Tourism under pressure: The impact of extreme heat
Rising temperatures are reshaping tourism patterns in Southern Europe, forcing hotels and destinations to rethink their investment, adaptation and management strategies.
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How is climate change changing the way we travel? What happens when high temperatures stop being a tourism attraction and start discouraging visitors? And what are the consequences for hotels and local economies?
At a time when rising temperatures are changing the conditions for travel, understanding how tourist demand responds to these changes is becoming increasingly important. Cities in Southern Europe, traditionally associated with sunshine and warm weather, are facing a new reality: extreme heat can reduce hotel occupancy rates and shift tourist flows towards cooler destinations or different times of the year.
Pedro Aznar, Associate Professor in the Department of Economics at Esade, Vice Dean of Programs at Esade Law School, and researcher at GRUGET (Investigation Group of Tourism Management), explores these questions in a new episode of Risk and Return. Drawing on his research into the relationship between temperatures, hotel occupancy and tourism seasonality in Southern European cities, he examines how climate change is reshaping demand and what this means for businesses and destinations. He also explains why rising temperatures may create winners and losers within the tourism industry, and why hotels need to incorporate climate risk into their investment, planning and management decisions.
Hosted by Professor Omar Rachedi, Risk and Return features conversations with leading academics and professionals, making economic knowledge accessible and exploring how markets, businesses and policies shape our world.