For a long time, peripheral rural mountain regions in many countries were marked by emigration, particularly that of the young and well qualified. In recent decades, we can observe an apparently diametrical process in some regions: ‘amenity migration’, which implies the migration to remote, rural areas. This ‘new immigration’ is targeted at areas of natural beauty and favourable climatic conditions, many of them already known as tourist destinations. Several case studies for different mountain regions show a great variety, both of the migrating persons and the chosen destinations. Based on quantitative and qualitative methods, this paper examines four case study areas in different regions of the southern European Alps and the southern Andes and compares the onset and the intensity of the process, the motivation and the characteristics of the migrants and the significance of this phenomenon for regional development in the target regions. It ends by discussing opportunities and risks for the local population.