Climate Change and Tourism - UNEP - Division of Technology ...
Climate Change and Tourism - UNEP - Division of Technology ...
Climate Change and Tourism - UNEP - Division of Technology ...
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46 <strong>Climate</strong> <strong>Change</strong> <strong>and</strong> <strong>Tourism</strong> – Responding to Global Challenges<br />
climate: the duration <strong>of</strong> showers or the number <strong>of</strong> hours with clouds is probably more important for<br />
this activity than the absolute amount <strong>of</strong> rain. <strong>Climate</strong> change may be due to natural internal processes<br />
or external forcings (e.g., fluctuation in solar energy), or to persistent anthropogenic changes in the<br />
composition <strong>of</strong> the atmosphere or in l<strong>and</strong> use.<br />
8.1.2 Relationships between <strong>Climate</strong>, Weather <strong>and</strong> <strong>Tourism</strong><br />
The relationship between tourism <strong>and</strong> climate has been studied for a long time. 139 In the 1970s,<br />
applied climatologists examined the climatic thresholds that defined the season length for a wide<br />
range <strong>of</strong> tourism activities. 140, 141, 142, 143 In the 1980s, biometeorologists <strong>and</strong> others studied how<br />
climatic variables affected the physical comfort <strong>of</strong> tourists <strong>and</strong> developed rating systems to evaluate <strong>and</strong><br />
compare the climates <strong>of</strong> tourism destinations. 144, 145, 146 More recent work has focused on validating<br />
climate rating systems for tourism in the marketplace. 147, 148, 149 The suitability <strong>of</strong> a given climate (<strong>and</strong><br />
weather) varies for different types <strong>of</strong> tourism, as does the satisfaction <strong>of</strong> an individual tourist depending<br />
on country <strong>of</strong> origin, age or other factors. 150, 151 Some types <strong>of</strong> tourism require very specific climate<br />
conditions, for example beach tourism, winter sports, or health-wellness tourism. Climatic conditions<br />
<strong>and</strong> their suitability to tourism can differ at a micro scale from one side <strong>of</strong> the mountain to the other,<br />
within a range <strong>of</strong> a few kilometres according to altitude or even at a smaller scale under the influence<br />
<strong>of</strong> human developments (e.g., urban heat isl<strong>and</strong>) or tourism infrastructure (e.g., tourist resorts – both<br />
new [La gr<strong>and</strong>e Motte in Languedoc, France] <strong>and</strong> old [on the French Riviera] – have been designed to<br />
reduce wind speeds to enhance tourist comfort). More recent work has focused on the role <strong>of</strong> weather<br />
<strong>and</strong> climate in travel motivation, destination choice, <strong>and</strong> holiday satisfaction for tourists as well as the<br />
range <strong>of</strong> uses <strong>of</strong> weather <strong>and</strong> climate information by tourism operators <strong>and</strong> other tourism stakeholders<br />
(investors, insurers, regulators). 152, 153, 154, 155, 156, 157, 158, 159<br />
8.1.3 The Importance <strong>of</strong> Weather Forecasts <strong>and</strong> <strong>Climate</strong> Prediction for the<br />
<strong>Tourism</strong> Sector<br />
“A major limiting factor to the predictability <strong>of</strong> weather beyond several days is a fundamental<br />
dynamical property <strong>of</strong> the atmosphere. In the 1960s, meteorologist Edward Lorenz discovered that<br />
very slight differences in initial conditions can produce very different forecast results.”<br />
UNWTO, 9 July 2008<br />
Le Treut et al. (2007)<br />
Weather, in many regions <strong>of</strong> the world, can be forecast now for up to a week with good reliability<br />
<strong>and</strong> it is expected that similarly reliable forecasts will be extended to upwards <strong>of</strong> ten days over the<br />
next 10–15 years. Weather forecasts are improving at a local scale, though some extreme phenomena<br />
such as tornadoes cannot (yet) be predicted with sufficient lead time for effective response to the risk.<br />
Improvements to weather forecasts <strong>and</strong> the development <strong>of</strong> early warning systems are <strong>of</strong> particular<br />
interest to the tourism sector. Improvements in weather forecasting benefit tourists in their short term<br />
decision-making related to travel planning (i.e., departure time-date <strong>and</strong> destination choice) <strong>and</strong><br />
activities. Early warning systems also reduce the safety risks associated with extreme events, such as<br />
storms, cyclones, or avalanches. 160, 161 The improved accuracy <strong>of</strong> weather forecasts is also important<br />
for tourism operators. Improved forecasts benefit operational decisions, such as irrigation, snowmaking,<br />
activities programming, maintenance <strong>and</strong> staff scheduling, <strong>and</strong> route planning (cruise ships<br />
<strong>and</strong> airlines). Improved forecasting is also desirable because inaccurate forecasts can be detrimental to<br />
the tourist experience <strong>and</strong> tourism dem<strong>and</strong>, for example when people go on ski, beach or camping trip<br />
<strong>and</strong> do not find the expected good weather, or do not go because <strong>of</strong> the forecast <strong>of</strong> poor weather that<br />
does not actually materialize.<br />
Seasonal climate prediction covers periods from one month, to several years, but typically is for three<br />
month periods. The availability <strong>of</strong> seasonal predictions is exp<strong>and</strong>ing, following upon recent advances in
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