What is overtourism?

“What is overtourism?” you might ask. Overtourism is an incident whereby tourists exceed the normal bounds in a particular destination. This phenomenon can occur in any part of the world, especially those with peculiar attractions. Overtourism in critical cases can affect the local’s way of life, and thus brings a lot of concern when this level is reached. A good example is how Venice faced a significant rise in the number of tourists during the 2019 Easter holidays. The government had to deploy sudden and radical strategies to deal with the high number of tourists within a very short time. Furthermore, overtourism has other effects that are quite diverse depending on the city and location affected. In this article, we are going to look at some of the strategies that the government and tourism destinations can use to deal with overtourism cases.

Ways to combat Overtourism.

Tackling the rates of tourism depend on the city visited, and also how overtourim affects the destination. La Pelosa beach which is one of the most popular beaches in Europe has made the entry free, as a way of dealing with the rates of tourism levels. This is done to enable other beaches to be free and thus giving room for cleaning. This is a strategy laid down by the local authorities and forecasted to be very effective in Italy.

Another way seen as a way of combating overtourism as seen in cities like Barcelona is prohibiting the construction of new hotels and rental apartments. The city has also closed some of the rental apartments as a way of ensuring the number of visitors is limited. The tourists making reservations are alerted whenever all the accommodation places are full and thus regulating visitors within a particular time frame.

Aforementioned, locals have a higher say on tourism and thus should be consulted. A city like Venice has lost several inhabitants, brought upon by the rising number of tourists visiting the place. As a way of regulating the number of tourists, the city administration has made the locals a priority in some services such as boats to access specific canals.

Imposing higher fees at entry points is also a strategy that has proven to be beneficial. This helps shun some visitors away from accessing the destination and thus enabling a substantial number of people in a given place. Furthermore, raising the tourist tax is also another way of regulating the number of visitors as proposed in Amsterdam. The city has also enacted some laws that limit some of the antisocial behavior on its streets by imposing fines.

Marketing other tourist destinations is also another way of combating overtourism. This will enable tourists to be scattered within a city rather than overcrowding within one specific place. It will also help tourists realize other destinations that are worth their time and money. If this is effected, then a city or a country will be able to manage the rising number of tourists.

These are some of the tactics that a city can use to immensely deal with overtourism. If put in practice, then there won’t be news on overtourism levels being heard again. I would highly recommend that these strategies be adopted to help curb high tourism levels that deter the enjoyment of a particular destination.