Tourism related problems and possibilities of towns and/or historical research of tourism development in Budapest

This article has as its priority to analyze the current situation of tourism in Budapest taking into

account the positive and negative aspects for the city and for the residents. Find out the

consequences that this tourist movement can have on the quality of life of its inhabitants, such

as the price of housing, products, transportation, etc.

This analysis will be based on reading articles, news and experience as a resident of the capital.

Also make a brief analysis of new mechanisms that attract tourists, such as Airbnb, Lime

(scooters), etc.

Budapest has attracted many tourists for years due to its architectural and historical beauty,

being considered one of the most beautiful capitals in the world. Even during the communist

regime the city was regarded as a "refuge" for the communist bloc, where people from

neighboring countries could come and enjoy a certain "freedom". And for the capitalist bloc it

was a way of experiencing life in a place of different political regime. But with the fall of the

communist bloc in the late 1980s and early 1990s, there was also a fall in the tourist movement

in the Hungarian capital. This fall is due to several factors, such as the opening of new cities

that were once part of the communist bloc to the world and the freedom of the population to

come and go.

From the 2000s, Budapest has been rediscovered for tourism, attracting more tourists each

year to the Hungarian capital. This growing tourist movement is due to its architectural and

historical beauty as well as its well-known nightlife, with its famous ruins bars. With this increase

in tourism there have also been changes in real estate, security, cleaning, transportation, etc.

These changes were both possessive and negative in many ways.

According to an article of BBC about the Airbnb, in Barcelona this kind of temporary housing is

dealing with some issues as tenant expulsions, harassment and daily disruptions. Besides that

the Barcelona council says that Airbnb "creates speculation and illicit economies and its

activities leave nothing positive for local neighbors, causing nuisance and complaints"

(GUTTENTAG, 2018). Not only in Barcelona this is being a problem, in Boston, Los Angeles

and in other parts of the world, this new way of hosting is causing a rising in the local rents. So

in many cases gentrification is being a dilemma that now the locals have to deal. One US study

suggested a 10% increase in Airbnb listings led to a 0,42% increase in rents and a 0,76%

increase in house prices. (GUTTENTAG, 2018) But it is not only bad experience with the Airbnb

or similar platforms. This can be also positive when you think about the local economy and a

cultural exchange that can bring sometimes to the neighborhood. As well bring more life to

those distant areas or with a “bad” reputation, when they try to attract more tourists.

Another point is the scooters that are being use in the cities, most by tourists that do not have

the properly knowledge about the rules and the traffic of the city. The pedestrians and the

scooters are fighting for a space in the sidewalk when was suppose to be using different areas.

But this many times occurs because they do not know the rules or just do not care about it.

szerző

Silva Pereira Maíra
Építészmérnöki nappali alapképzés (BSc)
alapképzés (BA/BSc)