Searching for the Solution to Tourism Overcrowding in Top Destinations
Photo Credit: Tourists swarming around the Venus di Milo statue at the Louvre in Paris, France. Skift
Skift Take
Overcrowding is one of the biggest issues plaguing destinations. Here I outline a smart new way to allow free-market forces to not only limit overcrowding, but spread out the visitors and help fill the off-peak dates.
Because destinations can’t hang a “sorry, we're full” sign on the front door in high season, they need to take a more sophisticated approach to managing the influx of tourists.
Fortunately, there’s both proven technology and models available to show the way. This article represents the first time they're getting combined into a powerful solution.
The core issue is often misunderstood. When a destination fills up, it doesn’t mean all the hotels, restaurants, subways, buses and museums are completely full. That’s the part that causes so much confusion. Even in an overcrowded destination, there will likely be restaurant and museum managers telling the people in charge of managing tourism in their destinations that they still have plenty of spots to fill. So the destination management organization (DMO) thinks: we still have space.
This is the wrong way to look at it. Instead, think of the destination like a dinner party. You want to host a nice sit-down meal. Your h
