Tourism has risen in Greece and many locals are not quite happy with the influx of visitors.
Curious voyagers are especially making their way to Santorini, about 297 miles south of Athens, to get a glimpse of the island’s beauty in its natural state.
One of the most famous islands in the world, Santorini is actually a group of islands: Thira, Thirassia, Aspronissi, Palea and Nea Kameni in the southernmost part of the Cyclades, according to Visit Greece, a government tourism website.
The website says that visitors can enjoy local dishes, a drink or a coffee while taking in the scenery of an active volcano.
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Santorini locals push for an end to mass tourism
Although the picture-perfect sights have made Santorini a popular tourist destination some locals are hoping to stop the massive travel.
Crowds gather daily waiting to take selfies and pictures during the island’s picturesque sunset.
“This has been my dream since high school,” American tourist Maria Tavarez, 40 told Reuters.
But for many of Santorini’s 20,000 permanent residents, the once idyllic island of quaint villages and pristine beaches has been ruined by mass tourism.
As protests against excessive tourism erupt in other popular holiday destinations, including Venice and Barcelona, Santorini represents one of the starkest examples of how hoards of visitors can impact a place.
Authorities on the island have joined other tourism hot spots in calling for a cap on visitors. Greece is likely to hit a new record for tourism in 2024, surpassing the 33 million tourists in 2023. Inbound travelers rose 20% in the January-May period, according to the Bank of Greece, and overall tourism revenues are up 16%.
In Santorini, the growing number of foreign tourists – some 3.4 million visited the island last year, according to Mayor Nikos Zorzos – is putting pressure on the island’s outdated infrastructure and are pricing islanders out of the housing market.
Zorzos says he has been pushing authorities for years not to allow a single extra bed on the island and has proposed a cap on the number of cruise ship visitors to 8,000 a day, down from around 17,000.
“It is in the best interest of our land for there to be a limit,” he said.
Contributing: Reuters
Ahjané Forbes is a reporter on the National Trending Team at USA TODAY. Ahjané covers breaking news, car recalls, crime, health, lottery and public policy stories. Email her at [email protected]. Follow her on Instagram, Threads and X (Twitter) @forbesfineest.
This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: In Greece, Santorini faces problem of too many tourists: Video
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