Tourism and Amenity Migration in the High Mountains of the USA

In the nineteenth century visits to the mountains were limited because of a lack of access, poor roads, limited leisure time and low income of the majority of North American citizens (Goeldner, 1996). In the 1860s railroads were built and roads improved, so travel increased slowly, although it was still a privilege of people with high incomes. The number of travellers did a huge jump after World War I as the automobile became affordable for “middle class” families. As the infrastructure improved, more and more summer tourists arrived. A tourism-based economy began to grow, hotels, motels and restaurants were built. Until the skiing movement started in the 50’s and 60’s the winter season was long and uneventful (Goeldner, 1996). When skiing finally became a national trend, major ski resorts developed and many of them were and still are two-season resorts. Central to the tourist group from the mid 60’s on were the baby boomers, ranging in age from 18 to 35 (Goeldner, 1996). As the numbers of tourists were still rising in the 1980’s, locally owned establishments saw themselves competing with big-time operators. Usually a whole complex of lodging, restaurants and everything else to serve the tourists was developed. In the 1990’s mountain tourism has grown to be a powerful economic force. Fast food chains like McDonalds and accommodation chains such as Holiday Inn have come on the scene (Goeldner, 1996). Today in mountain communities outlet stores, gambling, country clubs, exclusive residences etc. can be found. Competition is tougher than ever before and environmental issues challenge the high mountain communities.

The mountain tourism industry in North America includes a very wide range of activities. Only some examples are cultural tourism, heritage tourism, health tourism, ecotourism, tourism after catastrophic events and an immense range of types of sports tourism.

The popularity of sport-oriented mountain tourism has increased enormously in the last 30 years. Canyoning, hydrospeed, bungee-jumping, carving, hang-gliding, snowboarding or helicopter-skiing are only a few examples for new trend sports. Hunting has also turned into a popular American sport. A major reason for the spread of trend sports is the rapid development and marketing of new technologies by sports companies (Siegrist, 1999). Most participants are younger urban people who are thirsty for action and new experiences. Yet, too often they bring along negative environmental and societal impacts, because they tend to lack that kind of awareness.