Tourism is the devil: How entitled holidaymakers have broken the rules of hospitality
Just the ticket for 2025: Travellers plan on five getaways with Bravecation and Heritage Holiday trends!
IT was World Travel Market season again where tourist boards from across the planet set out their stalls in London to talk, share intel and sell travel. How to get ready for winter? Book a holiday to the sun, we say, but instead of lapping up new ideas there were difficult conversations being had. One of the big topics this year was the social impact of travel aka overtourism. How did we get here? There are multiple routes. The experts argued that once upon a time we mostly booked package holidays led by tour operators, but now many holidaymakers book their own flights and Airbnbs then guide themselves by following influencers on TikTok and Instagram - then Googling the “ten best bars”. This results in directing 99 per cent of social media disciples to 1 per cent of a city. Also, there’s been a shift in attitude and behaviour: once an airline ticket has been booked, passengers demand service, and the more they pay, the more they expect. Plus a more recent phenomenon has emerged: when a tourist stays in an Airbnb they feel like a resident and “this is my place”. But it isn’t. It seems enjoying local hospitality has been replaced with a sense of entitlement. Here are the challenges…
Protests: Pedro Homar from Visit Palma in Mallorca said tourism was seen as the devil with this year’s anti-tourism protests on the Spanish island used as a scapegoat for wider issues … He added they’re installing 50 cameras on beaches and moving people on when capacity reaches up to 90 per cent.
Restrictions: Helgi Eysteinsson from Iceland Travel highlighted that locals want restrictions on travellers but not on their movement in their own country.
Booking: Martin Brakenbury, at ICRT Global suggested that historical cities such as Venice should be treated like theatres, and once a site is sold out, you go another day … He admits this would reduce spontaneity as trips would have to be planned.
The selfie: Harold Goodwin, WTM responsible tourism adviser, observed that the selfie has put the holidaymaker at the centre of the photo, and how they don’t even want to go inside a church, for example, such as La Sagrada Família in Barcelona, but just want get the photo of themselves outside to show off to their friends.
No go: Mirko Lalli, from the Data Appeal Company said in Florence, Italy, residents don’t go into the city centre or the Unesco areas which are “owned” by tourists.
Demanding: Chris Haslam, travel writer at the Times said the public had broken the rules of hospitality with cheap flights, cruise ships, Instagram and Airbnb facilitating overtourism … He added that travellers invade the prettiest parts of cities, homogonise the areas – demanding the same shops and dinner at 6pm – and it’s embarrassing … It’s not up to tour operators and tourists boards to bring in regulation but it’s on us as tourists … Do we want to be part of the problem or part of the solution?
It’s travel o’clock!
Spain’s revenge? From Monday if you’re travelling to Spain expect to hand over more than just your passport when you check-in at your hotel. Chalkmarks first reported on this in September. You’ll be expected to share up to 31 pieces of information. As well as giving your name and nationality, sunseekers will be asked for their bank details and the relationship of those they’re travelling with. And all that juicy info will be shared around the authorities. The Spanish government is bringing in new rules to help crack down on criminals – quite what holidaymakers have to do with that is unknown. Spain’s hotel association Cehat argues it will cause queues at check-in adding that it’s incompatible with privacy laws. Ramón Estalella, of Cehat, said: “It’s like ‘Big Brother’ – it’s nuts and will cause chaos.” Perhaps this is revenge for overtourism. Question is, will it put you off? The Telegraph has the full story.
Travel scoop: Britons are away next year, off on five holidays according to hotel chain Marriott International. To be clear that’ll be one long-haul, two short-haul trips and two staycations. Other highlights from their 2025 Ticket to Travel survey include travellers seeking Bravecations, this is where you do something that scares you, like climbing or having a conversation with strangers – yes, that’s their definition. And, another emerging travel trend they’ve spotted is Heritage Holidays, where people travel to “find out where they come from”. It’s all in The Times.
Holiday snaps: Everyone’s favourite money-saving expert Martin Lewis shared his top travel deals for Christmas and the New Year with his bumper Festive Forecast on ITV1. We watched it so you don’t have to. Here’s what you need to know: Martin forecasts long-haul flight sales starting from Monday, 16 December with London to New York return with British Airways from £374 and London to Barbados return £490 with Virgin. Next up, expect the easyJet sale to start on Thursday, 19th December and Travelodge discounts on Saturday 21st December. Plus the Eurostar sale is expected to start on Friday, January 10, 2025, with return trips from £78. Phew! Martin’s the best. We should do this every week. Yes, he should!
Dark travel: Night time tourism to experience the Northern Lights is on the rise according to Booking.com. The trend known as Noctourism has seen cities such as Tromso, in northern Norway, see searches double compared to last year. Ambassador Cruise Line has also confirmed Norway is becoming popular with a 54 per cent surge in bookings. The Independent explains more.
What’s in Norway: First, there’s Oslo, Norway’s capital, which sits on a stunning fjord with floating saunas and where you need to try the brown cheese waffles. Not too far away is one of the world’s most scenic train journeys the Flam railway. Then much further north is the city of Tromso – the gateway to the Arctic Circle. It’s one of the best spots to see the Northern Lights that sweep waves of neon green, violet and red across the heavens. For more adventure visit the Lofoten Islands where the hottest things are the beaches. While it’s easy to think that a trip into these Polar isles would be blisteringly cold given that they lie further north than Iceland and parts of Alaska, the Lofoten Islands are actually warm(ish) because of the Gulf Stream that sweeps across the Atlantic Ocean. This means there are no polar bears or sea ice. Norwegians like to boast of having the northernmost everything including an 18-hole golf course, music festival, church, post office, and even brewery. To that accolade they can add the northernmost surf schools. We tried it. Say freeze!
Fame at last: Coming out of the shadows is Bedfordshire with an announcement that Universal Studios might open a theme park in Kempston Hardwick – just five miles from Bedford. Apparently 92 per cent of locals back the plans. Ministers say not only would it attract millions of visitors to the UK but it would direct tourists out of London to areas they usually only pass through. If it goes ahead it’ll be the sixth Universal Studios to join those in the US, China, Japan, and Singapore. No decision has been made but if it gets the the green light it could open in 2030. OMG, are you serious? Yes it’s on the BBC.
Be more Brat: Bratislava, Slovakia, has taken the mantle from Riga, Latvia, as the best value Christmas market trip for cheap food and booze. According to the boffins at Post Office Travel Money a two-night trip, for two, in Bratislava, including the flight, a B&B and food from the markets, costs £510. Want to spend more? A trip to Copenhagen, Denmark, will set you back £989. Vilnius, Lithuania, came second cheapest at £511 and last year’s winner Riga took the third spot, costing £546. But who can complain when there’s gluhwein and gingerbread, roasted chestnuts, brandy coffee, potato pancakes, stollen, pastries, bread with cheese… dribble dribble! It’s in the Sun.
Direction of travel: easyJet has announced its longest route from Gatwick to sunny Sal in Cape Verde starting from March next year. Time in the air will be 5 hours 50 minutes. Once known for its salt production (Sal is salt in Portuguese), it’s now a popular spot for its beaches and turquoise waters you can float in due to the high saline levels. The Independent has more.
A word from Which? The consumer champion is warning over hotel pricing tactics whereby we’re reeled in with a bargain price, but when we click through to book the room, it’s sold out, as only a few were actually available, and we end up booking a more expensive one anyway. It’s called bait pricing. Which? says the promotions are misleading. They’ve done a big investigation and passed on their findings to the Advertising Standards Agency. Read more here.
Closed: The mayor of Florence is banning key boxes used by tourists to access their Airbnb apartments. Sara Funaro considers them a symbol of overtourism. Locals in Tuscany are also annoyed at the sound of suitcases being dragged along the city’s cobbled streets that they now call tourists “trolley people”. The boxes are expected to be removed from the Unesco historic centre. Le Monde has the story.
Air we go: After more than a year of investigation we heard that the Bank Holiday air traffic control meltdown in August 2023 (Chalkmarks reported on it) was due to staff working from home and an engineer not being able to log into their computer because the password didn’t work. We’ve all been there! But, they knew this the whole time. How has the inquiry just come out with this? And what happens now? The Civil Aviation Authority has made a list of recommendations to ensure this doesn’t happen again. Sky News has more.
Crowd control: From Friday 15 November the number of tourists allowed to visit Italy’s ancient city of Pompeii, buried under volcanic ash, has been capped to 20,000 a day. It only tends to reach these high numbers when the entrance is free on the first Sunday of the month. Otherwise the archeological site gets around 15,500 a day when tickets cost €20. Reuters had the scoop.
Safety first: Women walking the popular Camino de Santiago – the 500-mile trail from Saint-Jean-Pied-de-Port in France to Santiago de Compostela in Spain – have been warned to be vigilant after reports of “terrifying” sexual harassment. Nine lone women pilgrims told the Guardian they had feared for their lives having been followed, chased, and seen men expose themselves. Spanish police said they had patrols along the route and were dispatched if a call comes in.
Hit or miss: The new names for Snowdon (Yr Wyddfa) and Snowdonia (Eryri) are here to stay. Truth is they are not new but old and while many hikers are confused, the Welsh national park authority says the switch to the original names has been a success, to honour its heritage and language. Their next challenge is getting people to pronounce them correctly. The BBC has more.
Prepare for landing: If you’ve been strolling through Heathrow’s terminals you’ll have noticed it’s been a bit busy of late. The airport has recorded it busiest October ever with 7.2 million passengers. Heathrow boss Thomas Woldbye said: “This year has been all about breaking records at Heathrow.” There’s more on PA Media.
Keep it up: England goalkeeper Mary Earps has become the first woman footballer to be immortalised in wax at London’s Madame Tussauds. The waxwork is dressed up in the 2023 World Cup Final kit. Earps said: “To make this mark as the first female footballer to have a figure at Madame Tussauds London is incredibly special. This is not about me. This is a representation of how women’s football has grown and the trajectory it’s on. This is a celebration of that!”. Sky Sports had the story.
Pray it works: Microsoft has created an AI interactive version of the Vatican for a new digital flock to visit virtually. There will also be AI services at St. Peter’s Basilica for the Catholic Church’s Holy Year, also known as Jubilee celebrations, in 2025, which comes around every 25 years. This is when Holy Doors at churches all around the world open and many will make pilgrimages to walk through them for renewal and forgiveness. Take a look on Reuters.
What’s the story? If you can’t wait for the Oasis concerts next year, the National Portrait Gallery in London will be playing an immersive version of Champagne Supernova, created by Noel Gallagher, that lasts six hours. The music will play during the Legends exhibition which will showcase 100 portraits by photographer Zoe Law. Expect to see Sienna Miller, Sir Bobby Charlton, Orlando Bloom, and Kim Cattrall. It opens from Friday 29th November.
Cop out: Couldn’t make it to Cop29 this year? Neither did we. Not to worry, many didn’t turn up to the international climate conference in Azerbaijan. Keir Starmer went but not King Charles – it was his birthday so he went to the premiere of Gladiator II in Leicester Square. It sounds like we didn’t miss much. Talking about global climate change doesn’t seem to bring out the best in our governments. Those who did go, arrived on private jets and don’t seem committed to reducing global emissions for the long-haul. Tbh it now just feels like the prequel to I’m a Celebrity… Get Me Out of Here. But no shade on the host city Baku, let’s take a look around. PA Media has more.
What’s in Baku: This city is on an adrenalin rush. The capital of Azerbaijan is a melting pot of old and new, Europe and Asia. Known as the land of fire because of its continuously burning mountains and hillsides such as the one at Yanar Dag, the nation’s passion for flames has turned into an obsession. It is riding the crest of a wave that follows the success of hosting the Eurovision Song Contest in 2012 and the first ever European Games in 2015. This is an ex-Soviet Republic that’s after a fresh start. The nation sits with Russia to the north, the Caspian Sea on the east, Iran to the South and Armenia and Georgia to the west. Being oil rich they have embarked on an extravagant refurb with plans to build something out of science fiction. Instead of creating monuments to their past they are designing a rock star city for the future. Already they have built the three skyscraper Flame Towers (see above) with curvy flicks at their highest point dwarfing everything else around. At night they are ablaze – lit up like a burning fire in a light display that changes to giant men waving the Azeri flag and then to the national colours blue, red and green. There’s also the Heydar Aliyev centre with its ski-slope roof – designed to look like the president’s signature. Some worry that too much development will change the real Baku but that’s not really possible. The real star will always be its bare-bones beauty best seen in the undisturbed walled Old City in the centre. The 7th century maze of narrow cobbled lanes filled with street sellers and teahouses became a Unesco World Heritage Site in 2000. Up the 110 original stone steps to the top of the Maiden tower, it’s rumoured that centuries ago an ancient maiden threw herself into the sea to escape the King. There’s also the 15th century Shirvanshahs’ Palace belonging to the dynasty of the same name. To step even further back in time, Gobustan National Park, also has a Unesco outstanding universal value listing for its deserted mud volcanoes and prehistoric rock carvings made from early man dating back at least 10,000BC. And to get around you can hail a London cab, which are distinctly purple rather than black.
Flying Scotsman: While demand for travel has been high post-pandemic, many airlines are yet to put all their flight routes back in place. But after four years, Emirates’ Boeing 777 has returned to Edinburgh – greeted by kilted pipers from the Royal Edinburgh Military Tattoo. It comes more than a year after the airline reintroduced its enormous double-decker Airbus A380 – the world’s biggest aircraft – to Glasgow due to high demand for flights to UAE, Australia, Thailand, and India.
What’s in Dubai? Dubai is chock full of things to do all under the hot desert sky. Expect safari tours and camel rides across the vast Arabian sand dunes or, better still, take a hot air balloon to watch the sun rise. To cool down, jump on a boat and sail around the Persian Gulf, or take a splish-splash in a water park. If you want to sweat it out on a big adventure go paragliding around the skyscrapers, jet boarding and water-bike riding. Or, for even more UV exposure why not take the lift to the top of the tallest building in the world, the Burj Khalifa (828m or 2,717ft), and pap the rich people below shopping in the 90-plus malls, and gold and spice souks. At this time of year the temperature is in the high 30Cs. Pack your factor 50!
Also coming to Scotland: Center Parcs announced its first-ever holiday village near scenic Hawick in the Scottish Borders – their first in Scotland. The £400 million resort will have 700 lodges with a forest spa and a subtropical swimming paradise. The plans have yet to be given the green light. Watch this space. It’s in The Sun.
Return ticket: The Advertising Standards Authority has had words again with Eurostar over their advertising of £39 fares on Instagram and Facebook with jollies from London to Amsterdam and Brussels. It was in trouble earlier this year, as reported by Chalkmarks, over the same “bargain” £39 fares but having a “very small percentage” of seats available at that price. Back then Eurostar said it welcomed the “feedback”, adding it wouldn’t happen again. This time it said: “We are committed to ensuring that this scenario does not occur again.” The Guardian has the news.
Across the land: Everyone’s favourite bear, Paddington, has been back in the cinema taking us on an adventure to Peru. He recently got his passport from the Home Office so he’s off to his homeland to find his Aunt Lucy with a suitcase filled with marmalade sandwiches. We think though that once he sees a triple (avocado, egg and tomato), he’ll never go back. The real shock though is that little of Paddington in Peru was actually filmed in Peru. Plus there are no Peruvian actors and there’s not much Spanish spoken. Confused? To make up for these oversights we’d like to take you on a whistle-stop tour of this spectacular country.
What’s in Peru: It’s a land of rainbows and sacred mountains and the cradle of civilisation in the Americas. Around 5,000 years ago, the Caral are believed to be the first civilisation – living in what is now northern Peru. Then came the Chimú and the Moche, who lived around the same time the Romans ruled Europe. Chalkmarks has written about their impressive sandcastles that have stood out on the Peruvian desert beaches for more than a millennia. And then there were the more well-known Incas, who lived around 500 years ago high in the Andes. That empire ended when the Spanish conquerors arrived in the 1530s. There is though more to Peru than Machu Picchu. There’s Rainbow Mountain, El Misti, the Nasca Lines and the Amazon. The next time we go, we’re heading to Huascarán National Park. It’s the world’s highest tropical mountain range. Plus we’ll be booking a table at Central in Lima which was voted the No1 restaurant on the planet last year. Is there anything this country doesn’t have? Short answer: No! Start here!
Have you seen our pictures: Our fantastic travel photos, which capture some of our favourite destinations around the world, are now available for sale on Alamy. Woohoo!
Bling is in the air: British Airways has introduced a brand-new first-class seat expected to be in planes by 2026. The private cabin suite comes with its widest-ever seat at 36.5-inches, a 6ft 6in bed, and a 32-inch TV. MailOnline gave it a try.
Tour of duty: If you’ve always wanted to walk through the main gates at Buckingham Palace you can. From next year His Majesty is allowing his subjects to enter through the front entrance in a historic first. Visitors who are booked onto the East Wing Guided tour – also opening to the public for the first time – will get the VIP treatment. Why is he doing this? Well, he doesn’t live there, he’s up the road at Clarence House, but that doesn’t mean you can make yourself at home. MailOnline has the royal news.
Lunch replacement: British Airways has angered its business-class flyers who will no longer be served a three-course meal. Not only have starters gone but two of the main meals are cheese and crackers and soup with a chocolate-chip cookie for dessert. This means that food in the cheap seats, aka economy, will be much better. In their defence, BA said: “We trialled our new brunch offering with thousands of customers across numerous routes and received extremely positive feedback on both the quality and variety of options offered.” MailOnline has the outrage!
Coming soon: Everyone in France is talking about the €5 (£4.22) entrance fee when Notre Dame reopens on the 8th December. The cathedral is reopening five years after the devastating blaze in April 2019. The government says it needs to raise money for future repairs while the Catholic Church argues it’s a house of God and must be free. With weeks to go, nothing’s been decided. The Guardian has more.
Next stop: There are now hour-long queues outside the National Gallery after it banned visitors from bringing in liquids after a spate of activists throwing soup at iconic artworks. There is now airport-style security scanners to stop people taking in a bottle of water. It’s not going to stop the Extinction Rebellion and Just Stop Oil attacks though! The Daily Telegraph says they’ve ruined it for everyone.
Where do we go from here: The Old Bailey, where the country’s most infamous criminal trials are heard (think: Oscar Wilde, the Kray twins, the Yorkshire Ripper Peter Sutcliffe), is opening its doors to tourists. It has a grand hall, 18 courts and was built on the site of Newgate prison which means there are plenty of ghosts to meet on the way around. Tickets cost around £24. Not sure if there’s a gift shop! This one comes from the Old Bailey correspondent at PA.
Prepare for landing: easyJet will reduce the number of flights in the UK due to the increase in Air Passenger Duty, announced in the Budget, at the end of October. Chancellor Rachel Reeves put up Air Passenger Duty from April 2026 by £2 on short-haul flights and £12 on long-haul ones. The routes at risk include London to Scotland and Northern Ireland. It’s in the Sun.
Surprise surprise: A holiday in Wales could cost you an extra £1.25 a night from 2027. Welsh finance secretary Mark Drakeford has proposed a tourist levy that would bring in £33 million to pay for infrastructure. It’s out for consultation. Sky News has more.
Do you go to the pub? Pubs are closing at an alarming rate as drinking habits shift, but we’re determined to save the great British boozer. Open City tours of historic London pubs, led by Sheldon K Goodman, take us from Blackfriar’s Victorian charm to Westminster’s lively streets, echoing stories of Charles Dickens and Oscar Wilde. These venues, where alehouses transformed into inns, hold centuries of history, from Sir Christopher Wren’s workforce tokens to Charing Cross’s split Ship and Shovell. Follow us on our rescue mission to keep pubs alive. Hic!
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