Picture perfect: An underappreciated, but central force of Danish rural tourism development.
Author
Ørsøe, Mikkel
Term
4. term
Education
Publication year
2021
Submitted on
2021-05-29
Pages
63
Abstract
I Danmark bliver turisme ofte forstået som et valg mellem by og land. Politikere og branche fremhæver byturismens hurtige vækst, mens landturisme opfattes som bagefter. Alligevel står landområder for flest overnatninger og en stor del af omsætningen. Denne stærke position kombineret med lavere vækst er blevet udlagt som et problem, og forskningen har ofte overset en central aktør i landturismen: ejere af fritids- og sommerhuse. Dette speciale bruger tilgængelige sekundære data til at give et kvantitativt blik på denne “manglende” gruppe og vurdere fritidsboligers rolle i turismen. Det præsenterer desuden ti dybdegående interviews med sommerhusejere, fordelt i to lige store grupper fra to forskellige regioner. Analysen peger på, at landturisme kan have betydelige økonomiske effekter på flere niveauer: mikro (husholdninger og virksomheder), meso (lokalt og regionalt) og makro (nationalt). Specialet argumenterer for, at langvarige antagelser fra 1970’erne samt en politisk magtkamp mellem by- og landinteresser har skabt blinde vinkler, som hæmmer landturismen og den bredere udvikling i landområder. Specialet efterlyser et bredere perspektiv, der anerkender landturismens omfang, rækkevidde og potentiale ud over en snæver, bycentreret forståelse.
In Denmark, tourism is often framed as a choice between city and countryside. Policymakers and the industry highlight the rapid growth of urban tourism, while rural tourism is seen as lagging. Yet rural areas still account for most bed-nights and a large share of turnover. This strong position, combined with lower growth, is treated as a problem, and research has often overlooked a key segment in rural tourism: second-home owners. This thesis uses available secondary data to offer a quantitative view of this “missing” segment and to assess the role of second homes in tourism. It also presents ten in-depth interviews with second-home owners, split into two equal groups from two different regions. The analysis suggests that rural tourism may have substantial economic effects at multiple levels: micro (households and firms), meso (local and regional), and macro (national). It argues that long-standing assumptions dating back to the 1970s, together with a policy and power struggle between urban and rural interests, have created blind spots that constrain rural tourism and broader rural development. The thesis calls for a wider perspective that recognizes the scale, scope, and potential of rural tourism beyond a narrow, city-centered view.
[This summary has been rewritten with the help of AI based on the project's original abstract]
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