Tourism has played a minor role in the climate change literature, which is surprising, as tourism not only affects climate change through carbon dioxide emissions but it is also climate sensitive. Some particular markets, such as sun, sea and sand mass tourism or winter sports tourism are obviously very sensitive to climate change. For other markets, climate may have an effect too. Although tourism is a much more important economic activity than, for example, agriculture, the climate change research effort on the latter has been massive, while research on the climate change impact on tourism has only recently been expanding (see Scott et al. 2005, and Hamilton and Tol 2006, for literature reviews). As in other impact areas, two groups of researchers are working on climate change impacts on tourism – those who were initially interested in tourism, and those who were initially interested in climate change – and, as in other impact areas, there is some tension between the two. Such tension should be channeled to creativity, rather than to conflict. Gossling and Hall Climatic Change (2006) 79: 175–180 DOI 10.1007/s10584-006-9190-7