Published on : Monday, April 8, 2019
Mayors and vice-mayors from 16 cities including Lisbon, Barcelona, Paris, Sao Paulo and Seoul vowed to place sustainability at the center of the tourism industry by using new technologies to build “cities for all”.
The declaration comes at a time when low-cost airlines have created tourism booms in many leading cities; however, it is also at the same time when locals have been driven out because of increasing house prices due to short-term rentals. To quote Zurab Pololikashvili, the Secretary General of the UNWTO, “We truly believe innovation can lead to many solutions to problematic issues in urban tourism development.”
“Lisbon needs to have a strong economy and tourism is part of that but we also need quality of life, public services adapted to a growing number of visitors and we need a city where there is access to fundamental rights, including housing,” said Lisbon’s Mayor Fernando Medina.
Mr. Medina accepted the fact that there is a link between housing costs and tourism, and said that property renting platforms put some pressure on cities.
He said that the city council, along with the the government, is working on regulations to control the phenomenon, which especially affects historical areas. “We don’t want to lose the diversity of our historical neighbourhoods,” Mr. Medina said.
Tags: mass tourism