Can events be too successful?

The Queenstown Marathon occurred over the weekend and tested out the destination's capacity for events.

I heard a lot of discussion about town being "very busy". Busy with traffic, restaurants, supermarkets etc.

However, the discussion I heard from residents wasn't in a negative way and I think there are several reasons for this.

- Aligned visitors: they come here to run and have a good time. Two things the people that live in Queenstown can associate with.

- Low impact: running is an inherently low-impact activity (low emissions, quiet etc) and maximises the use of existing trails.

The event organisers also don't have to build anything substantial, apart from standard event facilities, to run the event.

- They give back - the marathon has donated over $300k to the Queenstown Trails Trust since its inception.

This benefits the residents of the place.

- Good communication: my guess is that most residents knew it was on and therefore expected it to be busy so could plan their weekend around the event.

These factors played a part in the success of the event from a community point of view.

Although Queenstown has the capacity to absorb this as a one off event, it would be pushing the limits to handle this number of visitors all year round.

Just because a destination has the capacity to hold a certain number of people doesn't mean it should.