The New York Times Asks: Was This the Summer European Tourism Reached a Breaking Point?

Overwhelmed destinations made high-season visitors the targets of a major tourism backlash. Heat waves and fires only added to the pressure.  So, what next for our cities and beach destinations?

From protests in the streets of Majorca to local officials threatening to cut off water to illegal vacation rentals, and in Barcelona, residents spraying tourists with water pistols, European hot spots have reached a breaking point, making tourists the targets of a major backlash. While final visitor numbers for this summer are not yet finalised, they are expected to surpass 2019 levels; in the second quarter alone, international arrivals exceeded 2019 by 6%, according to the European Travel Commission.

Climate change has also put tremendous pressure on popular destinations. July was the planet’s 14th consecutive month of record heat, according to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, and Spain and Greece experienced some of their hottest days on record, with temperatures over 114 degrees Fahrenheit.  So, while tourism is a critical economic driver for many European destinations, some residents argue that more tourism revenue needs to be invested in communities and infrastructure.

Where does this leave us?

For the tourist industry to thrive in conjunction with resident communities, the tourism industry must cultivate a new approach that better serves local interests when promoting destinations and trip options. Marketing excursions through the use of thoughtful advertising campaigns and tech tools that inspire tourists to venture away from conventional hotspots and explore lesser-known attractions could lead to a more even distribution of travellers across various destinations.

To that end, dispersing tourists should be a top business goal for travel providers rather than doubling down on high-traffic destinations. This not only enables travellers to genuinely experience diverse cultures but also provides vital support to rural-located businesses, restaurants, and cultural establishments, which stand to gain the most from the tourist spend.

The road less travelled

For the tourist industry to thrive in conjunction with communities, the tourism industry must cultivate a new approach that better serves local interests when promoting destinations and trip options.  In particular, to empower travellers to visit new or unfamiliar destinations, the industry should consider leveraging tech-based tools to convince them. For example, embedding innovative digital features into travel services can spotlight fresh destination options and grant clearer access to local services that tourists may not have been aware of or felt too intimidated to navigate on their own.

Airbnb, for example, rolled out flexible search features in 2023 that divert bookings away from destinations at times when over tourism or peak travel times occur, encouraging tourists to make accommodations in alternative cities or towns.  And, the city of Florence picked-up on this and has developed a tech solution to manage over tourism in real time – what they call the "Feel Florence" app, a service that suggests routes and experiences to visitors based on current tourist demand. Through data collection from sensors deployed across the city, the app informs visitors which attractions are subject to overcrowding, giving them the choice to visit alternative areas that could benefit from their patronage.

The sooner the travel industry harnesses tech solutions, the sooner tourists will be inspired to confidently explore new destinations and support local communities, thereby alleviating the adverse effects of their presence.

Building solutions and AI-generated content

In reality, how can destination marketing organisations (DMOs) utilise AI-generated content not only to attract new visitors but to also promote secondary cities and lesser-known sites. Together with DMO’s, small businesses can join arms and strengthen these strategies by using for example, image generation platforms to cheaply create high-quality photos and videos to revitalize end retarget their marketing strategies. This new visual content could entice visitors to venture beyond just the main hubs and venture to new destinations leveraging the negative effects that occur when marketing saturates iconic attractions and destinations.

And, with crowd control?  Today computer vision AI can monitor crowd levels at attractions in real-time. Tourists who opt-in can receive app notifications to avoid congested areas during peak times, where AI can for instance, suggest alternative activities with smaller crowds. Another example is Gamification, through rewards and badges for off-peak visits, this technology and strategy can provide another way to spread traffic more evenly throughout the day. And if we add AI dynamic pricing, destinations can make crowded times more expensive, disincentivising tourists 

But that’s not all, robotic process automation, chatbots, and automated revenue management can lower costs for small tourism businesses. This facilitates competition, enabling redistribution to less affluent attractions or spots. Today destinations and businesses have access to effective and much more efficient tools to control and develop sustainable and stress-free destinations.

Conclusions

Tourism stakeholders and leaders should collaborate with government, community groups, and academia in one strong force to reinstate the goodness of travel.  AI can enhance the lives of residents and visitors if carefully governed. With proper coordination, generative AI can redistribute tourists geographically and temporally to foster and guarantee sustainable destinations.  With the right strategy, generative AI can reshape our industry to be more sustainable for so many amazing destinations worldwide. The technology provides solutions to overcrowding if harnessed responsibly. The time is now for the industry to rewrite its future.