It's time to address overtourism

The report ‘Overtourism: impact and possible policy responses’ highlights a list of problems including that overtourism has led to substantial increases in costs of living and a decline in the quality of life for resort residents.

The report calls for destinations to put greater emphasis on qualitative elements of tourism development (i.e. profitability; local employment, fair pay rates) rather than focus on continued arrival growth.

Professor Novelli, the University of Brighton’s Professor of Tourism and International Development and Academic Lead for the university’s Responsible Futures Agenda, worked on the report in collaboration with experts from the Netherlands, Sweden, and Spain.

It said: “The spread of overtourism could cause the loss of authenticity and imply a significant risk to the future attractiveness of a destination. Uncontrolled tourism development can cause significant damage to landscapes, seascapes, air and water quality, as well as the living conditions of residents, causing economic inequalities and social exclusion, amongst many other issues.”

Professor Marina Novelli

Case studies included in the report showed that some of the most vulnerable destinations were not necessarily cities but rather coastal, islands and rural heritage sites. More than 290 regions were assessed, including 53 with at least one destination already confronted with overtourism. The study provided a check list for destinations or regions to assess whether they may be at risk of overtourism based on a qualitative assessment.

To prevent overtourism, the report said, “customised and place-specific tools and measures” are needed although currently there is a lack of accurate data for the implementation of effective interventions, as well as destination management measures: “Known complicating factors are linked to a growing part of the industry operating outside the control of policy-makers (i.e. sharing economy platforms like Airbnb, Uber) and peer-to-peer platforms such as TripAdvisor, which tend to have an impact on the concentration of tourists in certain destinations and places.”

The report carried a warning that the effects of overtourism “are potentially severe and both natural and cultural heritage sites are at risk of losing their appeal as desirable tourism destinations”.

Key recommendations included: Conduct more systematic research on the overtourism; initiate debates on tourism growth within destinations; discussion on governance of sharing economy platforms such as Airbnb; involve stakeholders and particularly residents in tourism planning and development processes on a regular basis in all destinations; and encourage creation of a cross-EU ‘Task Force on overtourism’.