Abstract
The tourism sector is growing in importance for the Swedish economy. However this growth is not uniformly distributed within the country and this in turn leads to an uneven distribution of tourism activity between regions as well as between rural and urban areas. In a previous study it is concluded that the growth of bed nights between 2000 and 2010 is concentrated to the three larger urban regions in Sweden. The substantial growth of tourism in Sweden is therefore mainly a big city phenomenon, which is in sharp contrast to the picture entertained by policy makers and government officials. Tourism is regarded and promoted as a universally applicable tool when it comes to develop rural areas or regions in need for alternative job opportunities when traditional occupations are phased out.
This study addresses the question of redistribution within the regions. The question in focus is if the tendency of concentration of bed nights follows the same pattern within the regions as on the national level, i.e. if concentration increases over time. It is also of interest to identify those destinations, which deviate from the main pattern and to scrutinize the how they, achieve sustainable or at least long term competitiveness.
An analysis is based on data collected by statistics Sweden and the Swedish Agency for Economic and Regional Growth. Data on overnight stays in commercial establishments were derived on local level between 2008 and 2016 for four regions in central Sweden; Dalarna, Värmland, Gävleborg and Jämtland. This data set makes it possible to make a longitudinal (annual) analysis of the redistribution of bed nights in detail. The concentration was analysed based on a calculation of the locational quotient and the corresponding locational coefficient, which relates concentration of tourism to that of the population on municipal level.
A preliminary analysis of the data indicates a similar pattern as on the national level; i.e. there is a strong on-going concentration to regional urban centres indicating the presence of an urban supremacy. In other words, tourism growth is primarily a concern for urban areas rather than it being beneficial to rural development. This result contradicts the traditional notions in Sweden where tourism is regarded as a saviour for declining regions.