Caution against ‘over-tourism’

While further development of tourism will ultimately benefit Barbados’ economy, an Independent Senator has issued a caution against the potential negative impact such development could have on the country’s social fabric.

The warning came from Reverend John Rogers as he contributed to debate on a resolution to acquire land at Harrismith, St Philip for use for residential and tourism development.

He spoke of a phenomenon called “over-tourism”, which he said was a growing concern around the world.

“It is a term that has developed in recent years regarding the impact of tourism on the economy and states. For example, in some parts of Europe, there is a call for the ban of Airbnb because of the changes to the social fabric of the cities and countries in general,” Senator Rogers said.

“In Barbados, while tourism is the main driver in our country, we should pay close attention to over-tourism. First, the strain on our resources as a people. We have challenges with water levels in some areas of this country, sewage, garbage collection, and health care, these are all areas under considerable strain so we must pay careful attention to how we pursue tourism from this perspective. Over-tourism can affect land prices, and the prices of rentals and the local population stands to lose from this.”

He added that while tourism may be benefitting the country economically, at the social level people may be under strain.

“We have to focus on the social linkages where tourism is concerned. We have just come out of a year where we had a record number of murders, and this can have an impact on the investments we are making in tourism. So, when we talk about where to place our tourism dollar, we have to think about national development, because if the mindset of people is not one where they recognize what they do affects the country, our tourism dollars will go to waste,” Senator Rogers said.

However, Government Senator and Chief Executive Officer of the Barbados Hotel and Tourism Association, Senator Rudy Grant, did not share his view. “Yes, over-tourism is a real issue, but not in Barbados. When you speak of over-tourism, you should immediately conjure up in your mind where visitors cannot rent a car, there is overcrowding on the streets, and rents are being pushed up; but this is not the case in Barbados, because here we engage in responsible and sustainable tourism development,” he said.

Senator Grant did acknowledge, however, that with new tourism developments planned, it would be wise for Barbados to ensure it could properly manage the situation.

“There are a number of factors we must bring into our consciousness, such as airlift, the level of accommodation, infrastructure and services such as Information and Communications Technology and health services, and proper legislation. So it is important for us to do a carrying capacity study, because we have to make sure that we do not develop the industry to the extent where you have a negative impact,” he suggested.