(Hand written sign, “Tourists go home”)
Protests in the streets. Graffiti warning tourists to go home. Local populations dwindling as short-term rentals mushroom and price residents out.
It feels like this was the year that tourism turned nasty – and local communities started pushing back.
Venice has started charging daytrippers an entry fee, while one busy Swiss town has announced it wants to follow suit. Locals have staged protests in Mallorca and Barcelona.
And US national parks are full to bursting – with 13 million more visits in 2023 than in 2022, according to NPS numbers.
In peak season, visitors must book ahead to enter.
Increased enthusiasm doesn’t seem to correlate with increased respect for the landscape.
The risk, as professor and environmental specialist Emily Wakild wrote for CNN in 2023, is of “loving a place to death.” (CNN)
AMEN!
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