Author(s)

FRANCESCA PIRLONE & ILENIA SPADARO

Abstract

The preservation of the environment, culture and local traditions and the participation of people are the aspects to consider for a sustainable tourism. In this regard, tourist sustainability should involve the environmental, socio-economic and cultural dimensions.

The Mediterranean has always been the ideal framework for a sustainable tourism; the environment and the cultural heritage existent, in particular in coastal areas, is in fact considerable. The beauties of these areas are still today visited by millions of tourists.

Despite the importance of the topic, observing the current regulations, a tool specifically dedicated to the management of the tourism has not been identified. Therefore, an accurate planning is essential to define innovative strategies aim to combine the benefits to the negative impacts of tourism. This paper proposes a Sustainable Tourism Action Plan – STAP – that seeks to combine these two closely linked aspects. In fact, impacts of tourism – alteration of the landscape, resource depletion and air pollution – are incident precisely on touristic destinations.

For example, the thematic tourism (rural, natural,...) is particularly orients towards the sustainability, and it has positively impact on the major tourist pressures (high number of visitors, seasonal concentrations, use of polluting means of transport,...).

More generally, the above Action Plan is aimed to realize an international strategy adaptable to local situations, to promote sustainable development at the national level and to encourage the creation of networks among different Mediterranean coastal areas. The proposed methodological approach has been applied in Liguria, one of the most visited regions in the Mediterranean.

Keywords

action plan, Mediterranean coastal area, sustainability, tourism.