Positive / Negative Impacts of Tourism

The Allurement of Tourism – Positive Impacts

Economic Improvement

Tourism makes Santorini become a financial success story in a country that is still struggling with the fallout from its decade-long financial crisis (Bateman, 2019). For the period between January and June, Santorini continued the upward trend of foreign tourist arrivals and international visitors reached 178, 976, up 4.1% in 2019 (Tsiliopoulos, 2019). The increasing number of tourists helps increase the business income, encourage business activities, increase employment, and improve the living standard of the island’s inhabitants (Delitheou & Georgakopoulou, 2017).

Local Relationship Development

While developing the tourism industry within Santorini, the development strategy is engaging with the residents. Local authorities are invited to play a vital role in the enhancement, maintenance, and management of the local infrastructure of their area and to contribute with their proposals, projects, and actions to the enrichment of the tourist product (Delitheou & Georgakopoulou, 2017).

Social Impacts

The income from tourism as well as the growing number of tourists promote Santorini’s less developed regions, upgrade infrastructure such as transportation, improve the island’s road network, and provide sufficient signage to the roads and dangerous areas of the island. Those improvements, not only convenient to the tourists but also the locals. Moreover, Santorini tourism development assists the modernization of the local community, the protection, and renovation of cultural heritage buildings, and the revival of arts, customs, traditions, and events (Delitheou & Georgakopoulou, 2017).

Protect the Natural Environment

Developing tourism in Santorini has a better chance to manage the use of the natural resource as well as preserve the resource. The rising tourism market in Santorini upgrades the natural environment as well as protects the natural area by registering it as a protected area and replace, preserve, rebuild and utilize older structures (Delitheou & Georgakopoulou, 2017).

Cultural Experience of Development

Local voice and attention to the local particularities have shaped the course of tourism development in Santorini, especially the cultural experience of development  (Lichrou, O’Malley, & Patterson, 2017). Cultural tourism can contribute to the local economic conversion and affluence, which encourages the operating of a small and medium-sized family business that provides unique and authentic local products (Sdrali & Chazapi, 2007). The development of cultural experience as a means of the conservation and exploitation of the island’s cultural resources as well as promoting Santorini tourism.

The Threat of Overtourism – Negative Impacts

Divided Tourism Resources Unequally

Most of the tourists tend to stay in Fira and Oia when they travel to Santorini, where are the most written destinations. What’s more, there is less willingness from tourists to explore any other parts of the island. Therefore, the division of tourism resources unevenly leads to some of the towns suffering from overrunning, but others on the island suffer from under-tourism (Galewska, 2019).

Failing Management on the Tourists Numbers

Bateman (2019) states from April to October, thousands of visitors are whipping out their smartphones to take the same picture that sunsets at Oia. Over the past five years, the overnight stay in Santorini has increased by 66 % that did make the island has a rare financial success story within Greece. However, Bateman (2019) found a recent report on “over-tourism” by the EU’s transport committee warned that the government of Santorini is failing to manage the growing number of tourists and spelling disaster for the local community and the environment.

Affecting the Local Life

The increasing amount of tourists have created traffic jams in the summer months and decreased quality of life. The consumer prices and accommodation costs have increased in Santorini, and it makes it difficult for residents to afford rent and other utilities (Dilouamabaka, 2017). Plenty of the Airbnb created that has pushed up the housing prices that employers have to build new accommodation just for their employees, and the locals have a hard time renting houses or buying the property.

Environmental Degradation

The overrunning of tourism in Santorini by bringing tourists through cruise ships is a spelling disaster for the environment. Tests carried out in Santorini found that ultrafine particles concentration were up to 100 times higher near cruise ships than in surrounding areas (Gabbatiss, 2018). Gabbatiss (2018) states that cruise ships to the Mediterranean can use heavy fuel oil known as the “dirtiest of all fuel”, which is without cleaning systems. The leakage potential from the ships will affect the surrounding earth, water, and air, which will lead to people living on the island as well as the tourists visiting there suffering from the shipping emissions.

Energy Shortages

In Santorini, there is an existing energy issue – energy shortages, lack of the required water resources, and the quality of the groundwater.  Especially in the summertime, the water is in high demand to give the tourist development of the island as well as the qualitative upgrading of tourism. According to Delitheou and Georgakopoulou (2017), by 2011, there were four units with a capacity of 1,020m3/ day, which in the summer months (peak tourism season of Santorini) the tanks and production could not cover consumption. Even the guardians claimed that they have built numerous desalination plants, but in five years, they worry that even will not be enough (Smith, 2018). Therefore, no matter how the guardians have planned, the overcrowding of tourism is the main issue leading to the energy shortage.

 

 

Reference:

Bateman, J. (2019). Santorini under pressure: the threat of overtourism. Retrieved from Greece is: https://www.greece-is.com/santorini-pressure-threat-overtourism/

Delitheou, V., & Georgakopoulou, S. (2017). The contribution of tourism to local development: the case of the island of Santorini. Journal of tourism research, 173-184. Retrieved from http://jotr.eu/pdf_files/V17.pdf#page=174

Dilouamabaka, E. (2017). Locals in Santorini are fed up with tourists . Retrieved from The culture trip: https://theculturetrip.com/europe/greece/articles/locals-in-santorini-are-fed-up-with-tourists/

Gabbatiss, J. (2018). Health of tourists and locals at risk on Greek island due to toxic emissions from cruise ships, say environmentalists. Retrieved from Independent : https://www.independent.co.uk/environment/air-pollution-santorini-greek-island-cruise-ships-nabu-tourism-a8550031.html

Galewska, A. (2019). Over-torusim in Santorini: waht’s the solution. Retrieved from Urban adventures: https://www.urbanadventures.com/blog/over-tourism-in-santorini-a-solution/

Kokkinidis, T. (2019). European parliament concerned about tourists overrunning santorini. Retrieved from Greek reporter : https://greece.greekreporter.com/2019/01/18/european-parliament-warns-greece-tourists-overrunning-santorini/

Lichrou, M., O’Malley, L., & Patterson, M. (2017). Making Santorini: reflecting on the past, imaging the future. Journal of place management and development, 10(2), 106-120. Retrieved from https://doi.org/10.1108/JPMD-07-2016-0050

Sdrali, D., & Chazapi, K. (2007). Cultural tourism in a greek insular community: the residents’ perspective. Tourismos: an international multidisciplinary Journal of Tourism, 2(2), 61-75. Retrieved from https://www.researchgate.net/publication/24114942_Cultural_tourism_in_a_greek_insular_community_The_residents’_perspective

Smith, O. (2018). Is Greece on the brink of an overtourism crisis? Retrieved from The telegraph: https://www.telegraph.co.uk/travel/destinations/europe/greece/articles/greece-overtourism-santorini/

Tsiliopoulos, E. (2019). Mykonos and Santorini record highest foreign visitor arrivals at airports in 2019. Retrieved from New Greek Televison: https://www.newgreektv.com/news-in-english-for-greeks/greece/item/29950-mykonos-and-santorini-record-highest-foreign-visitor-arrivals-at-airports-in-2019

Protocol for Arrivals in Greece – travel.gov.gr. (2020). Retrieved 1 December 2020, from https://travel.gov.gr/#/