Europe’s ‘most beautiful village’ wants to charge tourists to visit the social media-worthy spot.
Lauterbrunnen, Switzerland offers idyllic panoramic views, Heidi-style chalets, waterfalls and green pastures and has been a hit with day trippers looking for an Instagram-worthy photo opportunity.
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The Swiss village is now considering a tourist tax to restrict visitors from day trips.
A resort manager in Lauterbrunnen, Tom Durrer, said: “During the high summer season it gets a bit crowded along the village road as the road is not very wide and there is only one pavement.”
With a population of 2,400, the small village of Lauterbrunnen struggles to cope with the influx of visitors, receiving approximately 6,000 visitors per day.
Speaking to Swiss public radio SRF last year, village priest Markus Tschanz said: “We felt like employees at an amusement park.”
Head of the Tourism Institute at the Lucerne University of Applied Sciences and Arts, Jürg Stettler said: “Lauterbrunnen definitely has an overtourism problem.
“But this is not a result of his success, but of his interesting ‘Instagrammable’ waterfall, Staubbach Falls.”
The proposed fee, which would be paid via a smartphone app, would be between 5 and 10 Swiss francs ($5.50 to $10.99) and would apply to visitors spending the day by car.
Lauterbrunnen Mayor Karl Näpflin said: “The exception would be guests who have booked an offer such as a hotel or an excursion or who arrive by public transport.”
Jungfrau Regional Tourism CEO Marc Ungerer said: “The legal basis for such a tax does not yet exist.
“So it’s too early to consider what this tax would look like or how it might work.”
It is not the only tourist destination that will impose a “tourist tax” on day-trippers.
Tennerife is also expected to adopt measures to regulate visitor numbers by charging tourists, while the city of Portimão, on Portugal’s Algarve coast, has introduced a fee of 2 euros (£1.70) per night for up to a week between peak season, from March to September. .
Most famously, Venice, Italy, charges tourists €5 to visit during the day.
Proposed tourist taxes to control the entry and exit of visitors to the region come after a wave of “anti-tourism” protests have rocked holiday hotspots.
Holiday hotspots such as Tenerife, Mallorca, Menorca and Ibiza have seen a rise in anti-tourist protests.
Rosa Dávila, the first female president of Tenerife said: “We must analyze the exceptionalities that can be applied in a territory as fragile and limited as ours.
“What is clear is that Tenerife cannot be a theme park.
“Whoever visits us must value and respect our natural and cultural riches, our resources, and must be clear about the rules for their preservation.
Recently, residents of Binibeca Vell, a popular spot for Insta-worthy photos in Menorca, blocked 22 entrances to the private community after they were fed up with visitors roaming the streets of their village.
Meanwhile, a protest of more than 15,000 people invaded Mallorca’s capital, Palma, mocking travelers.
Activists say mass tourism is causing housing shortages, major environmental damage and driving down wages.
Margalida Ramis, head of the affiliated group GOB Mallorca, said “tourist saturation” is responsible for “job and life insecurity”, a lack of housing and “environmental and ecological issues”.
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This story originally appeared on The-sun.com read the full story
