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Destruction of the landscape, rising housing prices, lack of resources - the situation is becoming unsustainable - angry Tenerife residents organize protests against the British and tell the tourists to "go home".
The phenomenon of "tourismophobia" is growing day by day, and the situation is becoming unsustainable in many European destinations. But interestingly, although the voice of the frustration of the local population is being heard more and more loudly, there are no concrete countermeasures or a plan to reduce excessive tourism.
Protesters have even started demanding a tourist tax to compensate for the "irreparable damage" they are causing to the environment.
Activists in a famous Spanish destination have placed false warning signs on the beaches to beware of dangerous jellyfish or stones falling from the rocks, that the beach is polluted by sewage discharge.
Another sign suggests that the beach is very far away and it takes hours to get there - all to discourage visitors from coming.
The citizens of Mallorca gathered over 77 civil society associations with a clear message "Mallorca, sold out", referring to the fact that there are 1,1 million tourists out of 17 million inhabitants.
In Austria, locals blocked a tunnel at the entrance to the town as a sign of protest against mass tourism.
There is tone, no picture. Do we have coherent solutions? Answer? Recitation?
/ / / Mallorca, sold out: Local residents demand 'less tourism, more life' at the protest
/ / / Locals blocked the tunnel at the entrance to the town as a sign of protest against mass tourism
/ / / Tourismophobia: Saturated with mass tourism, the Spanish drive tourists home
/ / / Activists put up fake signs on the beaches to discourage tourists from coming
/ / / Which destinations raise taxes and what is financed by additional revenues?
Interestingly - there is none. At least not specific ones. Nor strategies that look at the bigger picture. Because for any problem (this is no longer in the domain of challenges) there is no one-time solution.
Of course, there is a measure to raise taxes for tourists, the introduction of an environmental tax and the like... But these are populist measures that will not change things or look at the bigger picture.
To be more "picturesque", like let's say the problem of a bad education system. The solution is not to raise teachers' salaries, because the problem is in the entire system. It is necessary to influence from several sides, especially when we are talking about a destination that has many more dimensions.
Of course, as always, the problem and the solution is management.
We have reached a crazy situation - a serious growth of tourismophobia in Europe. The great news is that citizens have woken up and are clearly articulating their problems and demanding change.
Because what is the point of tourism if it does not improve the quality of life of the local population? Rather, if it further destroys it? If the locals fight against the tourists? Crazy situation, right? Where does that lead? Are there any countermeasures - to balance the direction of tourism development?
/ / / Doxey's irritation index and the fight against unbalanced tourism
Tourism is complex, the destination is a "living organism" and without management there is no sustainable and high-quality development and therefore no tourism.
On the hrturism portal, we constantly write about all these topics, at least for those who are interested in these topics, and all the mentioned examples have already been described in more detail.
In 2024, we will devote ourselves to writing about what destinations are doing in the domain of sustainable development and tourism. We are starting a "tour" from Valencia.
And the media must be sustainable in order to be of high quality. Subscribe to hrturism, let's grow and develop together, both as individuals and as a profession and society as a whole.
