Does Health-Oriented Tourism Contribute to Sustainable Mobility?

Philipp Schlemmer,Markus Mailer,Cornelia Blank,Martin Schnitzer,Bartosz Bursa

doi:10.3390/su11092633

Abstract

Previous research has concentrated on traffic and health-related effects in relation to arrival patterns (e.g., stress in connection with means of transport, travel distance, and time). However, tourist mobility behavior during a vacation and potential health-related associations as well as its correlation with physical activity habits and mobility patterns at home seems to have barely been examined. To address this research gap, the study at hand applied a mixed-method approach in three tourism destinations in Tyrol, Austria. The study examined tourists’ mobility as well as their physical activity at home and at the holiday destination. Results show that the preferred transport mode (arrival and on-site) is the private car, due to its flexibility and comfort. Hotel front desks, as the main information source, determine tourists’ behavioral aspects during a vacation. General mobility routines show differences between everyday life and holiday situations, and physical activity is important for the overall satisfaction of tourists, which proves to be more intense and frequent during a vacation than in everyday life. Seven percent of the tourists participating in the research stated that they had changed their daily mobility behavior after their return, with most of them walking or cycling more often. This study contributes to research in the field of sustainable tourist mobility and physical activity behavior and highlights the necessity for further specific analyses.

Highlights

Walking and cycling as modes of transport, referred to as active mobility (AM), are of considerable importance for sustainable mobility
Since our research focuses on people choosing health-oriented holidays with higher levels of physical activity and active mobility, Tyrolean destinations are ideal locations when looking for answers to our research questions
On-site mobility on vacation proves no direct relationship with the level of physical activity

Summary

Introduction

Walking and cycling as modes of transport, referred to as active mobility (AM), are of considerable importance for sustainable mobility. On the one hand, increasing AM reduces the consumption of space for transport infrastructure, energy consumption, air pollution, and noise [1,2,3,4], meeting ecological goals of Sustainable Urban Mobility Plans [5] and strategic EU policy documents [6,7,8]. AM provides mobility at comparably low cost for travelers and the public, meeting economic goals as well. AM can be used by most people without restriction, it is affordable and accessible, and does not represent an accident risk to others. AM is healthy in that it provides regular physical activity [1]. AM meets social aspects of sustainability, playing an essential role in visions and strategies for sustainable mobility (e.g., [9])

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Conclusion