Abstract
The article presents the issues related to travel and tourism, the development of this branch of service, and attempts to create alternative solutions to reduce this phenomenon’s dysfunctions. The introduction outlines the nineteenth century beginnings of tourism on the British Isles, including the setup of the first travel agency and the effects of increasing number of participants of mass tourism. The second section discusses the evolution from traveller to the tourist consumer of the commercial offer and social and environmental impacts of these changes. The third part presents the attempts to create alternatives to mass tourism with the adaptation of the rules resulting from the concept of sustainable development, and stressed the need for pro-environmental education.