Cross-border leisure mobility styles in the Basque Eurocity

The constitution of Europe has fostered greater human and other mobilities across European borders, however it is not clear whether the border is still actually present in some places or inhibits cross-border mobilities. In this context, a leisure mobilities approach has been used to identify the mobility styles in the Basque Eurocity corridor – a cross-border area between Spain and France. The analysis focuses on leisure mobilities and identifies four different mobility styles based upon leisure orientation variables in terms of values, attitudes and lifestyles; nationality; and socio-demographic characteristics: (1) time-conscious workers, (2) French shoppers, (3) mobile youth and (4) older and less mobile. The results indicate that different leisure orientations and participation levels are highly significant in the constitution of mobility styles, which are usually correlated only with national demographic data. Furthermore, it was identified that a higher identification of mobility constraints was not related to lower levels of participation. Instead, the groups with higher mobility and participation rates raised more awareness of the constraints related to transport and information. Finally, intrapersonal constraints such as age and lack of health showed a greater impact on cross-border mobility, while, unexpectedly, a higher identification of cultural and linguistic constraints was not perceived by participants.