El turismo de montaña, tiene un gran potencial para estimular el crecimiento de la economía local y el cambio social, por su complementariedad con otras actividades económicas, su contribución al PIB y la creación de empleo y su capacidad de promover la dispersión de la demanda en el tiempo (lucha contra la estacionalidad) y a lo largo del territorio.

EVENTOS

Congreso Mundial de Turismo de Nieve y Montaña: esta serie de conferencias ofrece una visión general de los destinos de montaña dentro de un contexto más amplio y cubre temas en torno a los tres pilares principales: i) desarrollo y planificación sostenibles, ii) inversiones e incentivos y iii) cuestiones operativas.

Las conferencias euroasiáticas de turismo de montaña identifican los actuales desafíos ambientales, estructurales y orientados al mercado en los destinos de montaña y exploran las oportunidades para maximizar el potencial económico y el cambio social para las comunidades locales a través de un desarrollo y gestión sostenible del turismo de montaña.

RESEARCH

Mountain tourism – Towards a more sustainable path

With their soaring peaks, remote locations and majestic beauty, mountains have long been a powerful attraction for visitors from all walks of life, who are drawn by the often colourful traditions of local communities, the opportunities for sporting activities, and the spiritual solace to be found in highland landscapes.

This study highlights the important role that tourism can play in valuing the natural and spiritual heritage of mountains, and the cultural diversity and traditional practices of mountain peoples. Particularly when linked to nature and rural tourism, mountain tourism can make a valuable contribution to promoting sustainable food systems and adding value to local products.

Developing sustainable tourism in mountains requires reducing its negative environmental and social impacts and addressing the challenges posed by climate change. The COVID-19 pandemic has already brought about major changes in the mountain tourism sector and substantial losses for communities and businesses. However, consumer appetites for destinations that are outdoors and less crowded have increased in the wake of the pandemic, and these changes usher in new opportunities for mountain destinations to rebuild a greener and more sustainable form of tourism and rethink their product and services.

For this to happen, the following measures will be critical: innovation and development of year-round tourism experiences; investments in infrastructure, particularly for the digitalization of mountain tourism services; strengthening multi-level-governance, partnerships and active community participation; and ensuring regular assessments of the impact of tourism on mountains, the effective management of waste and resources, and clearer practices for defining and managing the carrying capacity of highland destinations.

Nota de prensa: El turismo sostenible puede ofrecer a las comunidades de montaña un camino hacia la prosperidad y la inclusión

Sustainable Mountain Tourism – Opportunities for Local Communities (Executive Summary)

Recognizing the potential of mountain tourism for driving the socioeconomic growth and development of local communities, this publication presents a summary of the information generated at UNWTO’s mountain tourism events (i.e. World Congress on Snow and Mountain and Euro-Asian Mountain Tourism Conference), including a systematic definition of mountain tourism. In addition, it gives an overview of the development of mountain tourism in different parts of the world over time, and the recent structural changes affecting this segment as a result of new market patterns.