The great outdoors and the wonders of the West beckoned to urbanized Easterners, some of whom, like Theodore Roosevelt, never recovered from the pleasant shock. At the same time, the first-class accommodations offered by more than a dozen competing transatlantic steamship companies provided wealthy Americans with a sybaritic experience that made travelling as enjoyable as arriving. The widespread ownership of cars revolutionized resort travel by making it possible to situate hotel and recreational sites far from both cities and railroad stations. Florida and California owe much of their development to the American's love affair with the automobile.
Tourism differs from travel as leisure differs from labor.
People travel for any number of reasons, from business to war or religion. Tourism, however, is travel undertaken for pleasure. Depending on individual tastes, it may involve rest and relaxation, sports, cultural exchanges, educational and aesthetic experiences, or eating and shopping. As a modern multimillion-dollar business, it caters to the tourist's need for transportation, accommodation, food, entertainment, recreation, health, souvenirs, and social contact. Mass tourism is a relatively modern phenomenon, but travelers have reacted as tourists, regardless of the purpose of their journeys, since the beginning of recorded history.