What Is Overtourism and Where Is It Worst?
Overtourism describes a situation where tourist volumes outstrip a destination”s capacity to absorb them without significant negative impacts on residents, infrastructure, environment, or visitor experience itself. The term gained mainstream usage around 2016 and has only become more relevant since.
The most affected destinations in 2026
Venice, Italy: implemented a day-visitor entry fee on the busiest days. Resident population has dropped below 50,000 for the first time in centuries.
Barcelona, Spain: phasing out short-term rental licenses, restricting cruise ship visits, with growing political pressure to reduce visitor numbers.
Amsterdam, Netherlands: hotel construction ban in central districts, cruise terminal relocation, ongoing campaigns to discourage stag parties.
Bali, Indonesia: new tourist tax, conservation fees, and tightened visa enforcement.
Athens (Acropolis specifically): hourly visitor caps, advance timed-entry mandatory.
Kyoto, Japan: residents complaining about geisha district crowds, train system overwhelm, and rising local prices driving residents out.
What is driving it
Several trends compound: cheap flights making more destinations accessible, social media driving everyone to the same Instagram spots, cruise ships unloading thousands of day-visitors at concentrated times, and the overall growth of global middle-class travel.
The COVID pause briefly reset some destinations, but volumes recovered and in many cases exceeded 2019 levels by 2024.
What destinations are doing
Tourist taxes, daily visitor caps, mandatory advance booking, restrictions on cruise visits, hotel construction limits, short-term rental crackdowns, infrastructure investment in less-visited areas to spread demand.
What travelers can do
Visit shoulder seasons instead of peak. Choose second-tier cities (Lyon instead of Paris, Bologna instead of Florence). Stay longer in fewer places. Avoid the same cruise-ship-driven destinations. Spend money locally rather than at chain operations.
The travelers who continue to enjoy iconic destinations in the future will be those who travel intentionally rather than chasing the same Instagram spots as everyone else.