Another beautiful island in Europe slaps new 'ban' on visitors to tackle overtourism
An increasing number of destinations popular among tourists are enforcing measures to balance the wellbeing of residents with the flow of visitors.
A stunning French island has capped the number of tourists that can visit, joining the host of holiday destinations taking measures to fight overtourism.
Ile-de-Bréhat is an island just off the northern coasts of Brittany measuring only 1.19 square miles and with a population of just over 400.
The cap will be enforced from this week to August 23 and sees a maximum of 4,700 people allowed to visit the island on weekdays between 8.30am and 2.30pm local time. Second homeowners and people who need to travel for work will be exempt from this regulation.
The measure is hoping to provide a better experience for visitors, who won't feel overcrowded on the small island, and the permanent residents.
The island's Mayor, Olivier Carré, stressed this fresh regulation doesn't aim at stopping people from visiting the beautiful Ile-de-Bréhat.
Speaking to AFP, he said this set of restriction come after last year's trial, which helped the number of day tripper remain under 5,500.
He explained: "Once you reach or pass that level, nothing works – there’s nowhere for people to park at the ferry terminal at Ploubazlanec, not enough seats on the boat, all the restaurants on the island are full, the hire bikes run out, the cycle paths are rammed.
"As many as 30 percent said afterwards that they were dissatisfied with their day. Before, we shipped people across whether there were 2,000 of them or 6,000. Now, we’re asking the ferry companies to encourage people to book in advance and regulate the flow."
The impact of this measure will be "reviewed every year", the mayor added, amid fears by local businesses relying on tourism this could harm their profit.
Don't miss...
Turkey tourism crisis as country demands Greece makes one major change [INSIGHT]
Brits going to Spain, Greece, France, Turkey and Italy issued warning [REPORT]
Canary Islands humiliation as more Brits than ever visiting Tenerife [REPORT]
With this measure, Ile-de-Bréhat joins several other popular holiday hotspots that have enforced regulations to better manage the tourism flow.
Venice introduced in April a daily fee of €5 (£4.30) to be forked out by people visiting the Italian lagoon only for a day.
Barcelona is planning to increase the tourist tax it requires from cruise passengers staying in the city for less than 12 hours, its mayor recently announced after the latest anti-tourism demonstration in the Catalan capital, which saw some protesters squirting with water pistols holidaymakers in a restaurant.
Other holiday hotspots including Malaga and Majorca are seeing locals taking to the street to ask for a different tourism model, as they feel swamped in their cities and believe overtourism is detrimental to their lives.
