Active fishing boats in the harbor strengthen tourism, shows new study from Copenhagen University. A new study from the University of Copenhagen reveals that active fishing boats in local harbors have a positive impact on tourism. The study, conducted by researchers from the Department of Food and Resource Economics, shows that the presence of fishing boats not only increases fishing revenues, but also provides an economic boost to other sectors such as tourism and the hotel industry.
Associate Professor Max Nielsen, one of the authors of the study, explains that there is a clear statistical correlation between the number of fishing boats in the harbor and the number of hotel guests in the area. “Tourism is significantly positively influenced by having active fishing vessels landing in local harbors,” he says.
The study shows that the addition of just one extra fishing vessel in a local harbor leads to an average increase in hotel stays of 1.1 percent, which corresponds to around 90 extra overnight stays in the surveyed harbor areas. The effect is even more noticeable if the fishing vessels are permanently stationed in the harbor.
The study also indicates that it is the overall fishing activity that attracts tourists, rather than the size of the fishing vessels themselves. The researchers chose to exclude the largest vessels from their analysis, but noted that both small coastal fishing boats and medium-sized ships contribute to the tourism effect.
Rasmus Nielsen, co-author of the study, adds that small cutters selling fresh fish directly to tourists create an authentic experience, but even larger industrial trawlers have their own appeal.
Anne Villemoes, Director of Communication and Development at VisitDenmark, emphasizes that Denmark has a knack for offering authentic experiences that do not just come across as tourist backdrops. “There is something genuine about fishing that makes tourists feel like it is an original part of the environment,” she says.