Popular holiday destinations across the world are facing the complex and challenging task of balancing economic reliance on visitors with the pressures of mass tourism.
In efforts to make tourism more sustainable, there have been new taxes and fees introduced, caps put on visitor numbers, and bans on new hotels and short-term rentals.
Tensions are particularly high across southern and western Europe, where frustrated locals blame mass tourism for a housing crisis, rising rents and environmental impacts. A huge day of protests in June involved loud marches, blunt signs and water guns.
“Attitudes towards tourism are shifting across Europe,” Claudia Gualdi from Denmark-based travel data and analyst company Riskline told news.com.au recently.
Ms Gualdi said, even with tourists themselves responding to overcrowding and local pushback by changing their travel patterns — opting for lesser-known destinations or off-season trips — some destinations will likely never experience the “de-touristification” that locals are calling for.
“Iconic locations such as Rome, Paris, Venice, the Greek islands, Santiago de Compostela and the Vatican are unlikely to see reduced demand,” she said.
“Their cultural, religious and historical significance ensures a steady stream of visitors, regardless of broader shifts in travel behaviour.
“These places will continue to face the greatest pressures, highlighting the need for stronger local management and sustainable tourism policies alongside changing traveller habits.”
Europe isn’t the only part of the world struggling to balance its reliance on tourism and the negative impacts of too many visitors in so few areas.
Australians’ favourite Asian destinations, Japan and Indonesia, have urged tourists to explore beyond the hotspots, stressing the importance of dispersing tourism as visitor numbers reach record highs.
Read the full article in news.com.au.