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For a number of years, heritage resources have suffered the negative effects of tourist pressure. Overtourism has been generating a wide-ranging debate on this issue. This work focuses on the strategies and measures adopted to address overtourism during the last 30 years at heritage attractions, which are much less studied than urban heritage centres. Specifically, it analyses measures relating to the management of site capacities based on the concept of tourist carrying capacity, using content analysis as a methodology. We have used the Alhambra in Granada as a case study as one of the most visited Spanish World Heritage Sites. The results obtained reflect a strong consensus on the need to introduce measures to restrict tourist activity, although these measures imply a great effort in terms of management and tend to be taken advantage of by some stakeholders for their own benefit. The extensive time frame of the measures adopted allows us to reflect on the possibilities and limitations of dealing with overtourism by using capacity management strategies and to extract useful conclusions for other heritage sites with similar problems.

For a number of years, heritage resources have suffered the negative effects of tourist pressure. Overtourism has been generating a wide-ranging debate on this issue. This work focuses on the strategies and measures adopted to address overtourism during the last 30 years at heritage attractions, which are much less studied than urban heritage centres. Specifically, it analyses measures relating to the management of site capacities based on the concept of tourist carrying capacity, using content analysis as a methodology. We have used the Alhambra in Granada as a case study as one of the most visited Spanish World Heritage Sites. The results obtained reflect a strong consensus on the need to introduce measures to restrict tourist activity, although these measures imply a great effort in terms of management and tend to be taken advantage of by some stakeholders for their own benefit. The extensive time frame of the measures adopted allows us to reflect on the possibilities and limitations of dealing with overtourism by using capacity management strategies and to extract useful conclusions for other heritage sites with similar problems. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The study of tourism carrying capacity in the municipalities of Tolmin, Kobarid and Komen has shown that the infrastructural and economic carrying capacity is the most problematic, as most indicator limits are already exceeded in the summer season. The most favourable is the spatial-ecological carrying capacity, where none of the studied indicator limits were exceeded. The results of the carrying capacity assessment for tourism in these municipalities should not be used as a tool to restrict tourism development, but rather as expert recommendations to promote more sustainable tourism development. Infrastructure identified as deficient cannot be improved immediately. Improvements require large financial investments that municipalities are not able to ensure quickly. We need a tourism development strategy that, in addition to all the necessary improvements, comprehensively addresses the problems that municipalities face from overtourism, especially during the high season. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In order to design effective responses to the complex phenomenon of overtourism, the tourism carrying capacity (TCC) of a destination is an essential reference point. This paper provides in-depth analysis of this correlation through the case study of Dubrovnik. The study applies a TCC calculation model that is able to quantitatively include the main effects of overtourism. The paper illustrates how these results can be used to automate specific decongestion policies by conceptualising a digital response system for real-time intervention to mitigate the undesirable effects of overtourism. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The island complex of Cyclades is the most visited area in Greece and one of the most visited areas worldwide. However, only a limited number of studies have been dealt with the tourism carrying capacity (TCC) in Greece. Therefore, the scope of this paper is to determine sustainable tourism in this area by using a selective number of 24 quantitative indicators that are considered to be important concerning the territorial, economic, environmental and social aspects. It is important to mention that the bed capacity of rented villas is included, which reflect somehow Airbnb flows. Especially in the case of the two most famous islands with a global reputation, Mykonos and Thira, our assessment signals that policymakers and destination managers must take appropriate measures to prevent the negative effects of overtourism and develop action plans to improve the levels of sustainability and competitiveness. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper addresses the phenomenon of overtourism in Budapest from multiple perspectives, starting with an overview that uses information collected from news, media, and academic tourism literature. Further, the phenomenon of overtourism is addressed quantitatively using different indicators, including tourism density and intensity. According to these indicators, the center of Budapest (formed by districts I, V, VI, VII, VIII, and IX) has been strongly affected by the presence of tourists, while districts physically far from the center have been less affected. This fact suggests the heterogeneity of the city in terms of overtourism. The number one catalyst of the negative impacts of foreign visitors' behavior is party tourism ('ruin pub' tourism), which involves an unconventional use of the Hungarian capital. Finally, using an unconventional optimization method called fuzzy linear programming, we attempt to explore the challenging problem of identifying the optimal number of tourists for the city. The results of the study have important theoretical, methodological, and practical implications. On the theoretical side, we offer a comprehensive understanding of the phenomenon of overtourism in Budapest. Methodologically, the integrated approach in terms of data gathering and unconventional analytical methodologies (comprised of a case study analysis, the assessment of effective indicators for measuring the discussed phenomenon, and the demonstration of the sustainable number of visitors) represents a novel perspective about the extent of overtourism in Budapest. On the practical side, our findings provide valuable guidance for policymakers to help mitigate the problem of overtourism in the city. With regard to future research, we suggest extending and updating the results presented in this study to develop more sustainable tourism strategies. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Tunisia is a destination where organised mass tourism has prevailed since 1985. This trend is still being observed, despite the unstable geopolitical situation in North Africa. Current reports from booking portals indicate that this country will be one of the most popular tourist destinations in 2020. Therefore, the aim of the study was to determine the prospects for sustainable development in Tunisia in 2020–2025 as means to prevent the negative effects of overtourism. The research was conducted in three stages: (1) analysis of the phases of tourism development in Tunisia from 1960 to 2019 in relation to the Tourism Area Life Cycle concept, (2) identification of the destination's evolution in 2015–2019 with the method of trend function exploration, and (3) an attempt to assess the risk of overtourism in Tunisia in light of Tourism Carrying Capacity on the basis of the Tourism Intensity Index and Tourism Density index. The study results revealed three phases of development in Tunisia, i.e. exploration, involvement, and development. The verification of the trend function indicated that Tunisia would enter the consolidation phase in 2020. The highest risk of overtourism is estimated for three governorates—Tunis, Sousse, and Monastir. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Overtourism problems, anti-tourist movements and negative externalities of tourism are popular research approaches and are key concepts to better understand the sustainable development of tourism destinations. In many of the overtourism narratives, Venice is considered to be one of the most relevant cases of overtourism and therefore has become a laboratory for studying the different conflicts that emerge when tourism numbers continue to grow and the quality of the tourism flow continues to decline. This article is therefore focusing on Venice and on one of the possible solutions to mitigate the negative impacts of tourism represented by the concept of a tourist carrying capacity (TCC) in an urban destination. The aim of this paper is to discuss alternative methodologies regarding the calculation of the TCC, and to apply a fuzzy instead of a 'crisp' linear programming model to determine the scenarios of a sustainable number of tourists in the cultural destination of Venice, looking for the optimal compromise between, on the one hand, the wish of maximizing the monetary gain by the local tourism sectors and, on the other, the desire to control the undesirable effects that tourism exerts on a destination by the local population. To solve the problems related to tourism statistics and data availability, some uncertainty in the parameters has been included using fuzzy numbers. The fuzziness in the model was introduced on the basis of questionnaires distributed among both tourists and residents. By applying the fuzzy linear programming model to the emblematic case of Venice, it was shown that this approach can indeed help destinations to understand the challenges of sustainable tourism development better, to evaluate the impact of alternative policies of overtourism on the sustainability of tourism, and hence, to help design a strategy to manage tourist flows more adequately [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]