Climate Change and Tourism in the Arctic Circle

We estimate grid level tourist numbers to Arctic Circle countries under a number of climate change scenarios. At present, the highest tourism volumes are found in Canada and most of the Scandinavian countries. In general, it appears that tourists are attracted to regions with better infrastructure and nicer cities. Under each climate change scenario, Russia sees a significant increase in tourist numbers because Russia is big, its climate is expected to show some improvement and it is relatively close to the growing markets of South and East Asia. A growth in tourist numbers is also projected for Canada and Alaska. While our simulations do not show a re-distribution of tourists within the Arctic under climate change, the volume is likely to increase. JEL Classification: Q54, L83