|
November/December 2007
|
features_global.html
|
|
|
Destinations Rated: Islands Text by Jonathan B. Tourtellot Photograph by Grant Dixon/Lonely Planet Images
|
|
|
Tiny Kallur lighthouse rests high on the island of Kalsoy, one of the Faroe Islands. |
The world's most appealing destinations—islands—are the ones most prone to tourism overkill. Our 522 experts vote on which ones avoid the danger, which are succumbing to it, and which hang in the balance.
ourism is a phenomenon that can cook your food or burn your house down. In other words, we all risk destroying the very places that we love the most.
Nowhere more so than on islands. Islands symbolize vacation. Escape! Their very insularity makes them more attractive than a comparable piece of real estate on the mainland. They are worlds unto themselves—their own traditions, ecosystems, cultures, landscapes. That's what attracts us. But as micro-worlds, islands are also more vulnerable to population pressure, climate change, storm damage, invasive species, and now, tourism overkill.
To see how the integrity of islands around the world is holding up, Traveler and our National Geographic Center for Sustainable Destinations conducted this fourth annual Destination Scorecard survey, aided by George Washington University. A panel of 522 experts in sustainable tourism and destination stewardship donated time to review conditions in these 111 selected islands and archipelagos. The scores that follow reflect the experts' opinions. Quoted phrases from their remarks suggest the thinking behind the scores.
The results show that beach-blessed islands draw sun-and-sand resort tourism development that can get out of hand quickly, although there are exceptions. Multiple cruise-ship crowds can also overwhelm an island, transforming it.
No surprise, then, that cloudy, beach-poor islands score well. Yet even these cooler islands are sometimes losing traditional families to soaring real estate prices.
Get an illustrated version of this article as it was published in the November/December 2006 issue of National Geographic Traveler. Download PDF now. (Requires Adobe Acrobat.)
All the islands that follow, even the lowest scoring, have great experiences to discover. To protect them, to restore them, we must value them as much as resort developers and cruise companies do. Even more.
Guide to the Scores: 0-25: Catastrophic: all criteria very negative, outlook grim. 26-49: In serious trouble. 50-65: In moderate trouble: all criteria medium-negative or a mix of negatives and positives. 66-85: Minor difficulties. 86-95: Authentic, unspoiled, and likely to remain so. 96-100: Enhanced. Meet our Panelists About the Survey Click on a part of the world below to read a sample of our panelists' comments.
Africa Caribbean Region East & Southeast Asia Indian Ocean Region Mediterranean North & West Europe North America Pacific/Australia/NZ South America
The list, by score
87 Faroe Islands, Denmark 84 Azores, Portugal 82 Lofoten, Norway 82 Shetland Islands, Scotland 82 Chiloé, Chile 81 Isle of Skye, Scotland 80 Kangaroo Island, South Australia 80 Mackinac Island, Michigan 80 Iceland 79 Molokai, Hawaii 78 Aran Islands, Ireland 78 Texel, Netherlands 77 Dominica 77 Grenadines 76 Tasmania 76 Bora Bora, French Polynesia 76 Fraser Island, Australia 76 Bornholm, Denmark 76 Hydra (Ídra), Greece 76 Falkland Islands (U.K.) 75 Corsica, France 75 Cape Breton Island, Nova Scotia 74 Vanuatu, Melanesia 74 Santa Catalina Island, California 73 Upolu and Savai'i, Samoa 73 Isle of Man (U.K.) 72 Palawan, Philippines 72 Moorea, French Polynesia 72 Block Island, Rhode Island 71 Ilha Grande, Brazil 71 Sardinia, Italy 71 Hvar, Croatia 71 Jersey and Guernsey (U.K.) 70 San Juan Islands, Washington State 70 St. John, U.S. Virgin Islands 70 Seychelles 70 Anguilla (U.K.) 70 Nevis 69 Palau, Micronesia 69 Cook Islands 69 Prince Edward Island, Canada 69 Salt Spring Island, Gulf Islands, British Columbia 69 Mount Desert Island, Maine 69 Réunion (France) 68 Bonaire 68 Sicily, Italy 68 St. Vincent 68 Yasawa group, Fiji 67 Pemba, Tanzania 67 Hawaii (Big Island) 66 Out Islands, Bahamas 66 Bermuda, North Atlantic 66 Tobago 66 São Tomé and Príncipe 65 Cyprus, Turkish side 65 Bazaruto Archipelago, Mozambique 65 Martha's Vineyard, Massachusetts 64 Solomon Islands 64 Jeju/Cheju, South Korea 64 Ocracoke, Outer Banks, North Carolina 64 Kauai, Hawaii 64 St. Lucia 63 Nantucket, Massachusetts 62 Martinique (France) 62 Corfu, Greece 62 Crete, Greece 62 Lombok, Indonesia 62 Barbados 61 Tonga, Polynesia 61 Madeira Islands, Portugal 61 Tortola, British Virgin Islands 61 Islands of Lake Titicaca, Peru/Bolivia 61 Sanibel, Florida 61 Santorini, Greece 61 Maldives (except Malé) 59 Grenada 59 Capri, Italy 59 Tahiti, French Polynesia 59 St. Kitts 58 Viti Levu, Fiji 57 Maui, Hawaii 57 Bali, Indonesia 57 Cape Verde Islands 57 Curaçao 55 Isla Mujeres, Mexico 55 Malta (all islands) 55 Guadeloupe 55 Mauritius 54 Mykonos, Greece 54 Federated States of Micronesia 54 Mallorca, Spain 53 St. Croix, U.S. Virgin Islands 53 Zanzibar, Tanzania 52 Canary Islands, Spain 51 Puerto Rico 51 Cyprus, Greek side 50 Antigua 49 Hatteras Island, Outer Banks, North Carolina 48 Aruba (Netherlands) 47 Grand Cayman 47 Roatán, Bay Islands, Honduras 47 St. Martin (Netherlands/France) 47 Cozumel, Mexico 46 Oahu, Hawaii 46 Key West, Florida 46 Phuket, Thailand 45 Hilton Head, South Carolina 44 Jamaica 44 Providenciales, Turks and Caicos 37 Ibiza, Spain 37 St. Thomas, U.S. Virgin Islands
More Traveler's Places Rated
|
|
|
|
|