The emerging industry tackling overtourism around the world
In a widely viewed TikTok video, influencer Zoe Rae (the sister of Love Island star Molly-Mae Hague) voiced her disappointment after visiting Bali. Apparently, it did not look as it did when she saw it online. Her comments attracted a backlash, with critics arguing she was simply experiencing the reality behind the content she and others have helped to promote.
Research has found that many influencers and social media users participate in an 'aesthetic economy'. That is, travel is 'performed' for likes, views and brand deals. The result? Holidaymakers are seeking out highly photogenic ('Instagrammable') destinations from which to stage their content.
Sometimes 'getting the shot' becomes more important than any meaningful cultural exchange between hosts and guests. The behaviour of social media-induced tourists has been found to be more irresponsible than that of other types of travellers.
There were 379 selfie-related deaths between 2008-21, and the quest for the perfect photo can also lead to trespassing and vandalism. Additionally, studies have found that social-media-induced tourists can cause varying levels of damage to the hotspots they visit. This can include environmental erosion, traffic congestion, pollution, increased rubbish and generally making daily life difficult for locals.
Stage-managed selfies
But the demand has fuelled the development of shadow economies like 'selfie museums'. These have begun to emerge around the world: Chicago's wndr Museum, London's Selfie Factory, Selfie House in Prague, Brazil's Museum Selfie Day in Sao Paulo, to name just a few.
Our new study shines a light on these parks – purpose-built, self-contained spaces that give visitors a visually stunning, curated environment in which to create content (most often of themselves). For the price of admission, they get convenient access to lighting, props, professional photographers and backdrops for creating content for social media in 'Instagrammable' places.
Selfie parks in Bali, Indonesia, offer rice terraces, swings, nests and other 'sceneography' associated with its destination image. And there are add-ons like dress rentals, professional photographers who can follow visitors around the park, and personalised photo-editing services.
Selfie parks can offer soft control over visitors in the form of guards, guides and security cameras to monitor behaviour. And they implement daily safety checks and regularly train staff to ensure guests are supervised as they take photos. This is an important alternative to the sometimes risky behaviour of selfie-seekers in viral hotspots.
Of course, the elephant in the room here might be the commodification and inauthenticity that selfie parks represent. Other research has found that locals can be divided about staged photo opportunities, with some seeing them as inauthentic and gimmicky.
There is an awareness that these encounters do not represent the real life of locals. Others, however, consider the money to be made and employment that these opportunities can provide.
Our findings from Bali showed that the selfie parks are extremely successful – with more than 1,500 visitors reported in low season. The offering has been expanded in recent years to add more photo spots, infinity pools and even a day club.
For now, all of Bali's selfie parks are locally owned and managed. This creates an important source of employment, as well as being a launchpad for entrepreneurship among locals.
The idea of selfie parks may take a bit of getting used to. But having spaces where people can take photos, videos and create social media content safely, while bringing in revenue and employment for local communities, offers a viable solution. This is especially true of the places that struggle most with the negative impacts of tourists motivated by social media.
Love them or loathe them, selfie parks probably aren't going away. And they may represent a broader shift in how people travel, share and consume experiences. In destinations facing an influx of selfie-seeking visitors, they might just be a surprisingly practical solution.
Other 'viral' destinations should consider establishing dedicated spaces in which tourists can create content. Destinations like the island of Santorini, nicknamed Greece's 'Instagram island' amid extreme overcrowding alongside other harms, could be the type of place to benefit.
If so many of today's tourists are chasing the perfect picture, maybe it makes sense to give them a place designed exactly for that.
Lauren A. Siegel is a Senior Lecturer in Tourism
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