Can overtourism at heritage attractions really be sustainably managed? Lights and shadows of the experience at the site of the Alhambra and Generalife (Spain)

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, whi...

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Detalles Bibliográficos
Autores: García Hernández, María, Calle Vaquero, Manuel De La
Tipo de recurso: artículo
Fecha de publicación:2023
País:España
Institución:Universidad Complutense de Madrid (UCM)
Repositorio:Docta Complutense
Idioma:inglés
OAI Identifier:oai:docta.ucm.es:20.500.14352/95790
Acceso en línea:https://hdl.handle.net/20.500.14352/95790
Access Level:acceso abierto
Palabra clave:725.17:342.36/.37(46)
338.48-6:502/504
Heritage Sites
Cultural resources management
Overtourism
Tourism carrying capacity
Sustainability
Alhambra
Ciencias Sociales
54 Geografía
Descripción
Sumario: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