ORIGINAL RESEARCH article
Front. Environ. Econ.
Sec. Ecological Economics
Volume 4 - 2025 | doi: 10.3389/frevc.2025.1497532
Navigating WTP Disparities: A Study of Tourist and Resident Perspectives on Coastal Management
Provisionally accepted
- 1University of Ferrara, Ferrara, Emilia-Romagna, Italy
- 2University of Padua, Padua, Veneto, Italy
Select one of your emails
You have multiple emails registered with Frontiers:
Notify me on publication
Please enter your email address:
If you already have an account, please login
You don't have a Frontiers account ? You can register here
This study investigates the differences in willingness to pay (WTP) for specific coastal environmental services—namely cleanliness, security, and environmental protection—between tourists and residents in two Italian regions heavily affected by summer tourism: Marche and Campania. By focusing on the preferences of these distinct user groups, the research aims to identify how different stakeholders perceive the value of coastal services, thereby offering evidence-based recommendations for policy and resource allocation. Based on a structured survey administered to beach users, the study reveals that tourists are more willing to support measures related to environmental protection, while residents emphasize corrective actions. These findings highlight the importance of tailoring coastal management strategies to stakeholder-specific expectations and suggest that differentiated communication and financing tools, such as environmental tourism taxes, could enhance community engagement and policy effectiveness in coastal zones.
Keywords: Contingent Valuation, Willingness to pay, Beach management, pro-environmental behaviour, Tourism effects
Received: 17 Sep 2024; Accepted: 20 May 2025.
Copyright: © 2025 Onofrio, Rodella and Gilli. This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (CC BY). The use, distribution or reproduction in other forums is permitted, provided the original author(s) or licensor are credited and that the original publication in this journal is cited, in accordance with accepted academic practice. No use, distribution or reproduction is permitted which does not comply with these terms.
* Correspondence: Marianna Gilli, University of Ferrara, Ferrara, 44121, Emilia-Romagna, Italy
Disclaimer: All claims expressed in this article are solely those of the authors and do not necessarily represent those of their affiliated organizations, or those of the publisher, the editors and the reviewers. Any product that may be evaluated in this article or claim that may be made by its manufacturer is not guaranteed or endorsed by the publisher.