Tourism as we know it is a surprisingly modern concept, both a product of modernity and a force helping to shape it. From the British Grand Tour in the sixteenth century to the onset of contemporary mass tourism, travel has played a crucial role in the rise of globalization and the development of the modern world.

Introduction: Modern Tourism
1. Beginnings: The Grand Tour
2. The Sublime and Beautiful
3. The Age of Steam
4. Packaging New Trips
5. Guidebooks and the Importance of Seeing the Sights
6. Tourism in an Age of Empires and Nationalism
7. Bicycles, Automobiles, and Aircraft
8. Tourism During the Interwar Years
9. Tourism in the Postwar
10. Mass Tourism
Conclusion: Never Ask An Historian About the Future.

From the footsteps of Herodotus to the vapour trails of jetsetters, Eric G. E. Zuelow succinctly guides readers through centuries of human travel. His brisk narrative unpacks how tourism industries and the pursuit of leisure created the modern world.' - Anthony Stanonis, Queen's University Belfast, UK 'Eric G. E. Zuelow offers a narrative as enriching and engrossing as the Grand Tour, but in a manner as accessible as a Cook's tour. Surveying the long history of travel, he captures nuance and detail with literary elan. Whether on a beach or a train, in a library of a classroom, it will greatly reward all who read it.' - Kevin James, Univesrity of Guelph, Canada 'A History of Modern Tourism [...] is a readable account of how tourism has developed since The Grand Tour of the 18th century. It looks at movers and shakers in the tourism sector [...] and at how the industry has shaped globalisation and the modern world.' - Adam Nebbs, South China Morning Post