The significance of Kongernes Nordsjælland National Park for the tourism and experience economy

This project is part 3 of the project TOURISM DEVELOPMENT IN KONGERNES NORDSJÆLLAND NATIONAL PARK. The vision for the overall project has been to create a commercial infrastructure within, but especially around, the national park that can promote and optimize the guests' overall experience, as well as foster business development and job growth. There is no comprehensive assessment of what national parks have meant for local areas, including their impact on attracting tourists. Therefore, Kongernes Nordsjælland National Park has asked CRT to investigate the connection between national parks and the tourism economy through data analysis. CRT has investigated whether the inauguration of a national park leads to increased tourism, both in terms of day-trippers and overnight stays in the municipality. Depending on the expected increase in the number of day visitors and their derived consumption, the economic impact in the national park and the associated municipalities can be calculated based on established principles. Our analysis indicates that Skjoldungernes Land National Park has had a positive impact on the number of Danish day-trippers in the municipalities of Lejre, Frederikssund, and Roskilde following its inauguration in 2015, in the form of an approximate 25% increase in Danish day-trippers. Using Skjoldungernes Land as an example, the five surrounding municipalities in North Zealand could similarly expect an annual gross growth of 33 million DKK based on Kongernes Nordsjælland National Park.