Tourism and overcrowding Discuss the questions. 1 Do you think tourism can harm cities as well as benefit them? Why? Why not? 2 Which European cities do you think have the most tourists? What about other parts of the world? Do you think these statements are true (T) or false (F)? Talk together. T F 1 Cities should concentrate on getting tourists to the most popular sites. 2 First time visitors to a city like to visit less busy attractions. 3 Marketing a city by promoting its nightlife is a good idea. 4 Some cities have introduced limits on home-sharing sites such as Airbnb. 5 Sustainable tourism is the responsibility of the cities. Read the article and compare your ideas. Reading 12 13 a b Residents in tourism hotspots have had enough. So what’s the answer? How can a problem like tourism be solved? It employs hundreds of millions of people, supports whole industries – but can tear apart the very cities that benefit from it … Spread them out The most obvious solution to the problem of too many tourists is to spread them over a larger area, says Alex Dichter, a senior partner of McKinsey & Company consultancy. Even in a city as crowded as Barcelona, Dichter is “sure there are neighbourhoods that are overwhelmed and there are others that are in need of quite a bit more”. Many cities make the problem worse by promoting only a small number of sites – often the obvious ones. Tourists can be spread by promoting less popular attractions. Tell tourists: come back later … and come back Encouraging visitors outside of peak times of day, season and year can also help. If marketing alone doesn’t work, arrival limits and pricing adjustments might do the job, says Dichter. Repeat visitors are great because they know the city better and go beyond the must-see attractions. Laura Aalto, chief executive of Helsinki Marketing, says establishing a sense of ‘localhood’ is key to a positive and often long-term relationship between a city and its visitors. Attract the ‘good’ ones … which is to say: no hen nights or stag dos. In Barcelona it is known as ‘turismo de Borrachera’ – having a drunken party in a strange city in order to behave in ways that would be considered unacceptable at home. Cities which sell themselves with their cheap beer or nightlife can be at a disadvantage. Amsterdam, for instance, has invested a lot in marketing itself as an arts and culture destination to shake off its reputation as a city-wide red-light district. An advertising campaign was launched last year across social media platforms to promote its cultural heritage. Target head count through bed count Many cities struggling with tourist numbers have placed direct controls on accommodation, whether by halting construction on new hotels – as in the case of both Barcelona and Amsterdam – or capping shortterm home-sharing on Airbnb. Limits have been introduced in London, New York, Reykjavik, Amsterdam, Paris and many other cities, set mostly at about three months of the year. This helps reduce the shortage of housing supply and rent increases for locals which are becoming increasingly problematic. Look at the big picture Companies such as Airbnb and Ryanair are often blamed for how tourism has ballooned beyond control, but that ignores the bigger picture of policies and loopholes that allow them to flourish. Budget airlines can only sell flights cheaply due to tax breaks for the aviation industry. “When you allow international corporations to not pay corporate tax in a country, the social impact and cost is just huge,” says Xavier Font, professor of sustainability marketing. Government resources should be invested in sustainable tourism and politicians need to be held more accountable. Language skills Extras Explore 10 In the news 127 Nur zu Prüfzwecken – Eigentum des Verlags öbv
RkJQdWJsaXNoZXIy ODE3MDE=