Level of Disturbance
Tourism does not disrupt residents or ecosystems
Unmanaged tourism causes friction — noise, crowding, and disruption to the daily lives of local people and the functioning of natural environments. This sub-indicator asks whether operators have proactive plans to minimise disturbance, rather than simply reacting to complaints.
The degree to which the tour minimises disruption to local communities, residents’ daily lives, and the natural environment.
How RTA measures this
The same sub-indicator is assessed from two sides: operators self-assess their performance; travellers rate their experience. Both use a 1–5 scale.
“How well did this tour avoid causing disruption to local communities and natural environments?”
- 1We are not looking at this point. Or: we have made a seasonal practice / event available all year long.
- 2We are not aware of any disturbance created by our tour. And/or: there are some issues (begging children, over-tourism, anarchic parking, water shortage, etc.) but we are not responsible for it. And/or: we have extended the period of a seasonal practice to satisfy the demand.
- 3We make sure our tour does not disturb local life; the number of participants is limited and, in case tourism becomes a disturbance, we will reconsider it accordingly. And/or: it is a traditional event tour available only according to calendar.
- 4The tour was built together with local community(ies) so it does not disturb daily life (activities, tranquillity) and avoids/excludes voyeurism and school visits. The number of participants is limited. And we encourage locals to inform us of any disturbance our tour would generate.
- 5In addition to the foregoing, the local community(ies) cohesion was reinforced since we started this tour: community engagement, gatherings and events have increased.
“How well did this tour avoid causing unnecessary disturbance to local communities and nature?”
- 1The tour caused obvious and unnecessary disruption to local residents or natural environments.
- 2Some disturbance to the local community or environment was apparent and could have been avoided.
- 3Disruption was generally managed well, though a few incidents could have been handled better.
- 4The tour was well-managed with minimal disturbance to local communities and the natural environment.
- 5The tour caused virtually no disruption — the operator's approach to minimising impact was exemplary.
Other sub-indicators in Satisfaction of Residents & Visitors
Rate this indicator yourself
Complete a questionnaire and see how an operator scores across all 16 sub-indicators.