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An Appraisal of Over-tourism on the Island of Crete, Greece

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  • John Vourdoubas

Abstract

Over-tourism is a multi-faced problem with severe economic, social and environmental consequences in tourist destinations. The island of Crete is an attractive and popular tourist destination in the Eastern Mediterranean basin and it is currently ranked among the ten most overcrowded EU tourism NUTS-2 regions. This fact could threaten and harm the fragile natural ecosystems in the island resulting in the decline of the prosperous tourism industry in the future. The aim of the current work is the estimation of various tourism indexes in the island of Crete which characterize over-tourism. Data regarding tourist arrivals and overnight stays in Crete in the previous years have been used for estimating the appropriate tourism indexes. Comparisons with other EU regions and with the average EU and global values have also been made. The possibility of creating a tourism observatory in Crete for tackling excess tourism has also been outlined. Our results indicate that Crete is categorized as an overcrowded tourism destination among EU regions while its tourism indexes are above the EU and global average. Cooperation among all stakeholders in the Cretan tourism industry is required in order to cope with over-tourism, shifting the local tourism industry towards a more sustainable and responsible model. The creation of a tourism observatory on the island with the participation of all tourism stakeholders is necessary. The observatory will assist in the development of the required policies offering guidance and advice for tackling excess tourism in Crete, avoiding economic, social and environmental degradation in the future.

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  • John Vourdoubas, 2020. "An Appraisal of Over-tourism on the Island of Crete, Greece," International Journal of Global Sustainability, Macrothink Institute, vol. 4(1), pages 63-77, December.
    • Handle: RePEc:mth:ijgs88:v:4:y:2020:i:1:p:63-77
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    References listed on IDEAS

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    5. José María Martín Martín & Jose Manuel Guaita Martínez & José Antonio Salinas Fernández, 2018. "An Analysis of the Factors behind the Citizen’s Attitude of Rejection towards Tourism in a Context of Overtourism and Economic Dependence on This Activity," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 10(8), pages 1-18, August.
    6. Moisés Simancas Cruz & María Pilar Peñarrubia Zaragoza, 2019. "Analysis of the Accommodation Density in Coastal Tourism Areas of Insular Destinations from the Perspective of Overtourism," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 11(11), pages 1-19, May.
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    1. Nikola Medová & Lucie Macková & Jaromir Harmacek, 2021. "The Impact of COVID-19 on Hospitality Industry in Greece and Its Treasured Santorini Island," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 13(14), pages 1-14, July.

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