Article · July 3, 2024

Overtourism: flow management and mobility for sustainable destinations

From digital crowds to real crowds

The Calanques near Marseille draw 3 million visitors a year - almost three times the city’s population. Quotas, technology, nudge and integrated mobility: the levers that actually regulate flows.

The Calanques of Marseille, with their breathtaking landscapes and southern sun, attract 3 million visitors every year - 4% of the French population, and almost three times the population of Marseille itself.

Warnings were issued as early as the late 1980s about the negative impact of this uncontrolled over-attendance on the biodiversity of the Calanques and on the environment more broadly, from Marseille to Cassis: soil erosion, disruption of natural habitats, pollution and degradation of footpaths. Even though part of this tourism is in fact local, solutions must be found to regulate flows - and they run through technology and flow management.

Modern tourism, digitalisation and overtourism

Because of digitalisation and “instagramisation” - the popularisation of a place through its visibility on social media - specific spots become tourist magnets, with harmful consequences for residents, the environment and visitors themselves.

• Disruption for residents: noise, a rising cost of living, deteriorating quality of life;
• Environmental impact: ecosystems and biodiversity are weakened and suffer from pollution. In Barcelona, the number of tourist vehicles rises by 15% during high season, worsening congestion and pollution;
• A degraded tourist experience: according to a UNWTO study, 72% of residents in heavily visited destinations believe mass tourism negatively affects their quality of life;
• Mobility problems: transport infrastructure is overloaded. In Santorini, the rise in visitors caused major congestion, pushing authorities to cap the number of cruise passengers disembarking each day.

Quotas, regulation and yield management

One of the most effective solutions is introducing quotas. In Marseille, the quotas applied to the Calanques have shown promising results, improving the visitor experience while protecting the environment. In 2019, Italy introduced a quota limiting daily visitors to 25,000 in Venice. In Paris, the Eiffel Tower uses timed slots that cut waiting times by 30%. Since Covid, timed entry has spread rapidly across high-footfall sites such as museums: it spreads demand, and can even steer it through information and differentiated pricing.

Technology and digitalisation

Technology plays a key role in managing tourist flows. Tools such as Mobility Metrix, which exploit mobility data, help smooth journeys and reduce congestion. Start-ups such as Affluences offer flow measurement and display solutions that improve both understanding of flows and customer information.

Communication and nudge

Proactive communication and nudging - gentle incentives - are essential to steer tourists towards more responsible behaviour. The UNWTO’s “Tourism for Tomorrow” campaign promotes exactly that: avoiding peak periods, visiting lesser-known destinations.

Managing flows and mobility together

An integrated approach is necessary to avoid simply moving congestion elsewhere. Diverting tourist flows to the outskirts of the Calanques or Les Baux-de-Provence, for instance, could increase CO2 emissions. Sustainable mobility solutions are essential to effective flow management, using data to optimise routes and modes of transport.

An article by Rodolphe Lenoir and Flavie Picart.