Introduction

In the last decades, people from western countries travel increasingly and more often abroad, visit exotic places, and come into contact with different cultures (cf. Cossar, 2000; Cossar & Reid, 1989). For example, according to recent figures from the Dutch Tourism Office and the Dutch Central Statistical Office, approximately 81% of the Dutch population spend their annual vacation away from home and 39% go abroad for a longer period (CBS, 2004). Worldwide, the number of international tourists increased from 26 million in 1949 to 429 million in 1990 (Cossar, 2000). The increase in the number of international tourists is paralleled by an increased number of contacts with emergency centers, which are encumbered by travelers with serious mental or physical health problems, who in some cases need to be repatriated. This number probably only reflects the top of the iceberg where tourists’ health problems are concerned, since the more frequent but less dramatic forms of somatic and psychic health problems associated with traveling/ being abroad will not be reported and can only be investigated in specific studies (e.g., Cossar et al., 1990; Page et al., 1994).

The aims of the present contribution are twofold. Firstly, we want to give a brief review of the minor and major health problems typically faced by the international traveler. We will also identify and briefly discuss the health risks and the adverse health practices of international tourists. Secondly, we will argue that tourists may be at greater risk because their resistance may be lowered due to exposure to typical holiday stressors and because of the physiological challenge of adaptation to the new holiday environment. There is little doubt that many of the associated health problems can in principle be prevented, since most problems are caused by taking inadequate health precautions. We agree with authors like Cossar (1996) and Page et al. (1994) when they state that the time is ripe for more specific scientific investigation into the issue of international traveling and the related health aspects. The abovementioned increase in the numbers of international tourists and business travelers has not been paralleled by an equal interest on the part of investigators into the inherent health issues.