From Italy to Japan, tourists are the new pests of summer
Tourists, it would appear, have become the leading pests of the season. In Mallorca, fed up with sunbathing visitors crowding them off their own shores, protesting residents are planning to “occupy the beaches” on June 16, having staged a massive demonstration at the beginning of the month. While nearby Milan mulls banning ice cream and pizza sales after 12:30 am in order to curb late-night activity, on the other side of the globe in Kyoto, signs politely list dos and don’ts for foreign visitors, with many offering free wi-fi in exchange for compliance.
Popular destinations, whose economies are heavily dependent on tourist dollars, are caught in the cleft stick of not wanting local businesses to suffer and ensuring that the incoming hordes do not disrupt the rhythms of local life or damage cultural and environmental heritage. This dilemma has sharpened since the pandemic. But even before 2020, the devastation that tourism brings was causing a rethink of policies in places like Barcelona where it was found that 38 per cent of the fishing boats’ catch was plastic waste.
Part of the problem is the sheer number of people now — more than ever in history — with the money to travel. What was once the preserve of the privileged First World citizen, has now been democratised. The ordinary person’s growing interest in far-flung places — and her ability to pursue it — is welcome. Travel is not just a pleasure — it can also be a learning experience. Yet, with the road less travelled now filled with bumper-to-bumper traffic, the cost for others may prove too high to pay. Tourist destinations must do what they can; for example, in September 2023, Venice became the first city to impose a tourist tax. Travellers must also accept the responsibility of caring for what is the shared heritage of humanity.