ABSTRACT
Outdoor recreations, nature tourism, are the big growth areas in leisure and holiday activities. As the populations of most Western countries become more urbanized, and as work become less and less connected with the land, many more people are seeking to regain a connection with nature and with wild landscapes. During the Industrial Revolution a new kind of recreational demand arose among the middle and lower classes. Outdoor recreation is provided by many people and organizations. Some employ skilled recreation professionals, landscape architects and designers. 'The outdoors' is an all-embracing term that covers all those places where people feel they can achieve that special feeling of being 'away from it all'. Many of the places, the existing facilities and the expectations of what a visit to the great outdoors should consist of are almost traditional. Some wonderful designs date from the nineteenth or early twentieth Century. The chapter also presents an overview of the key concepts discussed in this book.
