How to travel without exacerbating the problem of excessive tourism: Expert advice
Andrea Fuentes is the head of travel at Intrepid Travel, where she organizes trips to the most popular destinations in Italy and Spain, including Venice, the Cinque Terre, and the Amalfi Coast. She and her firm promote eco-tourism, where as much money as possible goes to local people, avoiding the busiest areas and favouring independent lodges over chain hotels.
Venice is a city that is struggling to maintain its magic and reputation as one of the most popular tourist destinations in the world like no other. It is becoming increasingly difficult to answer the question of whether it is worth visiting Venice and whether it is possible to contribute to solving this problem, mirror.co emphasizes.
Andrea is convinced that it is possible to visit the Floating City - and many other similar tourist-crowded destinations in Spain, Italy and around the world - without missing out on what makes them so special. Check out her top tips below.
Travel in a small group
A big problem can be that large travel agencies send large groups of people to popular cities, which can contribute to clogging up narrow alleys or flooding certain places with too many people. Seeing large groups of tourists lingering in city squares or cluttering up sidewalks is a sure way to cause discontent among locals.
Choose your time wisely
The weather in northern Italy is generally nice and bright for most of the year. Travelling to Venice when it's calmer - in early spring or late autumn - can often be more pleasant in terms of weather than in the height of summer.
Andrea advises Intrepid Travel clients to avoid travelling to the city on weekends and head to the busiest spots, such as St. Mark's Square, well before 11 a.m. when travellers usually arrive. She also encourages people to stay longer to get a better feel for the place and explore lesser-visited corners.
"From an environmental and social point of view, day trips are bad. A longer stay allows people to do other things. You start to eat or shop differently than at home. In the UK, you can eat at 6 a.m., in Venice, restaurants are open until late at night. You may start going out to dinner later. You avoid crowded restaurants. You can stop and watch the locals," she emphasises.
Explore
"If you walk around the city, you can get to know it. You'll find amazing restaurants, local trattorias, and all these really beautiful shops. The best way to get to know something is to go from the busiest places to the less visited areas," Andrea advises.
Stay away or be smart
When Intrepid Travel takes groups to the Cinque Terre in northeastern Italy or the Amalfi Coast, the firm often places them in smaller, less busy villages outside the main areas and then travels by public transportation to thin the crowds a bit and make the trip cheaper.
When it comes to choosing where to stay, Andrea advises visiting "family-owned local businesses" rather than large chains to keep as much money as possible in the community you're visiting.
Don't go crazy just because you're on vacation
Chloe Berman, Communications Specialist at Intrepid Travel, says that people who know how to recycle and are mindful of their environmental impact at home sometimes let their guard down and pick up bad habits while on vacation.
"At home, people recycle and don't use plastic, but it's important to take these habits with you. Use reusable water bottles and a tote bag," she said. Chloe recommends finding shops that sell local souvenirs rather than foreign ones.
According to Andrea, her British clients have a more positive outlook now than when she first started working in tourism almost a decade ago.
"Eight or nine years ago, you could see the shy approach of the British. Now they are very hungry and interested in what is happening around them. They come more informed, they have read articles, they have specific questions about the place they are visiting. They learn the language, they try to make a bridge," she summarized.
Earlier, TravelWise reported what the weather in Venice will be like in March 2024.
