Dealing with the Explosion of Tourism
As Iceland became the new ‘trendy’ spot to travel to, tourism in Iceland has skyrocketed in the past few decades. Growing by an incredible 8% per year over the past decade, the tourism industry is estimated to bring in 1 million visitors in 2017, compared to a population of just over 300,000 inhabitants (1). A country with such diverse and unique landscapes is bound to attract tourists who enjoy nature and wilderness destinations. Tourists flood to Iceland every year drawn by its natural beauty and campaign slogans such as “Pure Nature” and “Europe’s Last Wilderness” and over 90% of tourists in a survey stated nature was the number one motivation for visiting (2).
The Paradox of Nature Tourists
Tourism in Iceland, like many other island countries, is characterized by patterns of high seasonality and visitor concentrations located in few specific areas that are fragile and environmentally sensitive (1). This type of tourism bringing large influxes of people close to sensitive ecosystems will no doubt lead to environmental degradation of natural landscapes. In addition to regular disturbance caused by the presence of humans in nature, other more obscene problems can occur as result of poor tourist behaviour. To note a few reoccurring problems the following is a screenshot of an online news page:
It takes time and money to properly plan and manage tourism to be sustainable and Iceland has a lot of catching up to do. Nature can be more tolerant to people when appropriate infrastructure is in place but it is costly and also can change visitor’s experiences (3). A more immediate strategy to protect the natural environment is to deal with tourist behaviour directly. A campaign by Inspired by Iceland asks tourists to take the “Icelandic Pledge” to be a responsible tourist (4). Even locals have taken it upon themselves to educate tourists on how to behave appropriately. One such individual is Árni Tryggvason who wrote a book titled “What, Where, and How in Iceland” that gives information on what not do to (5). While waiting for tourism management and infrastructure to catch up, in the meantime changing behaviour of tourists seems to be the only way to go. Through outreach and education hopefully visitors who come to Iceland for its beauty will learn to leave it just as beautiful as before they came!
And remember to Take the Pledge!
Sources Cited:
- Jóhannesson, Gunnar Thór, Edward Hákon Huijbens, and Richard Sharpley. “Icelandic Tourism: Past DirectionsâFuture Challenges.” Tourism Geographies 12.2 (2010): 278-301.
- Ólafsdóttir, Rannveig, and Micael C. Runnström. “How Wild Is Iceland? Wilderness Quality with Respect to Nature-based Tourism.” Tourism Geographies 13.2 (2011): 280-98.
- Sæþórsdóttir, Anna Dóra. “Planning Nature Tourism in Iceland Based on Tourist Attitudes.”Tourism Geographies 12.1 (2010): 25-52.
- More information on Árni Tryggvason’s book see: http://icelandmonitor.mbl.is/news/nature_and_travel/2017/05/14/a_new_guide_book_for_tourists_on_how_to_behave_in_i/
