What is overtourism?

Travel packages can be a very appealing fundraising tool, simply because travelers have really hard time giving up on there urges to explore.

Granted, travel is still a privilege mostly reserved for people from what are known as western countries. But whether, on a macro level we are optimizing the benefits travel can have for both ourselves and the communities we travel to, is very debatable and hard to measure.

There is a lot to be said for how exploitative the tourism industry can be, both in terms of the human and resource exploitation which contributes to already present social and economic imbalances. And there's the environmental aspects and the consequences mass tourism has on the plant, from emissions, to excess sconsumption of scarce resources such as water.

I will not pretend to have all the answers, or all the questions for that matter. This is just something many of us who love to travel are starting to question and explore more.

For a more concrete and tangible perspective, let's take Barcelona.

Barcelona is the capital city of Catalunya, Spain and it is one of the 10 most visited cities in Europe. It is estimated that roughly 7 million tourists visit Barcelona annually. Barcelona is a city loved by young and mature people alike, as it offers a very lively nightlife, a beach, and a captivating, varied history and architecture.

When walking around popular neighborhoods like El Born, you'd be hard pressed to not run into "Turistas Go Home" written in graffiti somewhere. Native, and non native Barcelonians have had enough of the excessive amount of tourists that are concentrating in their city, particularly during the summer peak season. The relentless crowds, the noise, the litter, and what they often perceive as outright disrespect to their city in areas like Park Guell, are enough to make Barcelonians reject the hefty revenue generated by mass tourism. There is also an increase in crime factor that can't be neglected. People getting drunk and acting less than decorously on the streets are a pretty common thing.

Overtourism is a problem that is affecting several popular destinations, particularly in Europe, which is the continent the most affected by mass tourism. Some other examples of an excess of mass tourism destinations are Venice, Rome, Paris, Dubrovnik and Santorini.

Barring any apocalyptic events, travel will remain a significant slice of global GDP at over 7%. This raises the issue of seeking different approaches, starting from educating people on the issue, and then coming up with alternatives that may be somewhat less exploitative and damaging to destinations.

I have some ideas for those that are genuinely concerned about their travel footprint, both social and environmental.

-Ambra S.