CELTH studies at the center of the debate on crowding

The overall conclusion in the Parool article was that reducing tourism to tourist hotspots is not easy. However, CELTH's studies provide the necessary evidence that there is something of an optimal crowding at destinations and that tourists are willing to pay for less busy destinations. Other CELTH research also shows that tourists are tempted to visit less busy locations, and their holiday appreciation does not suffer as a result.

Optimal crowds

In the study 'Experiencing over-tourism: emotions, behavioral intentions, and policy opportunities at crowded destinations', the researchers measured the emotional response to crowds.

In the Experience Lab, respondents were shown 360-degree images of busy places in Amsterdam through VR glasses, and their emotional response was measured via an EEG. The overall conclusion is that tourists do not like places that are too busy, but also empty places. Both the intensity of the crowds and the distance from others are important. Another important conclusion from the research is that most tourists (84%) are willing to pay a fee if a place is optimally busy. For most respondents, 5 euros is an acceptable amount. Half also want to pay 10 euros. Sending tourists also appears to be effective: a majority (68%) adjust their travel plans if they receive travel information about the crowds on site before the trip. Once they have reached their destination, they can be guided by real-time crowd information, for example by adjusting their schedule or avoiding busy locations.

Lead researcher Marcel Bastiaansen: “This research contributes to livable tourist destinations and therefore fits seamlessly into our research program 'Leisure for a better society'. Tourist attractions such as Amsterdam, Kinderdijk, or Volendam are almost literally in danger of being overrun. With all the social problems that entails. If you can contribute to finding policy solutions from an experience perspective, you also contribute to a better society.”

Spreading tourists

Enticing tourists to visit other places was further investigated in a second experiment: 'Experience Overijssel: Optimal tourist experience and density in Overijssel through social interaction in the conversational recommender system, Travel With Zoey'

This project focused on how tourists can be informed about lesser-known places so that they visit them and visit them at least as enjoyable as the popular attractions. The first important conclusion was that tourists were tempted to visit less popular locations. The second conclusion is that there was no significant difference in the appreciation of the holiday and quality of life between the different groups, each of which received different advice. This research was conducted in Overijssel and will soon be repeated in large urban areas. To be continued.

Lead researcher Ondrej Mitas: “The differences in their behavior - which were quite large - can only be explained by the differences in information they received. The overall conclusion is that it is possible to use information to tempt tourists to visit other locations in their holiday region, without this affecting the holiday experience.”