From crowded hill towns to shrinking coastal villages, mass tourism is straining local economies. The real cost of your vacation may be paid by the very people who call these places home. This World Tourism Day, read why responsible tourism is as much about livelihoods as it is about landscapes.
My Instagram feed is littered with pictures of city folks on vacation, leaning over balconies overlooking lush green plantations with steaming cups of coffee in hand, and cooing over misty mornings in Coorg. To them, the hills feel untouched, like their little secret piece of untouched paradise. But not far away, just below that picturesque balcony, are snaking hill roads choked with traffic. In town, local vendors shake their heads sadly as their goods have few takers – either prices have shot up or local residents aren’t stepping out in order to avoid tourist crowds. For locals, Coorg does not feel untouched at all. It feels overwhelmed.
This is the paradox of mass tourism. For travellers, it feels like a gift: comfort, beauty, bragworthy photographs, and escape. For residents, it often looks like unaffordable real estate, rising costs of living, and fragile livelihoods.
When Tourists Outnumber Locals
Once sleepy hill towns like Ooty, Madikeri or Wayanad, are now seeing millions of tourists every year. On weekends, these places clock as many as 40,000 people per day. Roads built for transport of agricultural produce now buckle under SUVs with city plates. Water meant for local households and crops is diverted to mushrooming hotels and mega-sized resorts.
During peak season, many shopkeepers actually lose income from their regular local customers, who avoid the crowded towns. Farmers have sold fertile plantations to make way for resorts and hotels, sacrificing long-term agricultural security for short-term profit. Sadly, when destabilised slopes give way to monsoon landslides, it is the local communities who bear the financial and personal cost.
On the western coast, Goa tells a similar story. Its beaches are bustling with shacks, bars and visitors on sunbeds enjoying the scene. However, this apparent prosperity hides a more sober reality. Rents in several places have tripled in the last few years as homes are converted into bed and breakfasts, homestays, guesthouses or purchased as second homes by outsiders. Many local families have been priced out of their ancestral villages. The jobs that tourism creates are seasonal and uncertain, often disappearing during the monsoons.
The pandemic made this fragility painfully clear. Incomes tied to tourism vanished overnight when state borders were shut, leaving many households without a single source of income. Communities that had abandoned farming or fishing for tourism-dependent jobs had nothing to fall back on.
Additional Reading: Mountains and Money: The Financial Impact of Mass Tourism on Hill Communities
Environmental Costs That Hit Wallets
Tourism reshapes landscapes physically and financially. The consequences are lasting. In the Western Ghats, forests and plantations have given way to sprawling concrete resorts, weakening hills and raising the risk of landslides. The damage from these disasters, including lost crops, destroyed homes and reconstructions costs, all falls on the local residents.
Waste management is another added expense that tourist hotspots struggle to afford. Small towns, such as Ooty or Madikeri, are ill-equipped for the mountains of plastic and food waste generated by mass tourism as they lack adequate waste management funds. Illegal dumping of waste on the hillsides and into rivers is another invisible tax on local communities.
Goa, too, struggles with waste management as its popular beaches yield more trash than local authorities are equipped to manage. The cost of cleaning up can outstrip the amount earned through tourism-related taxes.
Unregulated development has resulted in both coastal and hillside erosion, threatening the very assets that draw visitors to these picturesque destinations in the first place.
Commercialisation of Culture
Mass tourism has yet another sad consequence – the commodification of local culture. Traditional practices in places such as Kerala and Goa were once rooted in community life but are increasingly repackaged for visitors. The need to showcase culture to tourists has resulted in festivals, dances, and other practices being staged or altered in order to meet touristic expectations. Even traditional cuisines have been impacted. You will be hard-pressed to find traditional Goan cuisine on the popular beaches of Goa or Kodava dishes on the menus at multi-cuisine restaurants in Madikeri.
Although cultural showcasing does generate some income for the locals involved, it also risks stripping traditions of authenticity and sanctity. The diluted version holds little meaning to locals and is of no value to tourists.
Toward Tourism That Actually Pays
Responsible tourism is not about discouraging visitors. It is about balance. From a financial perspective, this would mean:
- Diversification: Nurturing local livelihoods such as farming or fishing alongside tourism so that there isn’t an overdependence on the number of tourists alone and incomes remain stable.
- Scalable Infrastructure: Build waste disposal/treatment plants, water and electric systems, and roads for locals first, tourists second.
- Fair Pricing: Local ownership of homestays, cooperatives, and markets will help keep money circulating within the community.
- Responsible Travel: Travellers should consciously choose eco-friendly resorts, support local businesses and try travelling during off-peak seasons. Even small actions can help put money back into the local community.
Additional Reading: Is Credit Card Travel Insurance Enough For You?
How to be a Better Tourist
- Stay Small, Stay Local: Opt for locally run registered homestays or guesthouses so money stays within the community. You’ll even have a more interesting, authentic travel experience.
- Eat Local: Visiting local eateries will support local vendors/suppliers and help preserve authentic cuisines. You’ll get to experience new dishes and flavours that will surprise you.
- Buy Authentic: Shop for what the region is known for; for example, coffee and spices in Coorg, not chocolates.
- Travel Off-Peak: By travelling during off-peak seasons, you’ll have less crowds to deal with, ease pressure on local infrastructure, and spread income more evenly across the year.
- Reduce Waste: Carry refillable water bottles, avoid single-use plastics, and dispose of your trash responsibly.
- Respect Traditions: Be mindful of local practices, architecture, culture and sentiments. Don’t reduce them to props for your Instagram pictures.
Remember that responsible tourism doesn’t mean travelling less. It just means travelling better, in ways that actually enable local communities to thrive long after visitors have left.
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