There’s a recent article in the NY Times (blaming AirBnb and other tech) stating that some places are being overrun with tourists making the experience not pleasant. The comments section is full of examples: Paris, Venice, any city where cruise ships dock are prominently mentioned.
What’s your experience?
My favorite places are the national parks and so many of the popular ones are TOO popular. Yosemite Valley is a nightmare in summer, not worth visiting then at all. The Grand Canyon is another example. Zion, Bryce. I’m with a lot of park lovers that think that instituting a capped, limited reservation system to enter is needed.
(I am headed soon to Yellowstone and I am hoping that since school has started the park won’t be overcrowded but a friend who went recently said it was so overcrowded she will not return).
Agree about the National Parks. Years ago, I went to Grand Canyon NP (South Rim) and it took me an hour of driving around to find a parking spot - it was worse than mid-town Manhattan. And that was in April! The more remote North Rim is a better option if you have the time. One exception is Volcanos NP on the Big Island of Hawaii. It’s too remote to ever get too crowded.
On our last trip to London I saw shoved into the street near Westminster by a tourist wanting a better selfie. At this point we are all about avoiding travel in the summer.
The Brooklyn Bridge -- too many tourists attempting to cross it and they use the bike lanes -- which is dangerous because the bikes are serious commuters.
The High Line NYC after 10:00 am.
Trevi Fountain in Rome
The Great Wall in China at the tourist access areas.
The Louvre Mona Lisa -- don't bother going. It's too crowded to see.
Trevi Fountain in Rome - yes - the was the most crowded spot when we went and we were pretty off season in March - can’t imagine it in summer! The guide told us the Vatican wasn’t too bad when we were there the same week but it was PACKED - again can’t imagine even trying to go there in high season.
We went to Yellowstone this summer. We got there around June 7th and were there a week. It wasn’t too bad since it was so early in the summer. The first few days we had no problems at all finding parking or having too many people around (I mean there were lots of people but nothing like what I have heard/seen pictures of in the middle of summer.) I did notice it seemed to get a little busier each day though so the earlier in the summer the better. On one of our last days we wanted to go to the Grand Prismatic Overlook nice and early but due to my daughter waking up sick we didn’t get there until around 11am. There were cars parked was down the street and people were walking so far just to get to the trailhead. I knew it was a short hike so told my kids we would give it a shot and be patient in the parking lot -someone had to come off the trail sooner or later. We got lucky, as son as we pulled in a family was walking out and they were parking in one of the very front spaces. Not sure if you can always do that though - I think once it gets super crowded the rangers may not even let ou in the parking lot at all.
As a New Yorker, I could never understand why anyone in their right mind would go anywhere near Times Square if they could avoid it. Truly, a hellish place. I won’t call the Sistine Chapel a hellish place, but I would advise avoiding it during the tourist season.
I’ve read articles lamenting the airbnb (and other home rental) craze in Venice. It’s not just the crowding but it’s changing the dynamic and culture of the city. Instead of having neighborhoods where working people still lived and their businesses - the butcher, the baker, etc. - it is now rentals and businesses catering to tourists so it looses what made it so charming in the first place and a sense of community.
We visited Florence last November, so definitely not the height of the tourist season by any means but I was still struck by how crowded it seemed vs. my last visit about a a decade earlier. As evidenced by no wait time to get into the Ufuzzi, it probably wasn’t really crowded but a lot had changed in 10 years.
It’s been over 10 years since I was in the Sistine Chapel. It was the only time in my life I had that claustrophobic feeling and seriously worried about getting crushed. I don’t know if they handle the crowds better now but I’ve seen it and don’t feel a need to go back after that experience.
I know places like Cinque Terre as well as some locations in Thailand are looking at ways to limit tourists because of overcrowding and the detrimental effects it has.
One issue is that there many more places in the world with a rising middle class which means more people with the means to travel and more tourists.
We definitely attempt to schedule trips during the off or shoulder seasons both to save $ and avoid crowds.
Our last trip to NYC was from Jan 2 to Jan 8. That was fabulous if you don’t mind cooler weather. We’ve done MANY national parks off season and that’s been pretty great.
I was in Rome and traveling Italy in June. UGH - awful! And it was too hot anyway IMO.
Tourists tend to concentrate in a few well-known spots. When we were in Venice, San Marco was very crowded, but just a few steps away there were adorable small streets, totally deserted (and with significantly cheaper coffee). That said, we try hard to avoid travel in July-August.
I went to the September 11 Memorial and Museum in NYC in June on a Friday (late morning) and it was so crowded, it was hard to really appreciate it. A couple of times, the bottleneck got so bad, I started feeling anxious and a little claustrophobic, and that is not something I usually have a problem with.
Horseshoe Bend and Antelope Canyon have been “grammed” to fame (Instagram photos) and it is crazy busy now. I believe just a few years ago there were 2MM tourists a year, then 6MM, then 8AMM, and now estimates of 10MM coming. Horseshoe Bend is 1/2 mi off the highway, gorgeous, amazing, formerly unknown. It was free and had one gravel parking lot, now they are adding restrooms and a guard rail (formerly it was Darwinian!) as well as more 2-3 parking lots, not allowing buses to park-only drop and go, closing the parking lot when full happens daily.
It’s insane and I would no longer be excited to go. I might check it in the off season, but in 2016 it was like watching ants crawl over a picnic, so many people.
We were in Amsterdam last year (October). We stayed at a lovely VRBO place along a canal in a residential area. The owner told us that there were going to be new restrictions in the future. Due to resident complaints of noise from tourists dragging suitcases along the cobblestone streets at all hours, VRBOs would be allowed a certain number of days they could rent their place, along with a minimum night stay…I believe, a week. She wanted us to know in case we wanted to book it again in the future.
It would work for us because we’re retired, but I can see how it would be disadvantageous for many people.
This summer we visited Monument Valley, Antelope Canyon, Bryce, Zion, Horseshoe Bend. We liked it all, but Zion was way too crowded to be fun, not helped by the fact that one section was closed for road work, and many trails were closed due to recent flash floods. We left early. I’d visit again in the off season but not in summer. We loved Bryce and it was empty in comparison to Zion. Antelope Canyon is a guided tour, but it was fine. We still enjoyed it even with crowds. Horseshoe bend was a 1/2 mile up and down hike in direct sun and 95 degrees. We are from AZ and had plenty of water and it was still awful. And very crowded with people nearing heat stroke. Some getting medical attention. I’d never stop there again in summer. Monument Valley was uncrowded, peaceful, and beautiful. It was a July weekday. The View Hotel was fully booked but it still felt uncrowded, especially in comparison to nearly everywhere else we stopped.
We love national parks, but agree that Grand Canyon, Yosemite, Yellowstone are all too busy in summer. We have a summer anniversary but tend to travel to celebrate in late September. It’s beautiful then, and so much less crowded.
Summers are the best time for us to travel because of work. Yes, Venice, the Trevi fountain, Paris museums and all of the places mentioned are crowded with the added hot summer temps. Ugh. We’ve learned to deal with it by getting out early in the morning or staying out late…
I’ll never forget the time I woke up at 6:00 AM in Venice to get some morning photos. I practically had the whole place to myself. It was cool and the waters were calm. In Paris, we timed our visit to the Lourve and d’Orsay for the end of the day (they have late night hours 1-2 times a week, IIRC) We had no problem walking up to the Mona Lisa at 8:30PM.
@lilmom We do something similar. We also buy advance tickets to everything possible to save from waiting in lines. All tourist destinations are too crowded during peak season, but if that’s the only time you can go, careful advance planning makes a world of difference.
We have had some wonderful vacations there.