ABSTRACT
From a spatial point of view, tourism worldwide has developed in relatively restricted areas. Diversity and quality of tourist resources in these areas have formed a certain hierarchy between them, directing tourism flows and matching tourists’ needs with the potential of various tourist areas and centres. However, generally speaking, tourism at all levels is characterized by a marked degree of concentration. There seems little doubt that many of the negative impacts attributed to tourism have been accentuated by this process of concentration, the extent of which varies from area to area and from place to place, depending on the resource characteristics, the kind of tourism involved and the type of measure used. The degree of concentration or dispersion at a particular scale is related to the overall stage of development of the country, region, resort or city. The concentration results from the interaction of a variety of supply and demand factors which may operate in similar ways at different scales. The resources which attract tourists are numerous and varied, but at each level these attractions are generally rather limited in number, distribution, degree of development and the extent to which they are known to the tourist. At almost all levels, distance plays a major role in influencing which attractions and resorts are accessible to particular markets or tourists.
