Spread of Low-Cost Carriers: Tourism and Regional Policy Effects in Spain

Vera Rebollo J. F. and Ivars Baidal J. A. Spread of low-cost carriers: tourism and regional policy effects in Spain, Regional Studies. Low-cost carriers form the most dynamic segment in the international tourism traffic toward Spain. Their recent evolution shows high growth rates that contrast with the stagnation of traditional companies, a phenomenon which is part of the transformations experienced by the tourism market and air transport in Europe and which has caused both quantitative and qualitative changes in Spain's tourist activity. However, the effects of low-cost carrier operations go beyond the context of the tourism sector and affect land-use and infrastructure planning policies, gradually shaping a new scenario where the specialization of tourism in real estate along the Spanish Mediterranean coast becomes reinforced. [image omitted]