Many museums and historical sites are mainly visited by tourists

IELTS Writing Task 2 Topic:

Many museums and historical sites are mainly visited by tourists but not local people. Why is this the case and what can be done to attract more local people to visit these places? OR

Local people do not go very often to museums or historical sites. Why is that? What can be done to change the situation?

Band 8.0 Sample Essay

Tourists are generally drawn to museums and historical locations when visiting new countries. However, records have shown local people’s low attendance at these attractions. I will put forward some explanations before solutions can be drawn to tackle this problem.

There are several reasons why tourists, instead of the local people, come to museums and historical places. First, these locations can provide visitors with a comprehensive overview of the traditions in the particular locality they are situated in. As a result, such destinations are generally more appealing to the newcomers than to the locals, those without the need to familiarise themselves with the traditional values of the region. Moreover, because the layout of museums and historical houses is likely to remain unchanged through years, they can be visually unattractive to the local inhabitants, who may have been to these sites for at least once in their younger years.

Several measures can be prompted to promote locals’ attendance rate at buildings for historical relics and museums. The main solution is to change the public’s perception of such places as sites for only monotonous activities. Should civic events, including weddings, anniversaries, and concerts be allowed to be held in these locations, they would attract substantial public attention to historical values. Another resolution is that historians and preservationists should be featured more frequently on the media, with their articles on the tremendous worth of museums and historical remains.

To conclude, historical areas and museums can be uninteresting for local citizens because they can be too familiar with the culture that these places depict. To better this, there should be more media coverage on historical assets and more open-door policies to use such locations as spots for more public-oriented activities.

Band 8.5 Sample Essay 2:

In terms of local people’s attendance, museums and historical places have always paled in comparison with other recreational centres.  This essay will present some reasons why this has occurred and put forward some solutions to resurrect the interest of local people in visiting these places.

The small and dwindling number of local visitors to museums can firstly be attributable to the low frequency with which activities are held. In other words, the renewals of existing exhibits or the organization of new programs and events are few and far between. For this reason, little interest is aroused in those who had once been to the museum or places of historical significance. Furthermore, museums and historical sites do not come cheap. In fact, to get admission to these places, visitors are often required to pay a substantial amount of money, which can be worth a day’s salary.

In order to drum up more interest of local people in coming to museums, a number of ways can be employed. What can be done first of all is to organise activities which incorporate art performances with appropriate content. This not only encourages the attendance of local people but also represents a great opportunity to educate them about the history of their places of origin. In addition, the authorities can also lower the admission fee or offer discounts to local inhabitants.

To conclude, many reasons can be given as to why local people lose their enthusiasm for museums and places of historical importance. However, the revival of these places is within our grasp should proper actions be taken.

Useful expressions:

• To pale (v.): seem to be less attractive.
• Resurrect the interest: Make people interested again.
• Dwindling (adj.): decreasing
• To be attributable to: be caused by
• The low frequency with which activities are held: very few activities are held.
• A substantial amount of money: a lot of money
• To arouse interest: cause people to have interest.
• To drum up more interest: Make people interested.
• Incorporate (v.) include
• Lose their enthusiasm: become less interested.
• To be within one’s grasp: Can be done.