Tourism, nature and sustainability

Tourism is one of the fastest growing economies of the word. This does not only imply that economic growth is increasing, but also that more travellers demand a greater variety of destinations and attractions and that the experiences tourists are seeking are becoming diverse. In view of these changes sustainable development of tourism are becoming an increasingly complex matter to achieve. Recently, the Nordic countries have experienced a rapid growth in numbers of visitors. At some popular nature attractions this has resulted in crowding, environmental damage, costly rescue operations and overload on public infrastructure. Economic instruments such as entrance fees are frequently proposed to regulate and manage the volume of tourists to vulnerable sites and nature in general. While being common in many countries throughout the world, economic policy instruments seem to have a somewhat limited applicability in the Nordic countries, mainly due to the public rights of access. In view of this, the aim of this report is to make some assessments of the extent to which economic instruments can be implemented in the various Nordic countries. This question is approach not only by looking into the effects economic instruments in view of management goals, but even by considering consequences within a broader sustainability perspective.