Tourist Attraction and Entertainment

              旅游胜地和娱乐活动

                                Author Unknown（佚名）

Major tourist attractions include large cities, seashore areas warm climates and ski resorts. For most people, almost any place can become a tourist destination as long as it is different from the place where the traveller usually lives. New York may not be a tourist attraction to a New Yorker, but for a Londoner it may have many charms.

主要的旅游胜地包括大城市、气候温暖的海滨和滑雪胜地。对大多数人来说，只要与旅游者通常居住的地方不同，几乎任何地方都可以成为旅游的目的地。对纽约人而言，纽约可能不是一个旅游胜地，但对一个伦敦人来说，它却可能有许多吸引人的地方。

In addition to being major business centers, large cities offer scenic attractions and cultural entertainment for all kinds of people with a variety of tastes. Cultural events occur frequently, including theatrical and operatic performances, concerts, ballets and art exhibitions, to name just a few. At the opposite end of the scale,there is a great variety of nightlife to choose from in urban centers, and also a wide selection of restaurants. Shopping is an attraction for many visitors, whether in the great department stores of New York, Tokyo and Hong Kong or in the boutiques of Paris and London. Many big cities also offer a unique atmosphere and history. The Great Wall and the Palace Museum of Beijing and the flower vendors and cable cars of San Francisco are part of the unusual atmosphere of the those cities.

除了作为主要的商业中心外，大城市还向品味不同的各种游客提供引人入胜的风景和文化娱乐。频繁举行的文化活动包括戏剧和歌剧演出、音乐会、芭蕾舞表演和艺术展览等，举不胜举。与之形成对照的是，在市中心有各种各样的夜生活任你挑选，还有各种各样的餐馆可供选择。无论是在纽约、东京和香港的大百货公司，还是在巴黎和伦敦的精品店，购物对许多游客都具有吸引力。许多大城市还让人感受到一种独特的气氛和历史。北京的长城和故宫，旧金山的花店和电缆车，都是这些城市与众不同的氛围的一部分。

Large cities of course do not have a monopoly on architectural of historical monuments. Smaller towns and rural areas throughout the world have attractions of this kind that tourists visit. Excellent examples are the valley of the Loire River in France, with its chateaux from the Renaissance period, and the village of Zhou Zhuang in China's Jiangsu Province, a small county town crowned as “the Venice of the Orient.”

当然，并非只有大城市才有建筑学或历史上有价值的建筑物。世界各地较小的城镇及乡村地区也有这一类吸引旅游者的景观。法国卢瓦尔河谷有着从文艺复兴时期遗留下来的城堡，中国江苏省的小乡镇周庄被冠以“东方威尼斯”的美称。这些都是极好的例子。

Natrural scenery has always been an attraction for tourists. Millions of people have visited Niagara Falls, for example. Its reputation as a honeymoon destination is world famous. In its National Park system the United States has institutionalized, so to speak, the wonders of nature. Areas such as Yellow-stone Park and the Grand Canyon have been set aside for the enjoyment of the public. The hardier species of tourist will travel further and undertake discomfort and difficulty just to look at beautiful or unusual scenery in the remote corners of the world--a glimpse of Mount Everest, for example, or of Angel Falls in Venezuela.

In some place, shopping has been made a tourist magnet by government policy. Free ports are established where buyers can purchase goods from all over the world without paying customs duties. Hong Kong is perhaps the most famous example. Hong Kong is of course a large city and commercial center, but its principal draw for tourists has been the bargains offered in its shops.

自然风景一直都对旅游者具有吸引力。例如，已有数以百万计的人参观了尼亚加拉瀑布。作为一个度蜜月的好去处，它举世闻名。可以说，美国已经把自然奇观至于它的国家公园体系中。诸如黄石公园和大峡谷等地区已经被留出来专供公众享受。较能吃苦的旅游者则会走得更远，并能经受不便和困难，为的只是看一看世界偏远地区的美丽或非同寻常的景色——比如，看一眼珠穆朗玛峰或委内瑞拉的安赫尔瀑布。

在有些地方，政府政策使购物成为吸引旅游者的一种方式。自由港的建立使购物者无需付关税就能买到世界各地的货物。香港也许是个最著名的例子。香港当然是一个大城市和商业中心，但是它对旅游者的主要吸引力在于它的商店所提供的便宜货。

Holiday resorts usually attract tourists because of their sunny beaches, snow-covered ski slopes, or championship golf courses. At ski resorts, there is often an atmosphere of informality around a roaring fire after the day's skiing is finished. At more cosmopolitan resorts like Miami Beach, there may be nightclubs and stage shows.

Many resorts give instruction in scuba diving combined with visits to coral reefs.

A cruise ship is a floating hotel where passengers, apart from visiting a number of well-chosen international ports, can enjoy a part atmosphere throughout the voyage. Games, dancings, costume parties and other activities are devised within the ship's rather limited space. Big-name entertainers are often hired for the entire trip. Most cruise ships employ a social director whose job includes involving all of the passengers in the activities that are offfered.

度假胜地通常以其阳光充足的海滩、积雪覆盖的滑雪山坡或锦标赛高尔夫球场来吸引旅游者。在滑雪胜地，一天滑雪结束后，围坐在熊熊的火堆旁常常有一种无拘无束的气氛。在更具世界性的圣地如迈阿密滩，也许还有夜总会和舞台演出。许多度假胜地提供带水肺的潜水及参观珊瑚礁的指导。

游轮是一座游动的浮动的旅馆。乘客除了参观一些精心挑选的国际港口外，还能够在整个航程中享受一种聚会的气氛。游戏、跳舞、化装舞会及其他活动都设计在游轮有限的空间里进行。知名演艺人员常常受雇为整个旅程服务。大多数游轮雇用一位社交主管，他的工作包括使所有的乘客参与游轮上所提供的活动。

While the majority of tourists nowadays prefer to travel in groups with their entertainment and sightseeing included in the tour package, some tourists prefer personalized tours which provide the comfort of a guide to show them around. These more independent tourists may request tour services through their hotel or a local agency. Of course, a personalized tour is more costly than a package, or group tour, and caters to the needs of those who can afford them.

虽然时下多数旅游者偏爱将娱乐和观光包含在一起的团队旅游，但有些旅游者却偏爱个性化的旅游。这种旅游提供导游，给于他们游览景点及进行一切必要安排的方便。这些独立性较强的旅游者可以要求他们的旅店或当地的旅行社提供旅游服务。当然，个性化的旅游比包价旅游或团队旅游花费要贵一些，但他满足了那些负担得起的消费者的需要。