Overtourism ESL Lesson Plan

OBJECTIVE & OVERVIEW

This overtourism ESL lesson plan provides activities, PDF worksheets, and digital materials designed for advanced C1 students. In this lesson, students will:

• Analyze and discuss various causes & impacts of global tourism
• Use the present continuous in the passive voice to discuss ongoing impacts
• Learn a variety of collocations and vocabulary terms related to overtourism
• Express opinions on overtourism and negotiate tourism policies
• Explore different destinations that are strongly impacted by global tourism

PREVIEW & DISCUSSION

In the first section of this ESL lesson plan on overtourism, students use a mind map to explore some topics related to overtourism. For example, students explore different causes, consequences, and locations most heavily affected by overtourism. This leads into a part where students can explore and discuss questions about mass tourism. Then, students can talk about some elements that impact or contribute to mass tourism, including Instagram & social media, budget airlines, long-haul flights, cruise ships, and Airbnb accommodation. The last part focuses on some collocations students can make to talk about some of the impacts of overtourism.

VIEWING ACTIVITY

There is an informative news report for students to watch as a part of this lesson. In the video, they talk about some of the places most heavily impacted by mass tourism, and what the consequences have been. They also explore the history of tourism and some of the main factors that drive mass tourism today. In the activities, students match sentences about global tourism today and its history with the correct endings. They also listen for information and discuss the influence that Instagram, budget airlines, long-haul flights, cruise ships, and Airbnb accommodation have had on tourism.

DISCUSSION & GRAMMAR

In the section that comes after the video, students get to discuss some questions. These questions are mostly based on student opinions on overtourism. For example, one of the questions is based on who is to blame for the consequences caused by mass tourism — individuals, policymakers, or someone else.

After that, there is an imaginary scenario in which residents in Barcelona, Spain are protesting overtourism. Students complete their statements using some verbs provided. Here, students get to practice and answer questions about the use of the present continuous in the passive voice.

For example, some of the statements include:

• Our historical center is being inundated by tourists!
• We are being driven out of our apartment rentals by the spike in housing prices!

In the third part, students can explore some of the positive impacts of tourism using the same structure: the present continuous in the passive voice.

TOURISM REGULATION: POLICY & DEBATE

In this communicative activity, students get to choose from two options:

• Option A: Tourism Policy Debate
• Option B: Areas being impacted by tourism

In the first option, students work with a classmate or their teacher. They choose a region or city that is being impacted by tourism. They take a role for a role play, and get some time to prepare. In the role play, students imagine that they are tourism policymakers in the same city/region they chose. They must debate and negotiate new tourism regulations for the city.

In the second option, there is a list of areas that are being impacted by mass tourism today. These places include Venice, Italy, Machu Picchu, Peru, and a few others. Students are encouraged to discuss and can even research these places and what kinds of impacts there have been. They discuss what measures are being taken to minimize these impacts.

BENEFITS OF USING THIS OVERTOURISM ESL LESSON PLAN

• Collaborative Learning: Engaging in communicative activities such as tourism policy debates or discussions about impacted areas encourages collaborative learning. Students work together to analyze issues and propose solutions.
• Critical Thinking: Since students analyze and discuss various causes and impacts of global tourism, they get the chance to practice critical thinking skills as they consider complex issues related to overtourism.
• Cultural Awareness: Through discussions about different destinations impacted by global tourism, students can gain insight into the cultural, social, and environmental aspects of overtourism in various regions.