Boom ’70 – Stories of Change
From 5 June 2026, the *Public Library Taufers Father Josef Andreas Jungmann* will host an exhibition on the rapid tourism boom of the 1970s.
While the spa resorts and summer holiday destinations of southern Tyrol experienced their first tourism peak around 1900, tourism did not reach the remote mountain villages and high valleys of South Tyrol until the spread of private car travel in the 1950s. German visitors in particular began to discover these previously isolated regions. For the rural population, who were still living under modest conditions, tourism offered a welcome new source of income. It was often farming women who rented out their families’ spare rooms to holidaymakers, thereby laying the foundations for a rapid tourism boom. Between 1970 and 1980, the number of overnight stays doubled from ten to twenty million, marking the birth of modern mass tourism. At breathtaking speed, the living environment and everyday lives of South Tyroleans changed. While many welcomed these developments, others felt overwhelmed by the pace of change.
The new travelling exhibition by the Touriseum invites visitors to relive this fascinating period of transformation through the memories of contemporary witnesses. At six video stations, they recount the clash of contrasting worlds: industry versus tourism, poverty versus modernity, church versus bikini culture—as well as the needs of holidaymakers, which often conflicted with those of local children.
Their stories provide insights into the decisions that promoted tourism development in rural areas, the first encounters with visitors that opened up new roles for women as hosts, and the friendships that developed with people from large cities, offering farming families a “window to the world.” At the same time, they reflect on the challenges brought about by the tourism boom: the loss of privacy, the influence of new lifestyles, rapid construction activity, and exploitative working conditions.
The interview excerpts are drawn from more than seventy conversations conducted in 2024 and 2025 as part of the Touriseum research project *Tourism in South Tyrol 1961–1983*. The comprehensive findings were published in December 2025 in the book *Wild Years: Tourism in South Tyrol 1961–1983*, which explores the exhibition’s themes in greater depth.
Through the compelling perspectives of those who experienced these changes firsthand, the exhibition shows how the developments of the 1970s shaped South Tyrol into the tourism destination it is today. At the same time, it encourages reflection on the present and future of tourism in South Tyrol.
Please note: The exhibition is presented in German.
Opening hours:
Mon–Fri: 10:00 a.m.–12:00 p.m. and 3:00 p.m.–6:00 p.m.
Sat: 10:00 a.m.–12:00 p.m.