What Is Sex Tourism?

5483 Words22 Pages
What is sex tourism? Numerous definitions have been put forth in attempt to describe what amounts to sex tourism. “Sex tourism features national or international travel with an aim of seeking sexual encounter. Sexual partners may include women, minors, homosexuals, and transvestites” (Bags). Sex tourism is linked to prostitution as it involves exchange of money for sex with its main components being travel, sex, and financial exchange. Studies and research on sex tourism has proven difficult as scholars seek to establish whether sex is only motivating factor behind sex tourism or simply a component of the entire experience. The sociological impact of the vice on the participants and community at large as well as the economic impacts of the activity on society is also quite difficult to clearly determine. This is because it is extremely difficult to conduct objective research on sex tourism due to its illegality alongside the high level of informality associated with it. This creates a situation whereby researchers fall short on factual statistics. Sex tourism results in exploitation of children and promotes human trafficking. The questions regarding what amounts to sex tourism have been debated over time. Many people deny having been involved in sex tourism. Sex tourism is one of the most sensational issues in the tourism industry. It involves engaging in tourism for purposes of consummating commercial sex relations. “Sex tourism consists of people from economically developed nations traveling to under developed countries specifically to purchase the sexual services of local men, women and children” (Taylor and Davidson). Concerns over prevalence of sex tourism especially in Asia and Africa have risen not only due to the disempowering nature of such engagement, but also due to the social, health, and economic implications associated with it. Furthermore, some
Open Document