Touristification Geographies in the EU during the 2010 s Recession: A Composite Index Analysis

The paper at hand revisits the geography of touristification across the EU regions during a period characterised by significant sectoral realignment and successive upheavals, including the 2008/2009 Global Crisis and the COVID-19 pandemic. By developing an original Touristification Composite Index and calculating it for all NUTS-2 regions within the EU, the study captures the interplay of territorial and social pressures exerted by tourism, as well as regions’ dependence on it. The analysis confirms that touristification intensified from 2009 to 2022, with notable trends particularly in Southern EU coastal and insular regions. It also highlights the extent of touristification in Alpine regions of Italy and Austria, as well as in select Central and Northern EU metropolitan areas. Despite potential destabilising factors such as the prolonged recession in the EU South and digitalisation, the study finds that the geographic patterns of touristification remained relatively stable throughout the study period. More importantly, it reveals a clear link between touristification, GDP contraction, and deterioration in labour conditions. Discussed through the frameworks of Geographical Political Economy and Evolutionary Economic Geography, these findings emphasise the deepening intra-EU asymmetries and support the conceptualisation of touristification as a spatial fix.