The respected Comrade
"A favourable climate and good conditions for investment should be created in our economic development zones in order to revitalize their operation, and wide-scale tourism should be encouraged."
Tourist resources have specific features that distinguish them from common economic resources such as underground resources, marine resources and land resources used to create the material living conditions of the people.
First of all, tourist resources are characterized by their diversity.
The diversity of tourist resources means that they exist in a variety of forms and have various functions.
Tourist resources exist in a variety of forms.
Generally, the resources used for the production of material wealth include manpower resources and other social resources, but in many cases they include the natural resources.
However, tourist resources include both the natural resources such as mountains, caves, seas, rivers, animals and plants, and the social resources such as monumental structures and historic sites and relics. And also they include both historical and modern, material and spiritual resources.
Tourist resources also have various functions.
For example, as underground resources, iron ore is used only for iron production, but waterfalls as tourist resources are used for scenery viewing, scientific research, etc., while seawater for various purposes, such as sea bathing, scenery viewing and traveling.
Tourist resources are characterized by their diversity due to the fact that there are no restrictions on the attractions for the tourists.
Tourist resources are very abundant due to their diversity, while there are no or insufficient production resources sometimes.
Second, tourist resources are characterized by their local features.
This means that they differ from region to region, because they have been formed in the course of natural change and development, and social development of the region.
Tourist resources, though they are of the same kind, differ from region to region.
Mt. Kumgang is characterized by the scenery of strange peaks and rocks of fantastic shape that have much changed due to the effect of the rain and wind for many years in the past, while Mt. Myohyang is characterized by many waterfalls formed due to the ceaseless dislocation in every valley.
Tourist resources-the social and cultural tourist resources, including the historic sites and relics-are also characterized by their local features as the manners of the nations differ from country to country.
As tourist resources are formed and exist in different regions with different geographical and socio-historical conditions, they are characterized by their local features.
And also, as only those with distinct local differences may have a tourist attraction, tourist resources are characterized by their local features.
Therefore, preserving and sustaining the local features of tourist resources is an important requirement for exploiting, utilizing and conserving the tourist resources.
Third, tourist resources cannot be moved.
All resources for production are moved to the different places where they can be processed after being exploited. However, most tourist resources cannot be exported to other provinces or imported from other provinces.
The tourists cannot take the tourist resources to their places of residence to use them.
Tourists can go to the places of tourist resources, see and use them, but they can only take the photographs, videos, and models of tourist resources with them.
And also, travel agents cannot take the tourist resources to other places to promote or sell them.
Tourist resources cannot be taken to other places, because they are permanently fixed in the area as most tourist resources have been formed in the course of natural and social development of a given area.
Mountainous tourist resources have been formed in the course of topographical changes in the given areas, and spa tourist resources such as hot springs and mineral waters have also been formed in the course of the crustal movement and the circulation of water in the given areas. Most of the socio-cultural tourist resources, including the monuments or historic sites and relics, are the objects that people have completely fixed in the given areas through the construction with a certain purpose.
The transfer of these tourist resources to other places is impossible in many cases, and even though they are transferred, they would get less value than when they were in their original places.
Some small tourist resources, such as historical artefacts, are sometimes moved to the museums for conservation and display, but they would get less value than when they were in their original places, and at the same time, once they are on display in the museums or galleries, exhibitions etc., they are fixed there and not moved elsewhere except in special cases.
Due to this nature of tourist resources, travelling is included in the sightseeing activities of tourists. And in tourism, the problem is not the transport of resources, but the transport of people who can use them-the transport of tourists, and the promotion of tourism by means of various publications-is of greater importance.
Fourth, tourist resources are not consumed during their use.
This means that even if different tourists use the tourist resources repeatedly, they are not consumed or their values do not change.
On the contrary, production resources are generally changed or reduced in their forms and properties during their use.
Tourist resources are not consumed.
For example, Mt. Kumgang and Mt. Myohyang have been the tourist resorts for many people for hundreds of years, but they are not consumed.
Tourist resources are also not easily transformed.
Of course, the tourist resources and their surroundings can be destroyed or polluted due to the natural disasters such as volcanoes, earthquakes, landslides, etc., and their excessive uses, but they hardly change as they are used for tourism.
The tourist resources are not consumed during their use, because the sightseeing activities are the activities for meeting the cultural and emotional needs of people, and here most of the tourist resources are used only as the subjects for the tourists' experiences.
The fact that tourist resources are not consumed during their use does not mean that it is allowed to neglect their conservation and management.
If the tourist resources are not conserved, but only used, there will be the external and internal changes, which will reduce their tourist values. Therefore, their conservation and management should be done properly.
