GT Writing Task 2 / Essay Sample # 240
You should spend about 40 minutes on this task.
Write about the following topic:
These days many tourists like to visit places where conditions are very difficult, like deserts and mountains, and their number is increasing.
What are the advantages and disadvantages of this trend?
Give reasons for your answer and include any relevant examples from your own knowledge or experience.
Write at least 250 words.
Model Answer:
There is an increasing trend for travellers to explore remote and hard-to-access places, like the Sahara desert, Mount Everest, or the South Pole, of late. This essay will expound on the positive and negative aspects of this phenomenon.
There are different advantages to visiting places with extreme ambience. First and foremost, a trip to a place with difficult conditions is quite an adventure for the tourists. For example, the South Pole sky is the ultimate degree of expedition according to many daredevils. In addition to this, tourists can get a glimpse into the wildlife that no aquarium or zoo can ever really replicate. For example, Antarctica is the paradise of the world’s most rare species such as the Weddell seal, emperor penguin, albatross, petrel, to mention but a few. Besides, adventurers can take stunning photographs of breathtaking landscapes. A case in point is the Sahara Desert. From beautiful oasis to brilliant white colours of the stones are best seen in the sweet light of the morning and dusk hours when surreal images can be taken. Finally, such extreme tourism boosts travellers’ confidence.
However, expeditions also bring about damage to the places. It has a devastating impact on breeding animals. That is to say that animals are made anxious by an influx of tourists that may cause them to vacate a habitat altogether if frequently disturbed. For instance, there is myriad evidence of birds that previously nested near the Antarctic bases abandoned due to the constant human activity around the area. Likewise, the growing number of tourists causes the depletion of local natural resources, pollution, and waste issue as well. Finally, this extreme tourism claims the lives of many travellers and often brings unfathomable devastation to travellers.
In conclusion, although tourism in places with dire conditions reaps many benefits, the negative impacts of visitors should not be overlooked as well. Therefore, governments should make every effort to sustain the environment as well as encourage eco-tourism to save the environment and lives.