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What is Grand Tourism?
1. The origins of modern travel - What is Grand Tourism?
The origin of current tourism is said to be Britain's "Grand Tourism'' in the 18th century.
Tourism in this era was a time when the steam engine had not yet been invented, so there were no steam locomotives or cars (the invention of the steam locomotive gave rise to the modern image of mass tourism).
Therefore, sightseeing at that time was mainly done by horse-drawn carriage or on foot. You might think that it would not be possible to travel very long distances if you mainly traveled by horse-drawn carriage or on foot, but at the time, the Grand Tourism of England was mainly a journey from England across the sea to France and Italy. The travel periods were long, ranging from two months to several years.
2. Learning objectives and targets of the Grand Tourism
Historically, the Grand Tourism itself has been widely held in Europe since the 16th century. However, the British Grand Tourism is said to be the origin of modern tourism in that Britain made the Grand Tourism a custom and refined it into a social institution.
The Grand Tourism is "a journey that was included as a finishing touch to the education of the children of aristocrats before they entered society.'' Grand Tourism is conducted for "artistic or curatorial purposes'' such as learning new knowledge in a foreign country, visiting places expressed in works of ancient Greek or Latin literature learned in one's own country, or appreciating works of art. For this reason, the Grand Tourism is called an "educational trip.''
Even in Europe at the time, England was strongly influenced by Italian culture. For this reason, it was thought that going to Italy would be the best place for British children" to study".
The children of aristocrats will eventually inherit the family's territory and business, develop it financially, and play a role in society and the economy. Therefore, during his travels, they learned a wide range of topics, including the territory and business management of local aristocrats, and the politics and economics of other countries.
From the above, the Grand Tourism at that time was not only "artistic and cultural tourism", but also "B-to-B tourism for the development of one's own business".
3. The relationship between Grand Tourism and top private tutors
The biggest feature of the Grand Tourism is that "it always has a first-class tutor lead the trip.''
Private tutors for the children of aristocrats in this era were different from the cram school style tutors of today. Closer to the modern image, the top tutors of the time were "first-rate university professors and scholars.'' In fact, world-famous scholars Adam Smith and Thomas Hobbes also tutored the children of aristocrats and led them on their Grand Tourism.
The grand tourism begins before they even go on a trip. Children of aristocrats receive thorough education from private tutors before they travel. After that, they further improved the accuracy of their learning by observing real things, social, economic, and political issues at their destinations, and receiving lectures from tutors.