Hiking is more than just exercise. But what makes this simple, calm way of getting around so attractive that people devote so much of their precious free time to it? Will it stay that way in the future? And why is that relevant?
These are precisely the questions at the heart of the leading industry event for hiking tourism, organized by Austria’s hiking villages. Under the motto “WHERE’S THE WAY? – On the trail of the ‘magic of walking’, top-class speakers, experts and decision-makers from 45 regions and 70 villages will meet on October 16th in Wildschönau. The symposium offers in-depth insights into the psychological, emotional and economic aspects of hiking.
Why do people migrate? And what does that bring us economically?
Hiking researcher and tourism expert Prof. Heinz Dieter Quack has been investigating the motives behind the fascination of hiking for more than twenty years. He analyzes what influence these motives have on the future development of hiking tourism and what this means for hiking destinations. Nina Ruhland not only talks about the transformative and emotional power of walking from the perspective of a mountain hiking guide, but also emphasizes the value of unstaged nature and explains how a hairdryer influences the customer profile.
Hiking in change: upheaval and new opportunities?
It’s not just the needs of hikers and society that are changing; Climatic changes also require new strategies in hiking tourism. Michael Roschi (Hiking Trails Switzerland), Barbara Walzer (SalzburgerLand Tourismus GmbH) and Gerald Böhm (Austria Advertising) illuminate the current and future challenges from different perspectives. We look back on a successful project over the last 20 years that combines raising awareness with sustainable, regional value creation. At the same time, this review provides an outlook for the next two decades, supplemented by expertise from Switzerland and strategic considerations from Austrian Advertising.
Future laboratory for hiking: How does hiking become 365-day tourism?
The final panel discussion deepens the question of how we will hike in the future and how hiking can become a mainstay of modern tourism strategies all year round.
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