Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
Tourists Adaptation to Climate Change
Tourists have the greatest
(depending on three key resources: money, knowledge,
and time) with relative freedom to avoid destinations impacted by climate change or shifting the
timing of travel to avoid unfavorable climate conditions. Suppliers of tourism services and tourism
operators at speci
c destinations have less adaptive capacity.
adaptive capacity
Industry Adaptation to Climate Change
The dynamic nature of the tourism industry and its ability to cope with a range of recent major
shocks
suggest a relatively
high adaptive capacity within the tourism industry overall. The capacity to adapt to climate change is
thought to vary substantially between subsectors, destinations, and individual businesses within the
tourism industry.
The tourism sector has been adapting its operations to climate zones worldwide, using a diverse
range of technological, managerial, educational, policy, and behavioral adaptations to deal with
climate variability. However, adaptation has
figured less prominently in climate change research on
tourism than in some other economic sectors (e.g., agriculture).
—
including SARS, terrorism attacks in a number of nations, or tsunamis
—
Implications of Climate Change
for Tourism Demand Patterns
Climate, the natural environment, and personal safety are three primary factors in destination choice,
and global climate change is anticipated to have signi
cant impacts on all three of these factors at the
regional level. The response of tourists to the complexity of destination impacts will reshape demand
patterns and play a pivotal role in the eventual impacts of climate change on the tourism industry.
Understanding and anticipating the potential geographic and seasonal shifts in tourist demand will
remain critical areas of research in the future.
The Way Forward to Adaptation
and Mitigation in Tourism
Concern about climate change is increasing worldwide, and the IPCC has made it clear that global
climate change is only just beginning. The impacts of climate change on the tourism sector will
steadily intensify, particularly under higher emission scenarios. Climate change would redistribute
climate resources for tourism geographically and seasonally and pose a risk to ecosystems worldwide.
The nature and intensity of climate change impacts will differ for tourism destinations around the
world. The most vulnerable regions are in developing countries, which generally also have less adaptive
capacity, and this will be a particular challenge for their tourist destinations and their host
communities. Climate change impacts on the tourism sector could in
uence other economic sectors,
such as agriculture and local business networks supplying tourism. Conversely, the tourism sector
must also be cognizant of the implications of
in other economic sectors,
which could have signi
cant impacts on tourism. As the
financial sector incorporates a company
climate change adaptation
s
climate change strategy, or lack of one, into its investment criteria, it will in
uence credit rating and
insurance rates.
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