Tourism Impacts, Tourism-Phobia and Gentrification in Historic Centers: The Cases of Málaga (Spain) and Gdansk (Poland)

Abstract

This study analyzes the role of residents in urban tourist destinations affected by the increase in tourist flows, which have generated various problems such as tourism, gentrification and the emergence of tourism as a threat to residents. The role of residents in tourist destinations has not been analyzed regularly during the development process of destinations. We study two cases of historic centers in European cities, with the aim of comparing tourism problems, which are common to most European urban destinations. This study was conducted by administering surveys amongst residents of these historic centers (378 in Málaga, Spain, and 380 in Gdansk, Poland). These cities show a similar demographic size and urban characteristics. This is the first comparative research on tourism-phobia and gentrification in destinations, a field of analysis that is still not studied much. We develop specific scales to measure gentrification and tourism-phobia; moreover, we study the impact of some tourist problems that affect residents (noise, dirt, occupation of public spaces, etc.), and we show the spatial distribution of tourism-phobia. The same analysis instruments are used for both cities. The results of this study show that the tourism-phobia situation is different in the analyzed destinations. It is more intense in the case of Málaga than in Gdansk. The two historic centers are especially affected by the processes of increased tourist flows and the growth of new forms of tourist accommodation. The research results show that the residents’ annoyance caused by tourism gentrification is more intense than tourism-phobia. Both case studies highlight the residents’ complaints regarding the inadequate management of problems by public stakeholders and control measures.

Effects of the COVID-19 Pandemic on Tourist Risk Perceptions—The Case Study of Porto

“…In spite of all economic benefits and the renewal of central urban areas, there was an increase in relevant social and environmental frictions, resulting from the unbridled growth of tourism activity in cities. The debate was about how cities deal with the excess of tourism (overtourism), considering the contestation of residents, the processes of gentrification, or the need for greater territorial equity in the distribution of benefits [12][13][14][15][16][17][18]. The growth of urban tourism and international travel based on short stays (city break segment) was associated with an increase in the sector's carbon footprint.…”

An Evaluation of the Three Pillars of Sustainability in Cities with High Airbnb Presence: A Case Study of the City of Madrid

“…In this way, the overtourism experienced by some cities is not a cause of the sudden increase in the number of tourists, but rather the increasing presence of these in the residential neighborhoods of the cities [55][56][57]. Thus, it is establishing a negative relationship between the evolution of the resident population of the neighborhoods and the increase in tourists and tourist accommodation [58,59].…”

“…On the one hand, they represent notable improvements in the quality of public space and sustainable mobility, but on the other, they have generated undesirable effects, such as the expulsion and displacement of traditional small businesses, replaced by franchises and multinationals. This urban model inevitably consolidates processes of exclusion, gentrification, and socio-spatial segregation that drive the loss of diversity, identity, and complexity in urban centers [55,58,59,88,89].…”

Visitors' impacts on remote destinations: An evaluation of a Nepalese mountainous village with intense tourism activity

“…In the global context, plethora of studies incorporating the impacts of tourism do exist in tourism literature ( Allen et al., 1988 ; Almeida-García et al., 2015 ; 2021 ; Balaguer and Cantavella-Jordá, 2002 ; Besculides et al., 2002 ; Butler, 1980 ; Comerio and Strozzi, 2019 ; Dwyer and Forsyth, 1993 ; Greiner et al., 2004 ; Haralambopoulos and Pizam, 1996 ; Kozhokulov et al., 2019 ; Lepp, 2007 ; Liu and Li, 2018 ; Maldonado-Oré and Custodio, 2020 ; Mathieson and Wall, 1982 ; Mcdowall and Choi, 2010 ; Mikayilov et al., 2019 ; Nepal, 2000 ; Nepal et al., 2002 ; Nunkoo and Gursoy, 2012 ; Pickering et al., 2018 ; Shih and Do, 2016 ; Truong et al., 2014 ; Tsundoda and Mendlinger, 2009 ). The crux of the findings of these studies suggests that negative impacts should not be overlooked while establishing/expanding tourism industry at a destination.…”