In the late 1860s, acclaimed American author Mark Twain (Samuel Clemens) toured the Middle East and the Holy Land, recording his adventures in Innocents Abroad: or the New Pilgrim’s Progress. Extrapolating how the “habits of thought” embraced by travelers led to distinctive examples of what John Urry calls the “tourist gaze” Twain’s travelogue provides insights of value to today’s tourism specialists regarding (1) the dichotomy between “tourism assets” vs. “tourism products” (2) with reference to the subjective feelings of travelers, the information available to them, and the commodification process.