atlantic Coastal plains, contains fall line, which is the point at which streams descend to plains, usually farthest point ships can travel upstream

Landform in North America ● Appalachian Mountains: Low level mountains in eastern U.S. rarely exceed 5,000 feet ● Central Lowlands: agricultural heart of America, formed by Ohio River and Mississippi River in the U.S. and by the Great Lakes and St. Lawrence River in Canada

Landform in North America ● Great Plains: in Canada and the U.S., 500 to 5000 feet above sea level, more than half the land mass, fertile land for agriculture ● Western Mountains: Rocky Mountains, Coast mountains

Landform in North America ● River Systems: include the Great Lakes, the St. Lawrence Seaway, Mississippi, Arkansas, Ohio, and Missouri Rivers, provides low cost transportation of goods by barge.

Climate ● Ten major climatic types in North America ranging from Desert (SW U.S.A.) to Humid Subtropical (Arkansas and middle America) to frozen Tundra (far North Canada)

Tourism Characteristics ● Major importance to North America ● Travel is unequalled in world ● U.S. has highest amount of money spent on international and domestic travel ● Infrastructure of tourism industry in Canada is similar to U.S. ● Airports, train stations, bus terminals

Tourism Destinations & Attractions ● Sporting/Adventure: Outdoor activities, hunting, fishing, camping, canoeing ● Wilderness/Expedition: Trophy hunting, safaris, rugged terrain ● Leisure/Recreation: recreational, often one day trips, caters to large populations ● Beach/Recreation: water destinations, mostly leisure

Tourism Destinations & Attractions ● Heritage/Culture: based on heritage, folklore, rituals, traditions, local routines ● Urban: visiting cities ● Resort: activities associated with the area, skiing, spas, mountains, fishing etc. ● Scenic: has no specific destination, seeing the country side