Climate Change and Tourism

Tourism is a thriving global industry, but it is facing challenges due to climate change. These challenges bring to light the need for the tourism industry to fully understand the concerns at hand and take action to mitigate them to remain a globally viable commerce in the future. Climate change is a reality that needs to be dealt with in the present. Because it is expected to escalate in the coming years, the tourism industry needs to adequately prepare for it in the future as well. Many of the areas that draw tourists are the most vulnerable to the effects of climate change.

Overview

Climate scientists agree that climate change is occurring due to an increase in levels of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere, which is largely the result of the use of fossil fuels and the deforestation that has occurred since the Industrial Revolution at the beginning of the twentieth century. This has brought a change in weather patterns and an increase in average temperatures, which have been document as rising in the air and sea globally. For example, 2023 was the warmest calendar year in global temperature data records going back to 1850, which was 0.17 degrees higher than the previous highest value in 2016.

The effects of global warming have a direct impact on the industry of tourism and travel. Vacationers travel to naturally beautiful places, such as beaches, national parks, mountains, and scenic landscapes. However, these are the areas that face the greatest challenges because of climate change, and the situation is expected to worsen in the coming years.

Warming temperatures are making summers longer and hotter, while winter seasons are becoming shorter and warmer. The rise in temperature, even by only a few degrees annually, can make warm weather destinations intolerable during the hotter months for travelers. In fact, some experts predict that by the end of the twenty-first century, warm-weather locations will be too hot for many travelers to consider as vacation destinations. Even though air conditioning is readily available in many developed countries, the cost to keep travelers cool during longer and hotter summers can be difficult for venues to absorb and may force businesses to close altogether.

Colder climates, too, face similar problems for tourists. Global warming is making winter snow seasons shorter. Destinations that rely on skiing, snowboarding, and other winter snow sports are facing the reality of shorter and warmer winters that require them to make their profits in less time while also spending more money to run snowmakers more often. In the world’s high mountains, such as the Himalayas, the warmer temperatures are causing snowpack and glaciers to melt. This makes adventure sports like climbing and trekking more difficult and dangerous.

Rising temperatures drive atmospheric changes that energize storms. This leads to more extreme and changeable weather, which can disrupt travel plans. The likelihood of stronger tropical storms and hurricanes is causing more tourists to rethink booking a trip during the Atlantic hurricane season in the summer and fall. Unusual and unexpected weather events, such as sudden drops in temperature that cause freezing, can also occur due to these changing weather patterns. Hotels and other large buildings in any storm-prone area must be prepared to serve as shelters for residents in the event of destructive weather, and travelers must be ready to evacuate. Many tourists who book vacations months in advance depend on predictable weather conditions. However, climate change is causing more uncertainty to even the most well-thought-out travel plans.

Violent storms such as hurricanes, floods, and tornados can not only upset travel plans, but also cause expensive and even crippling damage to venues at tourist destinations. Destruction from severe weather causes insurance premiums to rise, and this forces many businesses that are unable to keep up with rising costs to close their doors. According to the World Travel & Tourism Council (WTTC), the Caribbean, which depends on tourism for up to one-third of its gross domestic product (GDP), lost 741-million dollars in revenue from tourists who were unable to visit during the unusually aggressive 2017 hurricane season, which also caused insurance premiums to rise 40 percent. The 741-million dollars does not account for the costs of repairs from storm damage. Even if covered by insurance, insurance companies often take years to settle claims or refuse to provide future insurance protection for properties. Yet, despite these damages and the COVID-19 pandemic decreases in tourism from 2020–2021, Caribbean tourism numbers hit 33.2 million visitors in 2023, up fourteen percent from 2022. While having more visitors brings in more money, this growth paired with climate change and natural disaster potential can have negative long-term effects as many of these small, remote destinations cannot sustain the damages and the number of visitors.

Coastal areas are especially vulnerable to the effects of climate change from rising sea levels, which results in flooding and erosion. Glacial and ice sheet melt is occurring at alarming rates. This melted oceanic ice combines with the expansion of seawater as temperatures rise, causing sea levels throughout the world to rise. Tourists often seek out resorts with beachfront or waterway access, and resorts are having a harder time keeping up with heavier rates of erosion and shoreline destruction. Some areas are even faced with the possibility of being underwater in the coming decades. Stronger storms brought on by climate change also bring the threat of destructive storm-related flooding that disrupts delicate ecosystems and protective wetlands. Not just a problem for sparsely populated beaches or islands, some major cities that draw tourists are also in vulnerable coastal areas, such as New York, Miami, and Tokyo.

Coral reef destruction off the coast is happening at an alarming rate as well because of climate change. The Pacific coral reefs of Indonesia, Hawaii, and Australia draw tourists from all over the world who hope to see colorful ocean life up close while snorkeling and scuba diving. However, these delicate natural attractions are in danger from destructive hurricanes and warming sea temperatures. Some experts believe that the future of many of the world’s coral reefs is bleak.

While some areas are faced with an increase of flooding from coastal erosion and storm waters, other tourist destinations must deal with a lack of water from prolonged droughts. Areas that once had predictable rainy seasons may not have enough water due to weather changes. Without reliable sources of water, some hotels and resorts have been forced to either increase their prices to cover the rising cost of water or shut down all together.

In areas that depend on water recreation to bring in tourists, low water levels of large bodies of water are a problem. For example, Lake Powell in the Southwest United States is facing historically low water levels. The level of the water in the lake has decreased down 145 vertical feet since 1999. This greatly impacts the recreational activities that people enjoy on the lake such as boating and fishing. Many of the boat ramps in the Glen Canyon National Recreation Area are either closed or difficult to use, and some marinas are completely unusable.

Extended drought from changing weather patterns and a lack of snowpack creates conditions for wildfires to thrive. Areas such as the California’s redwood forests rely on a steady supply of melted winter snow from higher elevations to provide needed moisture throughout the drier summer months. However, with less snow and warmer temperatures, ground cover dries out leaving the forests vulnerable to massive wildfires. Wildfires are unpredictable and destructive causing distress for tourists and locals alike. Researchers estimate that California’s 2018 wildfire season alone cost 148.5-billion dollars in damage. On August 8, 2023, the Hawaiian island of Maui experienced its largest fire in history, which was also the fifth deadliest wildland fire in US history. One hundred lives were lost, and 2,200 structures were destroyed in the fire. Overall, the island suffered more than five billion dollars in damages. While extenuating factors contributed to the fire, such as outdated technology and unclear protocols, the impacts of climate change played a distinct role in the fires too. Extremely dry conditions paired with high winds made for fast-moving, uncontrollable blazes. Such conditions were not always typical for Maui but have become more common over the past decade.

Further Insights

Tourism itself contributes to pollution through increased waste production and carbon emissions. The travel and tourism industries are estimated to contribute to about 8 percent of all global greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions. Tourism requires travel, which generally involves using planes or vehicles that depend on fossil fuels. Producing food and building elaborate hotels and resorts to accommodate tourists also contributes to carbon emission and may destroy the natural areas that tourists want to see. This further complicates the issue of climate change, making it a problem that is not easily solved.

Tourism can also take away essential resources, such as water and land, that are in limited supply because of climate change. This is a problem for local residents, especially those in less affluent areas that are frequently by wealthy travelers expecting luxuries. Tourists traveling for enjoyment may consume drinking water that residents of the area need to survive.

Limited recovery resources following a natural disaster may be diverted to lavish resorts, while residents are forced to wait for their homes to be rebuilt or repaired. This can cause serious conflicts between locals and visitors and contribute to rising costs for everyone.

However, tourism is an industry crucial to the economy of just about every country. According to the WTTC in 2023, tourism accounted for one in ten jobs globally, which made up 9.1 percent of the global GDP. This amounted to about nine-trillion dollars for that year. The WTTC also reported that more than 80 percent of the businesses in the tourism industry are classified as small- and medium-sized industries. Because many tourist-based businesses are smaller, they have less resources to deal with the problems caused by climate change, even in more prosperous nations. In developing countries, the need for more resources to deal with climate change is even more dire. According to the United Nations (UN), tourism is a principal export for 83 percent of developing countries, and the largest export of any industry in one-third of these countries.

Although climate change is a problem directly affecting the tourism industry, experts agree that the industry as a whole is not prepared. Despite the grim outlook for the future of tourism, some destinations have been able to adapt and even benefit from the changes in weather conditions. For example, Whistler Ski Resort in Canada has expanded activities that do not depend on snow. Other northern destinations that have been too cold to entice most travelers, such as Mongolia and Scandinavia, will probably see an increase in interest by visitors over the next few decades. Tourists will still desire vacations and likely seek out higher altitudes and more northern destinations during the hot summer months and to enjoy cold-weather and snow sports year-round. According to the Pew Research Center, by the end of the twenty-first century, tourism to Canada may even skyrocket 220 percent.

Since climate change has become a well-known global problem addressed by multi-national agencies like the United Nations (UN), governments can take recommended action to safeguard their local tourism industry. Protective measures like coastal adaptation and forest management can reduce the damage from flooding, erosion, storms, and wildfires. Earmarked governmental aid that is readily available can also help areas that have been affected by extreme weather or wildfires get the resources they need to recover and welcome tourists back more quickly. Countries have also been urged by the UN to take action to reduce carbon emissions and find alternative fuels for transportation.

About the Author

Jocelyn Hutchinson is a freelance writer with more than ten years’ experience in the educational publishing business. She is also a consultant and an educator specializing in English as a second language for professionals globally.

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