Dubrovnik, Croatia, faces significant overtourism challenges, with 2024 witnessing a 9% rise in visitors despite local concerns about the detrimental effects on infrastructure and community life. The national tourism ministry's upbeat announcement contrasts starkly with rising global protests surrounding tourism's impact in various cities. Experts argue that once a destination experiences overtourism, reversing its effects becomes increasingly complex, hindered by economic pressures. Signs of strain have been noted since 2010 in popular locales, yet solutions remain elusive as destinations struggle to balance tourism growth and quality of life for residents.
If 2024 was the year in which concerns about overtourism achieved a critical mass in places around the globe, it also revealed just how complicated reducing tourism can be.
Once overtourism has arrived, it's exceedingly difficult to turn back the clock, as competing economic interests impede attempts to stem the tourist tide.
Tourism experts had observed by 2010 that some destinations were approaching or exceeding their carrying capacity, indicating a long-standing concern for sustainable tourism.
Tourism minister, Tonci Glavina, celebrated 2024 arrivals increasing 9 percent, yet this triumph hides the negative effects of overwhelming tourist numbers on local communities.
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