Assessment of the Overtourism Phenomenon Risk in Tunisia in Relation to the Tourism Area Life Cycle Concept

Abstract

Tunisia is a destination where organised mass tourism has prevailed since 1985. This trend is still being observed, despite the unstable geopolitical situation in North Africa. Current reports from booking portals indicate that this country will be one of the most popular tourist destinations in 2020. Therefore, the aim of the study was to determine the prospects for sustainable development in Tunisia in 2020–2025 as means to prevent the negative effects of overtourism. The research was conducted in three stages: (1) analysis of the phases of tourism development in Tunisia from 1960 to 2019 in relation to the Tourism Area Life Cycle concept, (2) identification of the destination’s evolution in 2015–2019 with the method of trend function exploration, and (3) an attempt to assess the risk of overtourism in Tunisia in light of Tourism Carrying Capacity on the basis of the Tourism Intensity Index and Tourism Density index. The study results revealed three phases of development in Tunisia, i.e. exploration, involvement, and development. The verification of the trend function indicated that Tunisia would enter the consolidation phase in 2020. The highest risk of overtourism is estimated for three governorates—Tunis, Sousse, and Monastir.

Sustainable tourism development and competitiveness: The systematic literature review

“…Currently, scientists are discussing about communities and their centres and increase possibilities of public administrative effectiveness (Szromek, Kruczek, & Walas, 2020; Widz & Brzezińska‐Wójcik, 2020; Zmyślony, Leszczyński, Waligóra, & Alejziak, 2020; Zucco, et al 2020). The involvement of a local community into the participation in the development process of self‐government may be different: political, social, satisfaction of personal needs, business development in a rural area.…”

Blue Skies, Blue Seas: Air Pollution, Marine Plastics, and Coastal Erosion in the Middle East and North Africa

“…For several of these countries, intact beaches and coastlines are vital to their attractiveness to tourists. For example, Djerba Island off the coast of Tunisia accounts for about one-fourth of all of Tunisia's international tourist arrivals (Carboni, Perelli, and Sistu 2014), and tourism in Tunisia as a whole is focused strongly on coastal areas (Widz and Brzezińska-Wójcik 2020). Similarly, in Egypt, coastal tourism has grown significantly in recent decades, bringing economic benefits to host communities but also increasing environmental pressures (Abdel-Latif, Ramadan, and Galal 2012).…”

A digital response system to mitigate overtourism. The case of Dubrovnik

“…The multiple capacities of the TCC, as highlighted by Getz (1983), refer to six elements which may affect a destination: physical, economic, perceptive, social, ecological, and political capacities. This approach was subsequently adopted by several authors (Coccossis & Mexa, 2004Widz & Brzezińska-Wójcik, 2020), and led to the creation of three more succinct, well-known, and distinct dimensions of the carrying capacity: the physical-ecological, socio-demographic, and politicaleconomic dimensions.…”