From carrying capacity to overtourism: a perspective article

Abstract

Purpose This paper aims to place current burgeoning interest in overtourism into historical context. Design/methodology/approach This paper draws upon the author’s experiences of working for approximately four decades on tourism and recreation using such concepts as impacts and carrying capacity. Findings This paper shows that overtourism is not a new concept. Rather it has a substantial history, although early origins within park and recreation settings in North America have been superseded by an emphasis on the urban areas of historic towns, particularly in Europe. Originality/value The paper provides a corrective to the common assumption that overtourism is a new phenomenon and, in doing so, points out the deficiencies of concepts and approaches, such as carrying capacity, that are being revived but have been used previously, criticized and found wanting.