ABSTRACT
This introduction presents an overview of key concepts covered in the subsequent chapters of the book. The book draws on a range of international contexts to deepen the understanding of the role of violence in shaping touristic practices. The study of tourism has a duty to think through violence to examine not only tourism but also the nature and place of violence in society at large. Cross-border medical based tourism is now a well-established niche' in the practice of tourism where people move across national boundaries to undertake plastic surgery, fertility treatment and in some cases routine operations. Violence is manifest in many aspects of touristic practices and encounters which includes: violence between individuals, violence as an attraction, the interconnections of violence and tourism with structural inequalities which can impact not only on the political economy of whole destinations but also personal relations and health or the practicalities of touristic activity in the form of technological developments.
