A six-part series, filmed over an entire tourist season in four continents, examining how and why the tourist business first evolved, and how the world has altered as a result.
The desire to get away from everyday reality first found expression in the taking of scenic holidays in the English countryside.
In the present day, some tourists find it necessary to travel halfway around the globe to find peace and isolation.
The series examines the cultural and commercial impact of this travel, and the connections tourism has with work and leisure, fantasy and national identity.
For the past 250 years the Lake District has provided the raw material for an array of poets, painters and guide-book writers. But today that region is almost too well known for those in search of more unspoilt scenery. This film travels from the Lake District to the Gobi Altai region of south-west Mongolia to observe a group of contemporary tourists savouring the still desolate landscape of Genghis Khan and the elusive snow leopard.
(PDC 9.10-10.00 173194)
See Polly Toynbee : page 12