High tourism intensity without overtourism? Insights from the mid-sized city Trier, Germany

Overtourism has become a significant issue in many urban destinations across Europe, often leading to conflicts with residents and even public protests. Although research on overtourism has expanded rapidly, it has largely focused on major destinations with high tourist volumes, leaving questions about its occurrence in smaller city destinations. While much of the existing literature emphasises the negative effects of high tourism intensity and approaches overtourism primarily from a managerial or impact-focused perspective, this case study offers a more context-sensitive view. It examines the city of Trier, which, despite its relatively small population of approximately 110,000 residents, experiences a tourism intensity comparable to larger destinations. Based on an Instagram analysis, the article demonstrates that tourists are spatially concentrated in the city centre. Despite the high tourism intensity, a resident survey conducted across different districts of the city indicates only minimal negative impacts on quality of life. The study identifies several factors contributing to this high level of tourism acceptance and concludes that high tourism intensity does not automatically lead to overtourism. Consequently, further research is necessary to explore the conditions under which overtourism emerges in diverse urban contexts, to develop a more nuanced understanding of the phenomenon.