It’s pretty annoying when you’re on holiday and set off early to cop a good spot on the beach, only to find pretty much everyone else has had the same idea. Across Italy, that’s the reality, with overcrowding continuing to be a problem at tourist attractions, hiking routes and beaches.
While visitor numbers at Tuerredda beach in Sardinia have been capped at 1,100 people per day since 2020, the local council has announced plans to take controls a step further.
The beach, which is in a cove near the town of Teulada on Sardinia’s southern coast, is famed for its glistening white sand and crescent shape. However, if you want to visit the paradisical beach this summer, you’ll have to book your spot online. Plans for visitors to claim a spot via an app could be in place by July, according to Angelo Milia, the mayor of Teulada, who spoke to local media.
Recommended: The best beaches in Europe, according to Time Out.
The measure is one of many discussed at a crisis summit held in Amalfi last week. Tourist towns from all over Italy, including the mayors of Capri, Positano, Courmayeur, Cinque Terre and Taormina, met to discuss the growing problem of overtourism.
According to the Telegraph, lots of mayors want greater flexibility to restrict tourist access at busy times, to impose taxes and to have more say in coordinating transport.
There was general discontent at the slow pace of the national government in managing overcrowding, and better coordination between local governments and transport authorities was also highlighted by the summit.
But, why is overcrowding such a big problem? Well, whether it’s on the country’s beaches or in its cities, overcrowding can lead to environmental degradation and the displacement of local people, according to Travel and Tour World.
We recently did a deep dive into whether Europe’s most popular cities will ever properly recover from overtourism. And here are some tips on how to be a better tourist in the continent’s most visited cities.
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Plus: These are Europe’s best wine regions to visit in 2025.
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