The generational transition of Gen Z tourists' behaviour

Although combining tourism promotion with the preservation of the natural habitat may seem quite something of a paradox, several natural protected areas have been endeavouring to create a harmonious relationship between tourist flows and nature by introducing a series of policies, organising communication activities, public events, and taking other initiatives. The present research focuses on the Vesuvius National Park, a national park of Italy around the active volcano Vesuvius, situated in the southeast of the city of Naples. Along its 11 paths a survey was carried out in 2020 to understand if, in general, young tourists are attentive to the issue of sustainability in their everyday life, and if so, in what form they practise sustainable tourism in the area. Most of the respondents stated that they live an eco-sustainable everyday life. Consequently, even when they decide to draw up their vacation plans, they almost always choose to practise sustainable tourism, even if this sometimes implies a small increase in expenditure during their vacation. Starting from the analysis of the data, the paper concludes with some policy indications which can be found beneficial to the development of sustainable tourism and the conservation of protected areas in the Vesuvius National Park area.