{"id":16686,"date":"2019-07-02T14:16:50","date_gmt":"2019-07-02T14:16:50","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.ucf.edu\/pegasus\/?p=16686&post_type=story"},"modified":"2023-11-20T20:26:39","modified_gmt":"2023-11-20T20:26:39","slug":"too-many-tourists","status":"publish","type":"story","link":"https:\/\/www.ucf.edu\/pegasus\/too-many-tourists\/","title":{"rendered":"Too Many Tourists?"},"content":{"rendered":"

Summer 2019 | By Alan Fyall<\/em><\/p>\n

[lead]Earlier this summer, a photo of\u00a0people queuing to reach the top of\u00a0Mount Everest launched a series of\u00a0articles about the safety of climbers,\u00a0the cause of the overcrowding, the\u00a0impact on the mountain itself and\u00a0how to solve the issue. At the heart\u00a0of these inquiries are the questions:\u00a0Why is there an increase in tourism,\u00a0and what is the negative impact?[\/lead]<\/p>\n

Tourism is hardly a new trend, but\u00a0concern about the impact of an influx\u00a0of visitors is a relatively modern one.\u00a0Coined a few years ago, the term\u00a0\u201covertourism\u201d describes a reduction\u00a0in the overall quality of life for locals\u00a0and the tourist experience, of which\u00a0the natural environment is so often\u00a0a significant part. Like all complex\u00a0phenomena, there is no quick-fix\u00a0explanation as to the causes and\u00a0remedies.<\/p>\n

[divider][\/divider]<\/p>\n

[blockquote source=”” cite=”” color=”#04599e” css_class=””]The biggest challenge remains\u00a0managing the popularity of certain\u00a0locations, from Yosemite in California\u00a0to Everest in Nepal and Tibet, at a\u00a0time when people are traveling more\u00a0than ever.[\/blockquote]<\/p>\n

[divider][\/divider]<\/p>\n

The biggest challenge remains\u00a0managing the popularity of certain\u00a0locations, from Yosemite in California\u00a0to Everest in Nepal and Tibet, at a\u00a0time when people are traveling more\u00a0than ever. International tourism\u00a0receipts reached $1.7 trillion last\u00a0year, an increase of 4 percent over\u00a02017, representing nearly 30 percent\u00a0of all service exports globally \u2014\u00a0exceeding the economic output\u00a0of the global food and automotive\u00a0industries.<\/p>\n

A significant population growth\u00a0across the globe and exponential\u00a0growth in the middle classes in China\u00a0and India, in particular, mean more\u00a0people with more money to spend\u00a0on items once viewed as a luxury.\u00a0Cheaper airfares and the rise of more\u00a0affordable services such as Uber\u00a0and Airbnb have made travel to new\u00a0places less expensive and easier. And\u00a0there has been a growth in global demand, as a result of social media\u00a0(Instagram perhaps being the biggest\u00a0culprit with people even claiming,\u00a0\u201cI did it for the \u2019gram\u201d) and new\u00a0emerging markets.<\/p>\n

There are certainly arguments to\u00a0be made for the benefits of traveling:\u00a0learning more about other cultures,\u00a0boosting your confidence, creating\u00a0memories, and learning more about\u00a0yourself.<\/p>\n

The tolls, however, can be vast.\u00a0Though tourism to Everest brings\u00a0in $300 million to Nepal every year,\u00a0there is a human toll. More than 300\u00a0people have died on the mountain\u00a0since 1953. This year\u2019s climbing\u00a0season saw 11 deaths, marking the\u00a0deadliest season since 2015 when an\u00a0avalanche killed 19 people at a base\u00a0camp following a 7.8 earthquake. In\u00a0part, the most recent death toll is\u00a0due to Nepal increasing the number\u00a0of permits issued this year to 381,\u00a0leading to overcrowding, an influx of\u00a0inexperienced climbers and a limited\u00a0amount of oxygen tanks needed for\u00a0climbing at higher levels. Inclement\u00a0weather certainly played a role as\u00a0well, as it does every year.<\/p>\n

But there\u2019s also the environmental\u00a0toll. In June, an expedition crew\u00a0removed 12 tons of garbage from\u00a0the mountain, including \u201cempty\u00a0oxygen cylinders, plastic bottles,\u00a0cans, batteries, food wrappings, fecal\u00a0matter and kitchen waste,\u201d according\u00a0to a Nepal Army spokesperson.<\/p>\n

Mount Everest is hardly the\u00a0only locale facing the impact\u00a0of overtourism. Thailand and\u00a0Iceland have both closed popular\u00a0destinations as a result of an\u00a0increase in visitors. After being\u00a0featured in the 2000 film The\u00a0Beach<\/em>, starring Leonardo DiCaprio,\u00a0Maya Bay in Thailand experienced\u00a0significant environmental damage\u00a0\u2014 including decimated coral reefs,\u00a0a declining mangrove population\u00a0and receding beaches \u2014 due to the\u00a0up to 6,000 people drawn daily to its\u00a0once-pristine beauty. And in May,\u00a0Iceland announced having to close Fja\u00f0r\u00e1rglj\u00fafur, a canyon popularized\u00a0in Justin Bieber\u2019s 2015 music\u00a0video, \u201cI\u2019ll Show You.\u201d The natural\u00a0formation faced erosion and damage\u00a0to its sub-Arctic flora as a result of\u00a0an additional 127,475 visitors from\u00a02016 to 2018.<\/p>\n

Fortunately, many solutions do\u00a0exist. For example, responsible forms\u00a0of tourism development, preemptive\u00a0policies (especially with regard to\u00a0air and cruise travel), the economic\u00a0and environmental accounting and\u00a0auditing of tourism development,\u00a0and the dispersal of tourists to other\u00a0areas can all play a part in mitigating\u00a0the problem. So, too, can economic\u00a0fees and taxes to limit demand and\u00a0de-marketing strategies to reduce\u00a0or re-direct demand. Solutions need\u00a0to come from governments \u2014 and,\u00a0frankly, from us.<\/p>\n

Ultimately, we as tourists need to\u00a0show some self-restraint and consider\u00a0staying local sometimes. By reducing\u00a0the amount of gas used during travel,\u00a0staycations are perhaps the best way\u00a0for us all to limit our carbon footprint\u00a0\u2014 if not the most glamorous or social-media\u00a0worthy.<\/p>\n

[divider][\/divider]<\/p>\n

Alan Fyall is the Visit Orlando\u00a0Endowed Chair of Tourism Marketing\u00a0in the Rosen College of Hospitality Management<\/a>\u00a0and is a member of\u00a0UCF\u2019s National Center for Integrated\u00a0Coastal Research<\/a>.<\/em><\/p>\n

PHOTO\u00a0BY @Nimsdai\/Projectpossible.co.uk<\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"featured_media":16980,"template":"","categories":[980],"tags":[297],"class_list":["post-16686","story","type-story","status-publish","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-opinion","tag-rosen-college-of-hospitality-management","issues-1348","issues-summer-2019"],"yoast_head":"\nThe Issues with Overtourism in Destinations Like Mount Everest<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"UCF Rosen College of Hospitality and Management Professor Alan Fyall outlines how major tourist activity is impacting our world.\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/www.ucf.edu\/pegasus\/too-many-tourists\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Too Many Tourists?\" \/>\n<meta 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