Why is Overtourism a Conundrum?

Jorge Ridderstaat, Ph.D.

Aarash baktash, Ph.D.????

Introduction

Overtourism has been regularly in the news in recent years. The term is likely to have been coined in 2016, with the publication of an article, “Exploring the Coming Perils of Overtourism,” in Skift[i], a prominent media company specializing in the travel industry. This term was introduced to appeal to people’s basic instincts “with an element of alarm and fear in it.”[ii] ?Overtourism has become a significant issue due to factors such as the rise of affordable air travel and online booking platforms, which have made international travel more accessible to a broader demographic. Social media has further intensified this by turning specific destinations into viral sensations, attracting many tourists seeking to replicate online experiences. Additionally, the sharing economy, particularly platforms like Airbnb, has increased accommodation availability in popular tourist spots, often at the expense of local housing, spreading tourism’s impact more widely and leading to environmental and community challenges.

Global Backlash: Protests Erupt Against Tourists in Major Destinations

Many of us have heard about protests against tourists in the news, from Austria (Hallstatt, Vienna), Australia (Sydney), Croatia (Dubrovnik), Czech Republic (Prague), France (Paris), Germany (Berlin), Greece (Santorini), Iceland (Reykjavik), Italy (Venice, Rome), The Netherlands (Amsterdam), Portugal (Lisbon) Spain (Barcelona, Madrid, Málaga, Mallorca, Canary and Balearic Islands), United Kingdom (Edinburg), and United States (Hawaii, California, Louisiana, New Orleans, San Francisco). These tourist destinations attract significant numbers of visitors each year, partly due to their cultural, historical, or natural attractions. These places are just examples, and the list is not exhaustive. Overtourism is likely more widespread than the summarized destinations.

Overtourism: An intangible concept?

The overtourism theme has already received ample (scholarly) attention through multiple books, journal articles, newspapers, and magazines. Yet, it remains an unclear phenomenon. There is no generally accepted definition of this phenomenon, probably because the phenomenon is complex. A deeper interpretation of overtourism seems to suggest some overshooting of a norm, causing alarm and fear, as suggested by the Skift article above. While the understanding is clear, the interpretation in reality is anything but easy. We cannot figure out when there is overshooting if we do not know the norm. What is this norm, and can we measure it? Sure, there have been some suggestions on how to determine overtourism, such as tourist density, visitor-resident ratio, hotel occupancy rates, traffic congestions, waste generation, inflated property prices, increased cost of living for residents, resident satisfaction, tourism effects on natural resources, biodiversity, pollution or culture, to name a few. However, none of these measurements indicate a clear and objective norm, not to mention that they are atomistic instead of holistic benchmarks, so we are entering the subjective zone. Under these conditions, there could be a plethora of norms, and every resident of a tourism destination may have a different view of what the norm should be. It is feasible that someone who benefits from tourism is more inclined to welcome more tourists than someone who experiences tourists as a nuisance and is ready to protest against their visiting the destination. The lack of a proper understanding of overtourism should not mean that protesting against tourists is the only approach.

Are you protesting at the wrong address?

Many of us are interested in visiting other places for various reasons, like escaping from our daily routines, resting, relaxing, and rejuvenating ourselves, and getting new experiences, to name a few. Who could blame tourists for having these desires? Unless we are stinky rich, we will most likely look for good deals to get to the destination. Besides Homo Sapiens (modern humans), most of us are also Homo Comparibus (cost-benefit analysts), trying to get the most considerable benefits from our tourism needs against the lowest prices. A better term would probably be value for money, which aims to achieve the highest return on the money spent.???????????

Why should tourists be villainized for visiting a destination if the opportunity exists? Are they doing anything illegal or immoral or something of that nature? Do we know for a fact who are those tourists that have caused the overshooting so we can shoot them over with water (or, God forbid, physically assault them, with severe consequences, in the future)? This way of protesting reminds us of the Animal Spirits, a term coined by John Maynard Keynes (1883-1946), a British economist, in 1936, referring to emotions, instinct, and psychological factors that influence human behavior.[iii] It also reminds us of the many conflicts, often shown on the internet, of animals who (bluff) attack humans who invade their territory. Think about the tourists on a San Diego beach in 2023 who were attacked by several sea lions who had a nursery close by. But these were badly behaving tourists who were warned beforehand by authorities not to get too close to these animals. In the context of overtourism, it is doubtful that all tourists are bad behaviorists. Then, why should we express our territoriality spirit to everyone we think is a tourist? Should we blame them for everything that went wrong or look elsewhere? Shouldn’t we be protesting somewhere else?

A problem of inequality and policy failure?

Governments should be of the people, by the people, and for the people, at least in the view of U.S. President Abraham Lincoln (1809-1865). Governments are supposed to ensure people’s wellbeing, but, in reality, that is likely to be wishful thinking. Governments are often flawed institutions, plagued by imperfections due to, among others, bureaucracy, inefficient resource allocation, partisan thinking, short-term focus, lack of expertise, powerful lobbies, and possibly corruption. Consequently, they are likely unable to (sufficiently) address a spillover from tourism development, such as inequality. While tourism growth can bring economic improvement and job opportunities, these benefits are not often evenly distributed. Think about rising living costs, job displacement, concentration of benefits in the hands of only a few, overconsumption of resources, damage to the ecosystem, loss of authenticity, and congestion, some of the issues often brought forth during overtourism protests.

Politicians often emphasize the successes of tourism development at the macro (country) level but forget to synthesize these accomplishments at the micro (individual) level. This macro-micro disconnect leads to inequality and social unrest, issues associated with overtourism protests.

Bottomline

Overtourism is real and undeniable, even though many obstacles impede a deeper understanding of the phenomenon and adequately address its root causes. Policymakers need to address policy failures and realize that the sky is not the limit that must be pursued. While overtourism is a problematic concept, it is still plausible to define hard limits for the future growth of tourism at destinations. There are already examples of over-tourism-related measures taken, such as the banning of new hotels and limitations to Airbnb rentals in Amsterdam and Barcelona, limitations on the numbers of cruise ships and visitors allowed each day (Dubrovnik), or even temporary closures of specific destinations (Maya Bay, Thailand). Nudging can also be part of the solution, such as in the case of the city of Copenhagen applying “CopenPay” to reward sustainable tourists with free experiences. While these measures are a good start, more measures are needed to compensate for the effects of existing inequalities due to past tourism development spurts. We cannot fully close the door to tourism, but we can surely make tourism development sustainable. By setting enforceable and equitable limits on tourism growth, we can ensure that the benefits of tourism are shared broadly while mitigating its negative impacts, leading to a more sustainable and balanced future for all destinations.

[i] Ali, R. (2016). Exploring the Coming Perils of Overtourism. Retrieved from https://skift.com/2016/08/23/exploring-the-coming-perils-of-overtourism/ on July 30, 2024.

[ii] Ali, R. (2018). The Genesis of Overtourism: Why We Came Up With the Term and What’s Happened Since. Retrieved from https://skift.com/2018/08/14/the-genesis-of-overtourism-why-we-came-up-with-the-term-and-whats-happened-since/#:~:text=Skift%20Take,by%20everyone%20has%20caught%20on.&text=Overtourism%20is%20a%20word%20that,coined%20on%20June%2014%2C%202016 on July 30, 2024.

[iii] Keynes, J. (1936). The General Theory of Employment, Interest, and Money. Macmillan and Co., Ltd.