Published in

Elsevier, Tourism Management Perspectives, (7), p. 47-58

DOI: 10.1016/j.tmp.2013.04.005

Links

Tools

Export citation

Search in Google Scholar

Managing popularity: Changes in tourist attitudes in a wilderness destination

Journal article published in 2013 by Anna Dóra Sæþórsdóttir ORCID
This paper is available in a repository.
This paper is available in a repository.

Full text: Download

Green circle
Preprint: archiving allowed
Red circle
Postprint: archiving forbidden
Red circle
Published version: archiving forbidden
Data provided by SHERPA/RoMEO

Abstract

Tourism in Iceland has expanded rapidly in recent decades. Nature is the main attraction and more than one third of tourists visit the Central Highlands, the uninhabited interior of Iceland. This fast growth raises concerns regarding the difficulties of maintaining the qualities of the resource. This study focuses on the attitude of tourists to Landmannalaugar, the most popular tourist destination in the Highlands, whether it has changed in a decade, and how tourism in the area should be managed for a sustainable future. Completed questionnaires were received from 546 guests in the year 2000 and 1105 in 2009. The main conclusion is that in 2000 20% of the visitors experienced that there were too many tourists in the area, but in 2009 this had increased to one third. The area now appeals to visitors with less nature oriented attitudes than before as the proportion of visitors who prefer solitude and are looking for more authentic experiences in nature has declined from 29% in 2000 to 20% in 2009.