International tourism's impact on regional autonomy: Evidence from 2004 EU accession countries

The relationship between increased tourism and increasing regional autonomy is quite nuanced and understudied. This article hypothesizes that only an increase in both regional air traffic and international tourism will impact the level of regional autonomy. Using the period after 10 countries were admitted to the European Union in 2004 as an example of a dramatic tourism increase, the article finds that countries with increased tourism, but without regional airports, did not experience a sudden increase in their regional autonomy. In Poland, however, the large number of growing regional airports and increased tourism did provoke regions to argue with the central government for more regional autonomy. These findings contribute to a better understanding of how international interventions impact regional decentralization preferences.