Band 8 model answer

International travel allows people to encounter other cultures, yet the environmental toll of moving millions of tourists around the globe is enormous. Weighing these competing effects, I believe the disadvantages of mass international tourism now outweigh its advantages.

The cultural and economic benefits are real. Visiting other countries broadens the mind, fosters tolerance, and breaks down stereotypes by letting people experience different ways of life directly rather than through the media. Tourism is also a vital source of income and employment for many nations, funding the preservation of historic sites and supporting countless small hotels, restaurants, and guides who would otherwise struggle.

The environmental costs, however, have grown impossible to ignore. Air travel is a major and rising contributor to carbon emissions, and popular destinations suffer from the pollution, litter, and habitat destruction that crowds of visitors leave behind. Fragile ecosystems such as coral reefs and mountain trails are being eroded by sheer numbers, Venice and the beaches of Bali are now struggling to cope, while the construction of hotels and resorts consumes land and water that local communities desperately need.

Although cultural understanding is valuable, much of it can now be gained through other means, and economic gains are often concentrated in a few large operators; the environmental damage, by contrast, is widespread and, in the case of a changing climate, irreversible.

In conclusion, while international tourism enriches understanding and supports economies, the scale of its environmental harm, from carbon emissions to the degradation of natural sites, is, in my view, the more pressing concern, so its disadvantages outweigh its advantages.