subregions. The major subregions in Europe are Western Europe and Eastern Europe.

These are sometimes treated as two separate world regions, though the transition
between the two is increasingly difficult to define. Western Europe is further divided
into the Nordic countries, the Northern European countries (excluding Scandinavia),
and the Southern European countries. In addition, in recent years, the European
Union (EU) has become a major political and social force in the countries that are
members of the EU. Because of this, EU and non-EU countries are discussed sepa-
rately in Chapter 1. The most important non-EU country is Russia, which extends
to the Pacific Ocean and includes areas that are sometimes considered part of Asia
instead of Europe.

Chapter 3 – The Old World: Central Asia Through Africa

This chapter covers a vast territory that includes three traditional world regions:
Central Asia, Southwest Asia and North Africa (which includes the Middle East), and
Sub-Saharan Africa. In contrast to Europe, the regions and countries of Chapter 2
are among the least visited in the world. They include two major cultural realms.
Central Asia through North Africa is a predominantly Muslim area. A major differ-
ence is that Central Asia was formerly part of the Soviet Union, while Southwest Asia
and North Africa were more influenced by Western European colonial powers. Sub-
Saharan Africa, which is all of Africa south of the Sahara Desert, is comprised of
mostly Black racial groups.

Chapter 4 – Asia and Oceania

In terms of total population and the total surface area of the globe, Asia and
Oceania is the largest of the four chapters of this book. It includes four major glo-
bal subregions: South Asia, Southeast Asia, East Asia and Oceania. Asia is the fastest
developing region of the world, both in terms of average incomes level and in travel
and tourism development. Oceania is the least populated of these, though it includes
three very different subregions: Australia, the South Pacific Islands and the continent
of Antarctica.

Chapter 5 – The Americas

The New World of the Americas are one of the easier regions to define, since it
is relatively isolated from the Old World of Africa and Asia. The subregions of the
Americas are also widely accepted. These include South America, the Caribbean
Islands, Central America (including Mexico), and North America (Canada and the
United States, sometimes referred to as Anglo North America). North America has the
most international visitors, with the United States borders with Mexico and Canada
being among the most crossed in the world. The countries of the Caribbean Sea, how-
ever, are among the most dependent on tourism in world.

46 W O R L D G E O G R A P H Y O F T R AV E L A N D T O U R I S M