The Regional Economics of Tourism in Northern Finland: The Socio-economic Implications of Recent Tourism Development and Future Possibilities for Regional Development

In Finland and other Nordic countries the economic and political significance of tourism for regional development has increased considerably in recent years, to the extent that in some regions it has become a crucial economic policy factor. Tourism is commonly looked on as having a favourable economic and social impact, introducing new, external sources of monetary income and opportunities to work in the regional economy and its operational cycle. Large amounts of public money are being spent nowadays on the development of tourism in the various regions of Finland. This paper discusses the role of tourism in regional economic and social development and provides an overview of the recent tourism development in northern Finland and its socio-economic implications. Examples of the economic and employment impact of tourism at the regional level are taken from an evaluation of the economic role of tourism in selected municipalities in northern Finland, by utilizing the so-called Nordic model for evaluating the regional and local tourism economy.