The purpose of summer vacations is to relax. However, the hidden water impact of summer tourism, is an increasing environmental challenge that most tourists are unaware of. This is due to the fact that these locations experience their highest temperatures and least rainfall throughout the summer. As millions of tourists arrive, the already water-stressed systems are put under more strain.
This article examines how summer travel intensifies water scarcity, why visitors’ actual water footprint is far larger than what they actually use and how both tourists and the tourism sector may contribute to the preservation of fragile water resources.
In this Article
What Is a Water Footprint?
A water footprint is the total amount of water used to produce the goods, services and experiences that we rely on. This includes not just the water that is visible to us but also the water that is incorporated into supply chains, energy, food and infrastructure. It is a method of measuring the strain that human activity puts on freshwater supplies, which is essential to understanding the world’s water scarcity.
The water footprint of a visitor is divided into two types:
- Direct Water Use: Common water uses people are aware about such as water used to showers, swimming pools, drinking water, laundry, dining out and other leisure activities.
- Indirect Water Use: That occurs behind the scenes including water required for food production, air conditioning power generation, hotel linen washing, landscaping garden irrigation and tourism infrastructure upkeep.
Summer Tourism & Water Stress
During the summer, water availability rapidly decreases throughout the Mediterranean, South Asia and island resorts like Bali. This is because groundwater levels drop, rivers contract and rainfall becomes unpredictable, but this is also the time when tourist numbers are at their highest. Long before visitors realise something is wrong, the mismatch causes seasonal stress in the surrounding community.
For instance, experts warn that Bali is on the verge of a water shortage, with demand expected to increase from 5,952 litres per second in 2021 to 7,991 litres per second by 2025. Tourism has been identified as a major source of this pressure as it consumes 56% of Bali’s total water supply.
The Direct Water Footprint
The direct water footprint of tourism includes everything tourists encounter directly during their visit, such as:
- Hotel Rooms & Pools: Star-rated hotels in Bali consume around 800 litres of water per room per day, non-star hotels use about 250 litres, whilst domestic water needs per person are around 200 litres. This is a significant difference that shows how luxury accommodations often demand more water due to additional amenities and services.
- Showers, Laundry & Cleaning: High guest turnover during peak seasons drives increased water use for washing linens, frequent room cleaning and showers. This leads to increase in water consumption.
- Restaurants & Cafés: The rise in visitor numbers boosts water consumption for cooking, dishwashing and food preparation. This shows the direct impact of tourism on water demand in the food service sector.
- Recreational Facilities: Water parks, golf courses and landscaped resorts depend heavily on irrigation and continuous water replenishment, making them one of the most water-intensive part of tourism infrastructure.
While these direct water uses are significant, they only represent the surface of tourism’s total water footprint.
The Hidden Water Footprint
The hidden water footprint of tourism is much more complex as it includes all the water embedded in the services, infrastructure and supply chains that support tourism. Hotels and restaurants consume vast amounts of water-intensive food and in regions where agriculture is already struggling, tourism can divert essential water away from farms.
For example, in Bali, the traditional subak irrigation system, which was once vital for sustaining rice farming, is now under strain as resorts dig deeper wells, lowering water tables and threatening the livelihoods of local farmers.
Moreover, air conditioning, transportation and other resort operations all require significant energy. However, the production of this energy consumes large amounts of water and during heatwaves, the demand for cooling rises, which further increases indirect water usage.
Also, maintaining green lawns, tropical gardens and decorative water features demands constant irrigation, especially during dry seasons.
In addition, the rapid growth of hotels in Bali, from 113 in 2000 to 541 in 2023, has reduced agricultural land and intensified groundwater extraction. Many businesses illegally tap into groundwater, depleting shared reserves without supporting sustainable management.
Destinations Under Pressure
According to researchers, Bali has “reached its tipping point,” as over 65% of the island’s freshwater is used for tourism, endangering cultural assets, causing river depletion and groundwater degradation. Half of Bali’s 400 rivers have dried up and experts warn the island could run out of water within a few years if current trends continue
Mediterranean destinations also face recurring droughts each summer. This is because hotels, agriculture and tourist activities compete for limited water, leading to seasonal restrictions and rising tensions between local needs and visitor demand.
Apart from this, small islands often rely on limited groundwater or imported water. This means that, when visitor numbers surge, local communities may face shortages or rising costs.
Sustainable Tourism Solutions
Protecting water resources, requires coordinated action from governments, businesses and tourists. Evidence‑based solutions include:
- Water‑Efficient Hotel Operations: Low‑flow fixtures, smart irrigation, pool covers and efficient laundry systems can reduce consumption.
- Greywater Recycling & Rainwater Harvesting: Hotels can reuse water for gardens or cleaning and store rainwater during wet seasons to offset dry‑season demand.
- Local Sourcing: Food and materials sourced locally reduce the hidden water footprint associated with long supply chains.
- Infrastructure Investment: Destinations like Bali need expanded water storage, improved wastewater treatment and stricter enforcement of groundwater extraction rules.
- Education & Awareness: Campaigns that help visitors understand water scarcity can shift behaviour and support long-term sustainability.
What Can Tourists Do
Individual choices matter. Here are some tips that tourists can use to reduce their water footprint:
- Choosing accommodations with transparent water‑saving policies
- Taking shorter showers and reusing towels
- Avoiding peak-season travel in water-stressed regions
- Supporting local businesses that use water responsibly
- Eating locally produced food with lower water footprints
Small actions taken by tourists can make a meaningful difference.
Conclusion
Summer tourism doesn’t have to worsen water scarcity. With thoughtful planning, responsible industry practices and informed tourists, destinations can thrive without exhausting their most precious resource.
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