North America

Describing North America as a Realm Consists of Canada and USA (Hawaii excluded)

Major Cities of the Realm Canada USA Toronto Montreal Vancouver Ottawa New York Los Angeles Chicago Washington D.C. Dallas Philadelphia Houston Selected by population in metropolitan area  see next slide: map of megalopolis!

The Emerging Megaregions of North America Red colored: megalopolis BosWash (Boston to Washington D.C.)  total population: 45 mil. people Light orange: Chipitts (Chicago to Pittsburgh) also with parts of Canada! All together: population 54 mil people yellow: SanSan (San Francisco to San Diego)  total population about 36 mil people  three biggest and most important mega regions of North America

North America: Climate (Köppen/Geiger) Canada and Alaska mostly: humid cold climate (D) Northeast of US: humid cold climate (D) Rest of US: dry to humid temperate climate (B, C)

Physical Geography of North America

Economy in North America Canada USA high-tech industrial society US's largest foreign supplier of energy $1.77 trillion GDP largest and most technologically powerful economy in the world world leading high-technology innovator, second largest industrial output in world $15.65 trillion GDP

North America: Population Facts Category Canada USA Population 34,586,211 316,668,567 Median Age 41.2 years 37.1 years Population Growth Rate 0.784 % 0.9 % Life Expectancy (at birth) 81.48 years 78.49 years HIV/AIDS Rate 0.3% 0.6% Unemployment Rate 7.3% 8.2% Population below Poverty Line 9.4.% 15.1 % Canada has no real poverty line, measured by comparing to same economically developed countries

Population Pyramids in Comparison Birth Rate; Canada: 10.28 births on a population of 1,000 and USA: 13.7 births on a population of 1,000 Death Rate; Canada: 8.09 deaths on a pop. Of 1,000 and USA: 8.4 deaths on a pop. Of 1,000 Net Migration Rate; Canada: 5.65 migrants on a pop. Of 1,000 and USA: 3.62 migrants on a pop. Of 1,000

North America’s Capital Consumption in Comparison to the World Rostow’s Model (Stages of Growth)  Canada and USA: Stage 5 (Age of High Mass Consumption)

Tourism Geography of North America USA Canada one of the world’s leading destinations 6% of the GDP in tourism industry 7.9 million people employed in tourism sector 5% of the GDP in tourism industry 10% of the employed Canadians work in the tourism sector

The Demand for Tourism (USA) Domestic Tourism: limited time for leisure available for most Americans of working age workers in the US on average have 19 days of paid annual leave (including public holidays) compared to 24 days in Europe Trend: short weekend breaks: before Memorial Day in late May after Labor Day in early September Thanksgiving in late November Average working week in the US: 43 hours (compared to 38 hours in the UK) Other events for short trips: theme park visiting, sports tourism, shopping tours, health tourism/spas, outdoor recreational activities like fishing, golf, skiing

The Demand for Tourism (USA) Outbound Tourism: Only 18% of the trips are to foreign countries 58 million people travel outside of the USA Over 50% of outbound travels are to Canada or Mexico Major overseas destinations: UK, Japan and Italy and the Caribbean Caribbean mostly for leisure like cruises

The Demand for Tourism (USA) Inbound Tourism: 63 million arrivals/year Almost a third from Canada Others from Mexico Japan, South Korea Western Europe UK Germany France Italy

The Supply Side of Tourism (USA) Transport private car air transport bus trains Accommodation CAR: USA has the highest car ownership in the world, nearly 80% of holiday trips are taken by car in the 50s the Interstate Highway System was developed  provides a nationwide motorway network and makes it easy to travel AIR TRANSPORT: 10% of holiday trips taken with airplane fares are quite cheap due to the big competition between the airlines BUS: Greyhounds, major bus company  less than 3% of holidays taken with busses  down-market TRAIN: Amtrak Trains  affordable and huge network all over the States they also provide “Historic routes” like the “Empire Builder” from Chicago to Seattle right now: California High Speed Rail is a project with a new upcoming railroad network ACCOMMODATION: hotels, motels, resorts, themed hotels like in Las Vegas, B&Bs, or trailer parks for recreational vehicles

Regional Examples for the Supply Side in Tourism (USA) Business Travel to Washington D.C., Boston, New York, Chicago, Salt Lake City, Houston, Los Angeles and San Francisco Coast of Maine  sailing, fishing, canoeing, historic seaports New York City Atlantic City and Las Vegas NYC: earn about 25 billion dollars/year in tourism and supporting 380.000 jobs world class cultural attractions, sports, range of restaurants and fashion metro pole Atlantic City and Las Vegas: boardwalks, gambling, themed hotels (Las Vegas has about 10% of USA’s hotel capacity)

Regional Examples for the Supply Side in Tourism (USA) Florida: “The Sunshine State” Constant flow of tourists all over the year Retirement area Orlando: over 35 million visitors/year  World Disney World (theme park capital) White sand beaches and sport facilities Florida also very attractive in winter  Tourist arrivals from USA, Canada, Latin America, Western Europe

Regional Examples for the Supply Side in Tourism (USA) Great Lakes: Lake Erie Lake Huron Lake Michigan Lake Superior Lake Ontario Rocky Mountains Great Canyon Great Lakes: fine beaches, shoreline of spectacular riffs (20% of world’s fresh water supply)  recreational area very close to megalopolis (fishing, boating, relaxing at the beaches etc.)

Rocky Mountains National Park, Colorado Hiking, Watching Wildlife, Fishing, Swimming, Rafting

Grand Canyon National Park, Arizona Helicopter Tours, even Hiking, Climbing

Yellowstone National Park, Wyoming (Montana, Idaho) Hiking, Camping, Picnicking, Do Ranger Programs, Bicycling, Boating, Fishing, Wildlife Viewing, Horseback Riding and Llama Packing

Death Valley National Park, California/ Nevada One of the lowest, driest and hottest locations on earth Hiking, Backpacking, Camping, Biking, Wildlife Watching

Regional Examples for the Supply Side in Tourism (USA) California  “The Golden State” Warm sunny climate and a variety of its scenery Northern California Yosemite National Park Monterey  Beaches and Aquarium Calistoga  Spa Area Napa Valley  Wine Region Redwood Forests Lake Tahoe and Sierra Nevada Mountains  Ski resorts Northern California: slightly cooler than the rest of California, very comfortable for outdoor recreation

Regional Examples for the Supply Side in Tourism (USA) Los Angeles: Santa Monica and Venice Beach Disneyland Hollywood San Francisco: Fisherman’s Wharf Cable Cars Golden Gate Bridge Alcatraz Beautiful shoreline along the Pacific, beach resorts Disneyland (birthplace of America's theme parks) Hollywood: film studios as attractions….exclusiveness and luxury San Francisco: most scenic and European of all north American cities Tolerance of lifestyles Although California and also Oregon and Washington have some problems with earthquakes etc. because of the Pacific Ring of Fire…tourism is booming!

Yosemite National Park, California Refer to National Park Paper in Class!!! UNESCO world natural heritage since 1984 Famous for mountains, glaciers, wildlife, waterfalls, clear streams Popular tourist activities: Hiking, Climbing, Skiing in winter times and watching wildlife  USA AND CANADA care very much about their National and State Parks….very good protection programs to keep the nature and environment as natural as possible!!!!!!!!

The Demand for Tourism (Canada) Domestic Tourism: far larger in volume and expenditure than inbound or outbound tourism British Columbia and Prince Edward Island  most favored holiday destinations for Canadians as in the USA

The Demand for Tourism (Canada) Outbound Tourism: 10 million/year people travel outside of Canada mostly to the US but also to Mexico, the Caribbean, Europe and East Asia US-American border: New York, Vermont, Michigan and Washington most visited Florida in winter time Canadian winter is the main reason for Canadians to travel outside of the country Florida, especially for retired people, spend several months there..will increase because of aging society

The Demand for Tourism (Canada) Inbound Tourism: 16 million arrivals/year biggest part from the USA less than 10% from Europe safe cities, same language and familiar culture makes Americans feel more comfortable and secure in their environment

The Supply Side of Tourism (Canada) Transport problems for vehicles and road maintenance in winter VIA Rail domestic trips by car air travel (AirCanada) Accommodation major cities are linked to world’s longest national road (Trans-Canada-Highway) ACCOMMODATION: luxury hotels all over the country, like Chateau Frontenac, Quebec or at scenic locations like at the Rocky Mountains at Banff and Lake Louise popular homes: cabins or cottages adventure seekers: camping of course!

Regional Examples for the Supply Side in Tourism (Canada) Winter Recreation Activities Business Travel in Ontario, Toronto, Ottawa, Vancouver and Montréal Summers in Southern and Western Canada: outdoor activities incl. beach tourism and water sports, boating, canoeing, hunting and fishing Northern Canada: polar bear and whale watching Ontario: one third of Canada´s hotel capacity  easily reached by road from NY or Michigan Montréal in Québec: very appealing because of French charme, little restaurants, nightclubs, cafés etc. Le Souterrain (underground shopping mall to protect people if winter is too hard and long)  served by an efficient metro system Vancouver: especially appealing to visitors from Japan, China and other Asian countries

Regional Examples for the Supply Side in Tourism (Canada) West Edmonton Mall, Alberta Victoria on Vancouver Island Banff National Park The Rocky Mountains Niagara Area West Edmonton Mall: largest shopping mall of North America, for 23 years even largest in the world)  31 million visitors/year Bungee-Jumping, swimming pool, theme park with inside roller coasters, ice-skating and IMAX inside!!! Victoria: holiday resort and retirement area (very appealing to people from the West Coast) Niagara Area (including waterfalls, theatre festivals and wine area)

The Rocky Mountains (Canada) Hiking, Watching Wildlife, Fishing, Swimming, Rafting

Banff National Park, Alberta Most popular area, 4 mil. Visitors/year All-year-resort: skiing, water-rafting, boating, hiking, also restaurants, golf courses and other facilities near of the park: heli-skiing and heli-hiking

Niagara Falls State Park in USA/Canada American Falls Bridal Veil Falls Canadian Falls Picture taken from Canadian side

References Boniface, B.& Cooper, C. (2009). worldwide destinations: The Geography of travel and tourism (5th ed.). Oxford, UK: Butterworth-Heinemann de Blij, H.J.& Muller, P.O. (2004). Geography Realm, Regions, and Concepts (11th ed.). Hoboken, New Jersey: John Wiley& Sons, Inc. (2002) Diercke Weltatlas Ausgabe 2. Braunschweig, Germany: Westermann druck http://www.worldbank.org/ https://www.cia.gov/library/publications/the-world-factbook/index.html http://www.unwto.org/ personal database