“Mass tourism has tipped into overtourism — a word the travel industry has coined to describe too many people in too few places — and backlash in popular destinations is building. In Amsterdam, the mayor has blocked any new souvenir stores or fast-food outlets in the central city. In Barcelona — now the third most popular destination in Europe after London and Paris — there is a ban on new vacation homes. In Venice, protesters blocked a cruise ship from entering the lagoon to dock. Even the pilgrimage Way of St. James has become so overrun that local residents accost hikers with very un-Christian remarks.” …

“Hotels are raising prices and some municipalities are raising tourist taxes to curb the influx, but the home-sharing alternatives undermine that effort. Would restricting budget airlines stem the tide by making access more expensive? Could travel agents do a better job of convincing visitors to come in off-peak seasons? While tourism agencies are excellent at promoting their regions to outsiders, what if they had more responsibility for the management of all those travelers? There’s no easy answer for the question of how to deal with the crush of people in a planet growing ever smaller.”

For the rest of this article see: https://global.handelsblatt.com/companies-markets/tourists-go-away-847236