Tourism doesn’t take place in an alternate universe; it takes place in destinations where people live their everyday lives. As destinations continue to navigate growth, development, and evolving visitor expectations, understanding resident views has become more important.

Resident sentiment research provides destination leaders with a better understanding of how tourism is impacting their community and helps inform decisions that support both residents and visitors. It also establishes a benchmark for understanding how residents feel today and creates a foundation for tracking how those perceptions change over time.

But why does resident sentiment matter? Here are a few reasons:

• Residents Are More Than Stakeholders: Residents help shape the destination experience, making their perspectives essential to effective tourism planning and strategy.

• Understanding Tourism’s Impact on Quality of Life: Resident sentiment reveals how tourism’s benefits and challenges affect everyday life and where destinations may need to respond.

• Supporting Long-Term Destination Health: Tracking resident sentiment over time helps destinations understand changing attitudes and make decisions that support long-term community and tourism health.

• The Future of Tourism Starts with Residents: Listening to residents helps destinations create stronger communities and better experiences for the people who live there and those who visit.

To learn more, check out this post, Why Resident Sentiment Matters, and download our POV document.