Through deep and insightful dispatches from tourist spots around the globe--from Hawaii to Saudi Arabia, Amsterdam to Angkor Wat--The New Tourist shines a light on an industry that accounts for one in ten jobs worldwide and generates nearly ten percent of global GDP. How did a once-niche activity become the world's most important means of contact across cultures? When does tourism destroy the soul of a city, and when does it offer a place a new lease on life? Is "last chance tourism" prompting a powerful change in perspective--or driving places we love further into the ground?

"Engaging and thoughtful" (Kirkus Reviews) and filled with page-turning revelations, The New Tourist spotlights painful truths but also delivers a message of hope: that the right kind of tourism--and the right kind of tourist--can be a powerful force for good.