Tourists Go Home | Overtourism Protests On The Rise
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- เผยแพร่เมื่อ 17 ต.ค. 2024
- Subscribe to see our new videos www.youtube.co... #tourism #spain #protest Is it safe are we welcome to travel to countries, Spain is increasingly becoming radical with protests against tourists, the latest being tourists being sprayed from water pistols in Barcelona. Anti Tourism Protests On The Rise, Tourists Go Home, do you feel safe traveling.
Over tourism is starting to be more restrictive with many popular destination imposing restrictions on tourism and cruise ships. Have these protests changed your mind on which countries to travel in?
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So, what I think as a german woman who has 50 years of travel experience...I am really happy to have visited many countrys in my younger years. And yes, traveling was sometimes exhausting and adventurous....(for example in two/three days by car to Greece for camping) but we met friendly people and pristine landscapes and beaches. There are too many people on earth today and they all need a place to stay and many of them also want to travel the world 😊.. Nowadays I no longer feel like traveling on the beaten path. Overcrowded places put me off and I can understand that the locals have their right to their space. I still like to travel, but now I'm looking for more quiet places (for example Denmark).
I am totally with you and so glad that I was able to travel and even live in other countries in the 80's and 90's. While I'm healthy enough to travel, and have the means, it's nowhere near as attractive due to the hassles of air travel, and my feeling that the impact to the environment is just not worth it, especially for a short trip. We boomers can be a very entitled group, just thinking that the earth exists to entertain us and give us its resources while we have been abysmal caretakers of it.
We just returned from our first trip to Copenhagen. It was beautiful, and the people were really nice and helpful.
It's a conundrum! I am Canadian but have lived and raised our family on Maui for 40 years. A recent law just passed to make vacation rentals in apartment zoned areas illegal. The purpose is to free up housing for locals. Currently rental prices are over the top because rental inventory is scarce....too many air bnb and short term rentals. Sadly, families that have been here for generations are having to move to places like Las Vegas because they just can not afford to live here anymore. Super sad. Our beaches, parks and ocean have been decimated from millions of visitors each year. Our population is about 150,000. Tourist1 numbers recorded from 2023 to Maui was approximately 2,478,000..and that's down about 15% from 2022. Homelessness is very apparent if a tourist leaves the resort areas. People think of Hawaii as their vacation "playground". Yet our resources, fresh water, fish, and the ocean ecosystem for example are declining rapidly. 😢
Oh geeze. As an Aussie i hadnt heard about this until my brother just told me. I was just about to book a cruise around Spain next week for next year.
Hopefully it will be better then , they are saying it’s certain areas , even on a cruise we are looking at there are stops in Spain 🇪🇸🙂 🇦🇺 🇨🇦🌺
I'm going to mention another issue from the crowds and that is the sheer lack of respect for the people and the culture of the location being visited. I've been to 40+ countries in my life and I can't tell you the number of people that don't respect what they are told or what they are being prevented from doing. Just recently, visiting Iceland, there were people going around barricades to get "the perfect picture" and that is purely unsavory to me. For heaven's sake, respect the culture, rules and guidance being provided. Additionally, before ever considering a visit to a new country, I will take it upon myself to read up on the culture and norms of the location. I would hate to be guilty of showing disrespect when I didn't intend to. And yes to your point, the crowds and predatory buying of properties is a big problem. It is a shame all of this together has prompted natives to protest, but honestly, I can't blame them.
Balanced, thoughtful assessment. I avoid cruise ship travel. After experiencing a few Caribbean cruises out of Florida about 10-15 years ago I realized they’re simply floating, relatively inexpensive hotels, often with the type of visitors who are happy to line up for trinkets and T-shirts for a few hours but have little interest, time or respect for local culture. I now live in Victoria, and I visited the Greek islands, Spain and Italy many times so I understand locals’ frustration with thousands of tourists storming the shores for goods and services before hopping back on their ships and heading out again. Money is important to local economies, yes, but not at the expense of often loud, drunk and disrespectful visitors who see your town as little more than a photo op, some jewelry and a t shirt or two. Santorini has been fed up with rude tourists for decades … and they were rude I return, as far back as 2001, I recall. But I understand them. ‘Exploring the world’ on a cruise ship is about as realistic as exploring outer space on a Ferris wheel.
I think Santorini should be a little more concerned about the organized crime and trafficking of children begging for dollars on the street.
I don’t hear any complaints from those ‘shop owners’ who offer jacked up prices to tourists. How many tourists are ‘rude’ or ‘drunk’? You’re presenting a skewed vision of most tourists who simply want to learn more about the world.
@@jancyking582 ‘tourists’ who want to learn more about the world don’t go on cruises
@@jancyking582 ‘tourists’ who want to learn more about the world don’t go on cruises
You are absolutely right. This past March we wenr to Portugal and Spain. We noticed a definite change in Spain with things like public transportation. Buses were overcrowded and getting a place to sit was often difficult, and that was not even their busy tourist season. For someone with mobility issues , likwe my wife, it can be a nightmare trying to navigate in those conditions. The Malata airport on the way home was a nightmare and we too almost missed our plane due to long lineups and crowds. Its a shame it has come to this but we are reconsidering our plans for further travel out of Canada. Thankfully we have seen many of the places we wanted to see when it was more reasonable. I will be watching you two for other ideas !
,
Hi Tina and Norm. Thank you so much for your content. Very informative.
I am from Spain currently living in Vancouver and I also agree with you about the anti-tourism sentiment in Spain and understand your decision not to go there. I will go mainly because I have family there living there in any case. That being said, I would say that this is not the sentiment all over Spain, but only in pockets of Spain where there are too many tourists, such as Barcelona, Ibiza, Malaga, Alicante. However there are many regions of Spain that are not as overrun with tourists, such as many areas of central and northern Spain, and I do not think you should run into any issues.
Also, I would suggest to go outside of high season and definitely not go in the summer. One other thing: there are a minority who are doing such stupid things such as using water pistols against tourists. But most who protest are not protesting against the tourists themselves, but against the tourist model and are asking the government for change, which they believe is not sustainable given the amount of tourists that visit Spain.
I do not think you are the problem with visiting the different countries, as long as you respect the local culture and do not do crazy things.
Hi Norm and Tina, we visited Barcelona in the end of June. We had a wonderful time, loved the architect and the food. We felt very welcome. I feel the problem is as you said the AirBNB that are taking housing away from locals. We stayed at a hotel and had no problems. I agree with you about traveling off season, that’s our plan…looking to go to Portugal in the fall or spring. Less crowded and I’m sure better prices. Stay well.
We agree short term rentals are hurting all destinations
I can understand the sentiment in Spain. Tourist are causing Spanish retirees to have a hard time finding places to live because apartments have been converted to AirBnBs. Tourists often don't respect that these cities are where people live and work. They should not be treated as party town like Miami Beach on spring break.
People converting apts to tourist rentals is just human greed which is an issue everywhere.
Many people offering Airbnb accommodation are seniors who have invested in small properties and live off the income. Not all are greedy conglomerates.
I was in Spain last August for 3 weeks visiting family that live in Madrid, Toledo and Seville - witnessed none of what you described. Barcelona is an outlier - they don't even get along with their own countrymen. I think much of the anti-tourist sentiment has been brought on by open borders with unfettered immigration. Natives are resentful now. A family member was allowed to study in Spain due to having dual citizenship and was interrogated by fellow students asking which family member entitled her to EU residence-- because it was her father, they accepted her but a grandfather would have brought scorn. It is a boiling pot and sadly the easy targets(tourists) are low hanging fruit as I see it.
What I have read is that the AirBnBs and the like are taking up the affordable housing in places like Barcelona and Madrid such that local people can no longer afford to live in the city centers. I doubt it has anything to do with immigration but I don't know everything. However, this is the first I've seen blaming it on immigration.
@@suzycreamcheese8888 We were in Barcelona in June a couple of years ago and it did seem to be a "tourist on the loose" party destination. Not that we had any issues but on my early morning walks I saw the city crews out at dawn every day hosing down the streets cleaning up god knows what from the previous night's revelry. But as you stated Barcelona seemed to be an outlier, at least compared to the other places we visited (Madrid, Toledo, Sevilla, Ronda, Grenada). That said, we avoided the beaches along the Mediterranean due to their reputation for hard partying vacationers.
We also make sure to stay in regular hotels, typically smaller hotels, when we visit. No Airbnbs for us as I find them to cost about the same, often offer less in the way of amenities, plus check-in procedures and service charges are wildly inconsistent. A regulated hotel with trained staff that knows what they are doing, maybe with a restaurant or small bar, is a much better way to accommodate travellers.
For myself I dislike crowds and heat (wouldn't catch me on a cruise ship) so already planned to visit Europe in the winter and very early spring. I do think that people need to realize and respect the need of small places to limit the amount of people who visit in one day, For example, Victoria BC had to place a limit on cruise ships for this reason. For travelers it may be a place of interest and beauty, but for other people this is home. The BC government is also beginning to regulate short-term rentals, and rightly so, when people who live and work here cannot find a decent place to rent at a reasonable price. I had planned to visit Spain and Portugal next year in off-season but now I am hesitating... so yes, this news affects me even if I can understand some of the issues that arise in the high season. TY for your videos, always informative!
Bought a house (in fact two as we moved after a couple of years) in Spain and over time came to realise that they want your money but not you. We planned to live and retire there but in the end left the country. I personally would look to holiday elsewhere as their wish should be fulfilled, they forget that the holiday areas were once the poorest regions before tourism.
So sorry to hear that your plans were ruined Frank 🍻🙂
Not so much ruined as revised, we could see that long term there would be problems, we are definitely enjoying our retirement and glad to have left in time.
I’m an American living in Ferrara, Italy. I lived in Florence for 20 years, but it’s no longer livable in the center. I’m glad I was lucky enough to travel when I was young. So now I do day trips, to the small cities around me. I’m retired, and I love your channel. You’re such a lovely couple, and always have interesting conversations.
Thank you for watching we appreciate your support 🇮🇹🍷🇺🇸🍻🇨🇦
This is such a multi faceted problem. I understand places that are tired of being overrun by tourists. But at the same time, many of these locales depend on tourism. I blame the mega cruise ships for a lot of the hatred being directed at tourists. Why inflict thousands of tourists onto a small country/city/island. Still, locals should not be allowed to treat people with such disrespect, if not criminal treatment. Maybe a few years of “no go” to these places, to let things settle down. I am so thankful that we had the opportunity to visit some of these places years ago.
I certainly agreed with the above comments. These over size cruise ships have to take in account that you can’t unload thousands of people in a small area that can’t accommodate them.
That is the problem, many times the locals do not depend on Tourism, they have their jobs in other sectors, but they see how their society is being destroyed by tourist speculation. For example, cities like: Amsterdam, Berlin, London, Paris, Florence, Venice, Barcelona, Palma de Mallorca, etc... ...do you think they were poor without Tourism? That thing about Tourism helping to the locals it is a lie.
Cruise ships are a plague.
Thanks for sharing yes it’s a huge problem Jo take care 🌺🙂
Off season and shoulder season travel is so much more enjoyable. You avoid the crowds, more economical, no heat waves and you can experience a more local experience.
What do you mean by shoulder season travel? Not familiar with that phrase.
@@ld4122 shoulder season is the period between off season and peak season. If summer season is peak, winter would be off season and shoulder season would be spring and fall.
@@SnapCrackleRetirement
Thanks. I guess I’ve been traveling during shoulder season. 😄
I'm a teacher in the UK, gone part time and will retire fully in a year's time. Looking forward to the flexibility and cheaper prices of not having to travel during the school holidays
This is a direct result of these TOO BIG CRUISE SHIPS and too many of them. Boycott these huge ships. There are many other ways of traveling that aren’t a floating city.
Nope, we won't boycott the big boats. Maybe they can adjust their destinations to go where people want them. Make it a choice and let the market decide.
@@positiveliving.big boats are a destination in themselves, they don’t need to go anywhere except to a cruise line owned resort island and leave the travel destinations for actual travellers.
It’s sad to think that some of us who haven’t gone to Europe yet may be discouraged by these protests, just because of the demographics of the situation. Personally, I am more likely to visit other parts of the U.S. than go out-of-country, but I would definitely like to have that option at some point!
I'm still visiting Europe as often as I can (am from Canada)......I do travel off season (ie, don't participate in that crush of over-tourism).......and stay in hotels (so as to not displace a local family). Allowing this 1 protest to dissuade you from visiting Europe is akin to me saying I will not visit the US due to the danger of gun violence (which, ironically, is why actually prefer to travel to Europe......the irony..)
Great video, Norm & Tina. I will only be going to places where I am treated best and will not go to places where I get water sprayed all over my body. Cheers
Good video Tina and Norm! We too plan on splitting our time in the Algarve this winter.. Considering a bit of time in Italy, the remainder in Portimao etc. I hope we’ll be welcomed in Italy.. Happy Trails! 🇨🇦
Italy is beautiful have a fun trip.
I agree with some of the other posts that are blaming the large cruise ships. They show up in port and discharge thousands and thousands of people into the city all at once. The cruisers often wander around jamming up the streets, back on board by evening, and spend very little money in the city they stopped in.
I also agree that Airbnb is a problem soaking up rental apartments. Airbnb was a good idea at first, when it was a homeowner renting out a spare bedroom for a little extra cash, but these days Airbnbs appear to be operating as lightly regulated (or unregulated) hotels in residential areas. It seems to me Airbnbs should be considered hotels and subject to the same rules and regulations as hotels. It feels like they took a good idea and ruined it. I know I wouldn't want to have my home sandwiched between Airbnbs.
It’s a hard one and complicated David , thanks for joining the conversation 🍷🙂🍻
We have a trip planned later in the year to Scotland. We always travel on bus tours, which is probably contributing the problem also. It would probably be better if we just started going on our own instead of a group tour. Thanks for giving us a heads up. We will stay clear of Spain and do our research before we go anywhere.
My sister and I rented a car and travelled on our own around the Scottish highlands and some of the islands. We ran into people in the cities, of course, but otherwise we were driving around in mid-April shoulder season. It was pleasant, the people extremely friendly, and definitely no sense of being overcrowded. Planning to go off the beaten path is worth it.
Thanks for the post! We are heading to Portugal (LIsbon, Fatima & Algarve region) and then to Seville, Spain. We usually travel in the spring and fall. My husband is from Canada and I'm from South America so we do stand out. Hoping for the best! 😉
Everything will be fine, have a great trip!
I visited Spain from Portugal just before the pandemic. Seville to be exact. It was a nightmare experience. I stayed for hours before retreating to the bus station. There was a bus to Lisbon and I felt a real sense of relief once the bust crossed the boarder. After arriving in Lisbon I was almost immediately assisted by an extremely pleasant young Portuguese lad. Since then, I have been back to Portugal three times. Spain none.
Will this impact my travel arrangements? Yes.
I was planning a Europe trip, but will not be doing so, at least not in the near future.
I find air travel awful these days, it’s expensive and customer service is terrible. I think my husband and I are going to spend our vacation dollars mainly in Canada for the next while. As they say, there’s no place like home! 🇨🇦🍁
We will go where they will have us. Not everything can be fixed
Hi Tina and Norm. I just retired from teaching last month and am looking forward to travelling in the shoulder seasons. We have a week in September to BC booked, going to an All Inclusive in late autumn, and a Panama Canal cruise in the spring. I heard that one cruise line is going to be launching an 8000 passenger ship in a few years. Thats crazy! I prefer the older (less than 3000) ships. I dont need race tracks or massive slides. The reception given to the cruise passengers in Barcelona makes me want to avoid that city, unfortunately. I think that the companies will continue to launch large ships because they will make more money.
Good presentation. We had not heard about this backlash on tourists.
Appreciate the heads up.
Ben, Vancouver ISLAND
Welcome to the world. Thanks for joining the rest of us.
Thank you. Guess I hadn’t thought of this problem. But it seems to be happening everywhere. Queenstown N Z is the same. Young people can’t even get a place there when they work. And have to get air bnb to stay in using up all wages.
Hello dear folks, just checked in with a friend who is currently touring through Spain and spending a week in Barcelona, he says the media has over hyped this, they are welcomed and find everyone very friendly. I am afraid this information is not correct.
Thanks for the info on this. Why am I not surprised that the media is embellishing.
We just got back after 5 weeks in Spain and we found that being a tourist there is pleasant and very rewarding. We did not encounter any controversy whatsoever.
We spent two weeks in Spain in May and yes indeedy, everywhere we went there were tons of people! While in Málaga we noticed more cruise ships docking and leaving than we had seen when last we were there 5 years ago. So Málaga was full of people every single day. Spain is extremely popular now and it seems there are more people every time we go there. We didn't experience anything negative in terms of "tourist go home" kind of things and overall the Spanish people are still very kind and generous.
Tourists should try to behave as a guests. Unfortunately we don’t all behave in that manner. It’s nice to be retired and able to travel off season. Protests using social media have no difficulty getting quick support from people who have (it seems) nothing better to do then protest. Don’t forget Newfoundland in September! It’s spectacular
Newfoundland and its wonderfully friendly people are spectacular all year round. Coming back soon
“Oh - beeehave, baby!” Austin Powers
I completely agree.
I was thinking of traveling to Newfoundland it does look lovely.
@@buffycat4641 if you go in May you get to see icebergs and Humpback Whales! Wonderful people amazing places
The problem with vacationing in Canada, and Ontario is that it is too expensive or not run properly. We took a VIA train from Toronto to Montreal, over $700 for 2 people. Then over $400 for 1 night in a hotel in Montreal. Trains, flights, within Europe are a fraction of the price. I saw an offer to fly from London to NIce in September for 17 euros. Also went to Gravenhurst, Ontario, in early July on a Sunday. It was a ghost town. Many stores closed on Sundays - during peak tourism time !?
It is true prices are high, you can book on “cheap Tuesday” economy is under $500 next week return. That said the only benefits are no transatlantic flights to get to Europe. Scary about Gravenhurst in summer! Thanks for sharing your thoughts.
Like you, we only travel at off-peak times and Summer at home in SW Ontario. The past few years, we have been exploring our truly beautiful country of Canada in our RV. Yukon trip this Fall. Grateful we got to see Europe, backpacking with Eurorail, back in the 70's. We are definitely not the norm and like our Winters here in Canada, as we are not sun worshippers or beach people. Never fancied being stuck on a boat with hundreds of people either. I understand why some communities might get fed up with being swarmed all Summer every year.
Love every single area in Canada.. you live in a spectacular friendly country.
@@buffycat4641 Yes - we are very lucky immigrants from Europe like Norm and Tina - I'm from the UK and my husband is from Finland and our love affair with this amazing country is profound. Endless natural beauty and warm, friendly peace-loving folks - what's not to like!?
This will absolutely impact the places I travel to. I used to go to London UK regularly - last time I went - it was no longer London - I won’t go back. Even close to home, the popular places are packed and not enjoyable.
Now I look for places close by, and when I find a great place, I keep it secret! At least for as long as possible.
Travel has lost its lustre for me! 🙄🤷🏻♂️
Yeah, I was in London in May and it was crazy busy. I can't imagine what it's like in peak tourism months. Fortunately the museums weren't too bad and that's really what I went for.
Hi Tina and Norm, big fan of your channel. Please take into consideration Spain has 48million people and received 85million visitors last year. It is complicated.
I agree intimidating tourists with water pistols is totally unacceptable and I am ashamed about this behaviour. Yes, there are so many other beautiful countries that will make you feel welcome so I understand people deciding not to come to Spain anymore. I wish people here were more civilised about expressing their discontent about the current situation. Greetings from Spain 🇪🇸
Nobody talks about the families who have had to leave Barcelona because they could not withstand the tourist pressure, the drunks, the shouting, the parties every day of the week within Neighborhood Communities. Tourists with behaviors aggressive and abusive, despising and ignoring the neighbors and residents of Barcelona. A large part of the population does not work in the tourism sector, Barcelona It is one of the most industrial areas in all of Spain. It is terrible to see your daily life totally destroyed by the huge tide of disrespectful tourists. Nobody talks about that.
@@susanaescriba977 Perhaps families are moving out of Barcelona because if we look under the surface, it is not a good city to live in (expensive, pick pockets, massive unskilled migration, street crime is rising, many businesses have left, city has experienced several periods of protests and unrest since 2017, increase in homeless people living in tents, litter-strewn streets, graffiti… so yeah you are right families are leaving because of drunk tourists
This whole situation is created by mass tourism. I was part of one of those families. And it was hell having to put up with so many tourists, parties, drunkenness, etc. every day.
There was a totally different life and society. Here you are talking like tourists about a country and a society that you have no idea what it was like before the theme park that has become
Thank you for watching and sharing we are sure it’s a complicated situation🍷 🇪🇸 🍻🇨🇦
This DEFINITELY will impact our travel arrangements. We’ve travelled quite extensively and I’m glad that we have because the overcrowding, seeing the impact of crushing tourism levels on the locals and the disdain towards tourists on the part of the locals has given us pause. We do travel in the shoulder seasons but may very well stay home this year and see some parts of Canada that we haven’t yet explored. Good food for thought - thanks Norm & Tina.
Great topic and quite a talking point amongst travellers from all over the world.
We became aware of the housing crisis in Barcelona ONLY AFTER we had visited in 2018 and felt terrible that we had booked air bnb accom for our 4 night stay and therefore contributed to the problem. Hotel prices were insane back then (hence our need for air bnb).
We hope that by recently joining “People Like Us Home Exchange” , we won’t be contributing to this issue but will instead be using homes that were never in the rental pool for locals but will be empty whilst these homeowners are travelling, and more than likely staying in our empty home while we are away at their place!! Or someone else’s empty home. Tina and Norm - would you like to visit Australia 🇦🇺??? Our home sounds like a similar style apartment and facilities as your place!!! Come on over ❤
We have visited Australia 🇦🇺 Tanya , we did a cruise around New Zealand then finished in Sydney. Wevwould love to come back and see more of Australia 🇦🇺 Cheers 🇦🇺🍷🙂🇨🇦
Well living in Edinburgh...you literally can't move for wheelie suitcases and garbage. Especially during the Fringe. I do welcome them, and understand the financial repercussions.. which is why I never venture into the down town area to do my usual shopping and just order online in summer. It just isn't worth the hassle and stomped on toes! We never drive north with all the tourism traffic ...trying to negotiate small twisty roads with substandard skills driving rented camper vans way too big for the roads! We generally go before all the schools are out. Skye especially is just awful..So we just try to do our small part in lessening the pressure on infrastructure not designed for the traffic- as you say travel off season.
Thanks Christine for making this point, we hadn’t thought about Edinburgh and tourism, but even off season Edinburgh always seems busy with tourists. We enjoy visiting Edinburgh as its Norms birthplace.
We completed our retirement process three years ago this August. We have doine some travelling but have by no means gone everywhere and done everything we would like to do! We are 65 and 71 and we believe that while arthritis has kicked in to some extent, we are still enthusiastic about visitng Europe and Latin America more. We would also like to visit Southeast Asia, which we have heard can be a tremendous option from the conomic travel point of view and holds plenty of interest to us historically speaking as well.However, living in Montreal, we clearly understand the burden being posed by Air Bnb and other such elements, which offer people like ourselves slow travel options that can help us stretch our retirement dollars. We see that visitors to Montreal really choose the Air Bnb option frequently, and that this is one cause of our housing shortage, which has become of crisis proportuion.
Therefore, there certainly is no simple solution. We will try to continue travelling light in every sense of the word, learning more and more from visiting other cultures, and enriching o ur retirement years as a result. That is our approach to the dilemma of Baby Boomer International Travel.
We are like you aging is starting to introduce aches and pains. We would also like to go to Asian countries like Thailand, Vietnam and Philippines. Good luck we your travels.
If you travel it is better to spend the night in the places you visit. The last time in we were in Venice it was wonderful after 4 or 5 when the cruise ships left. St Marks square was empty and you could dine in peace. Part of the problem with cruise ships in some places they drop off thousands in a small area. The money they make doesn't go to the whole area. If you get away from St Marks square there are a lot of lovely quiet places. Spread the wealth. But realize the impact and spend money on small mom and pop hotels. I never use Airbnb's. Living in Los Angeles where we have lots of tourists and people here have no places to rent it would be better to use a Hotel. We love tourists but don't need company's making money off of us when they don't even live here.
Agreed! Most destinations are best visited before 10am and after 5pm.....this was the exact case for me as well in Venice. Up and out by 7am for a few hours......and then again after 4PM...."day-trippers" contribute very little to local economies (especially Venice)..
Such important topic. I am glad you address it...
Glad you think so! Cheers 🍷🙂🍻
Enjoy your channel, thanks. I was in Barcelona preCovid on rented BMW bikes touring the beautiful countryside and on evenings and a day off exploring the city beach, parks etc on bicycle in May. We truly enjoyed it, busy but not supper crowded.
We own a small cottage on a lake in Muskoka and decided not be there in July and August due noise from a neighbour next door renting via Airbnb. We decided to rent weekly during the summer ourselves. An observation: since COVID was over rentals have declined and this summer significantly (2 weeks only and same for most others). We feel that this due to 2 factors, inflation hitting many people hard financially and significantly if you have the money, the desire to travel abroad. Who knows, this might return to normal after a few year??
I stumbled across you two and was very impressed with the information you spoke about pertaining to live and stop saving but spend your Money that you have saved for years👌👌👌
Awesome! Thank you!
Awesome! Thank you!welcome to our channel we are still trying hard to do the spending bit as we have been programmed to save 💰❤️🙂
Just saw you for the first time, of course I gave you thumbs up and subscribed because I’m a fellow Canadian and baby boomer traveler.
I do take cruises occasionally on mid-size ships, I’ll be doing one this October from New York to Barcelona, which will be stopping in Halifax, a place I enjoyed visiting in the past. But for the most part, the cruise is about getting me from point A to point B with hopefully a chance to see other places along the way.
For the most part I’m a solo ground traveler. And at 71, I still love staying in hostels or guest house type accommodation. I ride trains, buses and the metro in big cities. I usually travel in October through to January. I’ve never felt unwanted anywhere.
The party style of tourists that suddenly descent upon an area in huge numbers is overwhelming, even in a place like Banff, Canada.I’ve been there when as a local you can’t hardly walk down the street or pick up a couple of things at the grocery store after a full day of work. Too often tourists think they are the privilege ones but without the locals managing shops, restaurants, accommodation etc. no one would be enjoying the area.
If you can, travel off season, go to less know places (many have a lot to offer), be respectful and kind to all local residents because after all we are just an invited guest in their city or country.
I hope the new Mega cruise ships stay in the Caribbean sailing to mainly their own private islands where the infrastructure is set up to handle the throngs of thousands for a few hours each day. That’s not travel to me, they are no more than all inclusive resorts that happen to spend a day or two on the ocean.
The world is changing in so many ways, hopefully for the better in the long term but there will be growing pains along the way.
Thank you for subscribing and welcome to our channel we love travelling too 🍷🌺🇨🇦🙂
I agree. Over tourism causes a lot of issues. Jasper, one of the most popular tourist spots in Western Canada, is on fire, and no one knows the real extent of the damage. That has displlaacced a lot of locals and tourists and puts a strain on other tourist destinations
Love Jasper, hope they can get the fires under control.
It is so awful what has happened in Jasper , our hearts 💕 go out to everyone there , we stopped there on our train trip and can’t imagine the heartache ❤️🤗
I love all of your videos. This one brings up a point of curiosity I always have when I travel. The tourism sector in Spain accounts for 13% of their GDP. Well, after seeing these protests, I will take my small contribution elsewhere. I always try to get a sense if locals are annoyed or put out by us or happy to see us. Most countries I have visited welcome tourists and appreciate the income.
Yeah, in some areas it is getting crazy. Last time we went to London, which we love, it was getting crazy. We usually stay in the Southwark area, by Borough Market, and at least one day there, the market was just PACKED...
So I can see the locals getting really frustrated...
As for travel, we have been planning Portugal and Spain and yeah... This has us questioning that...
We changed our summer travel from a Mediterranean cruise to one of the British islands. The crowds and the heat were the big deciders. We found even the busiest ports (Edinburgh, and Dublin) were not too busy at all and this was late June. We live in Florida, so escaping the summer is a big motivation for us. Everyone in the UK, Ireland and Copenhagen, where we departed were very friendly and welcoming.
Sounds great glad you had a great time 🚢
Very interesting❗️ Thanks for this information 😜❗️
Good to see you both and it is a shame that this is the situation but I think going of season is the only answer
Regards. C Barker 😊
It is a shame Christopher and we mainly go off season too 🇬🇧🍷🇨🇦
My husband and I live close to the area where you live in Southern Ontario, l agree with our beautiful summer's l wouldn't want to be anywhere else right now. We had the loveliest weekend last week on the shore's of Lake Huron visiting Bayfield and Goodrich. So grateful to live a short drive's away from most of the Great Lakes 😊
We typically go to Maui Hawaii in the month of February but since the Lahaina fire last year we have waited to go. We heard from friends who live there full time that ,the island was not ready for tourism after their loss.Maui is going through the same issues as many places, investors buying up condos and houses for short-term rentals that leaves the residence with much more expensive options. The state government is trying to address this with no longer allowing short-term renting on these properties.
You can imagine that there are a lot of very upset people. The tourism board is not happy, it's such a tricky issue and problem to solve when so much of the economy comes from tourism.
Good subject 😊
Happy weekend!!!🌞🥂
Used to go to Goderich a lot, too many people there now too.
Thanks for your comment Shari we love Goderich too where are you thinking of going now in February 🌺🍷
@@ThisIsOurRetirement no, we thinking to give Maui another year. We been going to Naples FL and it's just as enjoyable 🥂🌞
You’re so right about Juneau. My husband and I went on a cruise with less than 500 people this past June, and we arrived early in the morning in Juneau and the waterfront was deserted. However, by the time we returned from our excursion there was a ship with 4500 people in port and it was wall-to-wall people in town, we returned to our ship. Also, after the cruise, we drove the Sea to Sky highway from Vancouver to Banff, which was amazing. But the crowds at Lake Louise and the Emerald Lake put a huge damper on the experience. I can handle crowds, but my husband can’t; off season may be the way to go!
The Sea to Sky highway runs from Vancouver to Pemberton.
I will probably try to travel off season to less popular places. I don’t like crowds, so it will be nice not to have them. Plenty of other places to see in the world.
Cruise ship inundation is a problem and needs to be better managed. Also, short term rentals need to be managed in such a way as not to impact locals. My city limits them to one per owner.
I’m happy to pay a visitor tax and hopefully it goes toward helping the locals.
I visited Barcelona before covid. Though it was crowded the locals were lovely. I would always ask: habla ingles? If they said no, I’d use my awful Spanish. We had a nice time and some of the best Italian food!
Hi Tina and Norm. If you don't need to go to all those "Hot Spots" that have been overrun with tourists, it might be wise to look at other locations that are opening up to tourists, off the beaten track, and not as expensive as you might think. One does not always have to go to the EU block for vacations. If you do your homework, there are plenty of beautiful places you can go that you won't see "Thousands" of tourists streaming off a ship in the early morning.
1. The Maldives and the Seychelles (Fonsi Abroad) reported not long ago that you can go to the Maldives and do it on a budget, since all new hotels are being built for tourists.
2. South East Asia/Japan
3. The Pacific Island Chain, by either flight or the Aranui 5 or the Paul Gaugin.
4. Farther North in the UK, Scotland and Ireland
5. The Faroe islands
6. Scandinavia by HX or Havila (North and South) of the coast.
7. Sweden/Norway/Denmark
8. Longyearbyen in the Summer (not much traffic up that far North in the Winter).
This is a list just off the top of my head where I know it is possible to visit as a tourist and avoid all this crap going on in the EU Block !!
Thanks so much for sharing your list and watching we will be looking at it 🍷🇨🇦🙂
Nice list!
Or just spend your money locally and save on pollution and waste perhaps?
True. But some will about post these great "hidden gems" on TH-cam or Facebook. And soon after that what was great about them will be ruined by too many people visiting them.
Love your content!
We appreciate that glad you enjoy it 🌺🙂🍷
I was shocked at the number of tourists in Lisbon at mid-January. And Sintra in late February. It must be unbearable for the locals during summer. And these locals have a right to feel resentful towards AirBnB. I resent what these short term rentals have done to my neighborhood in a small Canadian city.
Lisbon is busy all year round, it’s very popular.
It's so true and it only makes sense that these smaller towns and cities are getting fed up with thousands of tourists each year and as the big ships get bigger the situation is only going to get worse. Like you we love staying in Canada in the summer and as we don't like high heat we love places like The Algarve in the winter. I don't think we are the problem , these huge moving cities on the water are the problem. We just booked the Algarve for January and looking forward to it. Big thumbs up for this video.
Tina & Norm, Tampa, FL welcomes you! Come on down in winter and become an official snowbird! LOL
Floridians hate snow birds too
We would love to but find the price of accommodation off the charts , we came about 6 years ago for a month since then prices are too high Cheers 🇺🇸🍷🇨🇦🍻
Not all do !! but also they welcome the extra dollars spent there by Canadians Cheers 🇺🇸🍷🇨🇦
@@ThisIsOurRetirement It's because of our wonderful tourists that we don't have state income tax! 🙂🙂🙂
The negative local reactions to tourism particularly in Europe have definitely given us pause for future trips. We have sadly taken Spain off our short list. We also travel off season.
Same as us
What a timely video. We have been planning a Spain, Portugal 2 month visit since early this year. It’s about 1 month out from kick off (Canada, England, Paris, Portugal, Spain) and I’m seriously considering shifting the majority of our stay to England. I certainly appreciate the concerns of ‘tourist trap’ cities but I feel this is mainly due to the influx of large cruise ships. A more focused litigation relative to tourist constraint (don’t allow cruise ships over xx passengers) would perhaps support both local communities and protect their number one revenue stream. Having said this I know this solution does not help the rampant increase in rental/housing cost for these cities.
Good luck with your future travel plans I’m sure there are many countries who’d want you.
India is an amazing place to visit!
We are currently in Europe as we went on a cruise to Iceland, Scotland, and Norway. But we do normally travel off-season. We usually go on under 3000 passenger cruise ships (actually under 2000 is better for our style of travel). We enjoy smaller destinations as we have seen most of the larger cities. More of us retiring with more financial means has definitely affected the travel industry.
We like the similar size ships as you sounds a great cruise 🚢 enjoy it , we loved Iceland 🇮🇸 did you have their famous hotdog 🌭? 🙂
@@ThisIsOurRetirement yes, of course!
👍👍✌️I can see their point these small little towns
Very true, great to hear from you again! 👍😀😀🇨🇦
We went on a Mediterranean cruise in May with norwegian line. It was a good deal and every day a port which we liked. I always wanted to see those places however the crowds were horrendous. Our ship carried 4000 or more people. We spent a lot of our time navigating crowds and standing in mile long lines. All i remember about Rome was thousands of people all trying to walk along busy streets and narrow roads. The taxi drivers getting upset with the hoards of people crossing the streets. I couldn't even see the travi fountain with all the crowding around it. Not all places we went were as crowded but i got a feeling that the people living there felt overwhelmed. I was embarrassed to be honest. These huge cruise ships unloading all these people with eveyone descending all at once is scary.We flew home from Venice. We were put on a bus for 2 hours from trieste to the airport. When we finally arrived there were other buses from norwegian with a massive crowd that wasn't being processed very fast. So we barely made our flight on time. They held back the flight because there was so many people that had to board. Some people missed their flights and had to get an hotel in Venice. The cruise ship did not give us enough time to make our flight with all the people flooding the airport. To be honest i can understand the locals having a problem with this. I will never do it again on such a large scale. We did a Viking cruise and it was so much better.
Thought the same about Rome last September. We padded our cruise and arrived a day early and left a day later - in the future I'm padding by 2 or 3 days on each end. Also, NCL's older ships aren't so big. We sailed on the GEM and loved it. Amazing staff and we wanted to adopt our cabin steward. Ha ha ha
Not exactly a relaxing vacation Denise , a few years back we did an MSC cruise 🚢 and we did an excursion to Rome for the day it was wonderful we saw all the sights and had lunch with wine etc . Things seem to have changed big time don’t think we would do it now 🍷🙂🍻
We agree we have just booked a cruise 🚢 and are tagging 3 days before and after to enjoy both places Cheers 🍷🙂🍻
We did all of our international travel while I was still working. I saved up vacation time in order to do this. Now that I'm retired we stay closer to home.
We are doing a bit of both Paul , love to travel but also love exploring our back yard 🍷🙂🍻
Already have a cruise booked and paid for in September to Barcelona, Portugal and Morocco..2 nights in Barcelona before the cruise..Hopefully all will be fine..
Really enjoyed this video (all your videos). We’ve always wintered in southern US but this coming winter we want to try either Costa Del Sol or the Algarve. This was really helpful and we are leaning toward the Algarve now. Just trying to decide now which area…. Your video showing that whole coast is so helpful! We’d like to be in an area that still has a little charm (vs concrete condo bldgs like Myrtle Beach)… yet still busy enough to have lots to do. Enjoying your channel! Cheers from Atlantic Canada!
I live in NYC and there are too many tourists. I am a world traveler and have been to most places and now I travel to places no one will travel. It is a pleasure!
That’s a great plan 🇺🇸🍷🇨🇦
Good idea - don't tell anyone.
Another problem with NYC is the migrants, I loved going to the Roosevelt hotel but now it’s for migrants
We also travel off-season. October, winter month and April/May. We are also trying to choose less touristy places for our travel. Hope your summer is going well! Cheers!
Thanks we hope you are enjoying your summer too Cheers 🍷🙂🍻
Translation from a local source today "Spain threatens to set another visitor record. The number of foreign tourists increased by 13 per cent in the first half of 2024 compared to a year earlier. Meanwhile, dissatisfaction is growing among Spaniards about the negative effects of mass tourism.
In the first six months of this year, 42.5 million international visitors arrived in Spain. In the month of June alone, the Spanish statistics office INE recorded a 12 per cent increase.
Spain, the second most visited country in the world after France, expects 100 million holidaymakers this year. This far exceeds last year's 85 million. That was a record compared to the last year before the pandemic. 2019 was also a record year with 83.7 million visitors.
But some Spaniards in the most popular areas have had it with the hordes of holidaymakers. For instance, the influx of tourists is exacerbating the housing crisis that has been going on for years, partly due to a shortage of (social) housing. All through June, there have been demonstrations against mass tourism on the mainland and the crowded islands." / We ourselves spent five weeks in southern Spain last December and January and did not notice any of this. It is mainly about the high season, I think, and also mainly about the many drunken youths that greatly reduce the quality of life in certain places. I also read about a hotel manageress in Ibiza and lives in Mallorca who goes to work by plane every day because houses in Ibiza are not affordable. Extreme situations, you have to put yourself in the shoes of residents who gain nothing from such situations only lose. Those are the angry ones.
The solution isn't spraying individual tourists from water pistols or shouting go home at them, it's their elected officials that need to make policy that is sympathetic to local citizens and locals directly protest their government. The gig economy should not have free rein to do whatever it pleases just because it's new and unregulated
We have always travelled since our twenties, more frugally then and as our budgets improved so did our standards travelling. We retired in our fifties and went on bucket list trips all over the world, like four trips in a year (which I found too much so reduced!). We are now mid sixties and honestly have lost our desire for big trips with long flights. We downsized and moved to a retirement community on a golf course with many activities and social events and are loving being home and participating. We feel lucky to live here with fun stuff daily instead of only weeks on vacation. I’m so happy we did our travelling when we were younger and eager to see the world. We are now treating our family to one cruise per year and we all enjoy being together for a week.
For us, travel=desire+energy+money…I’ll let you know next time we get the urge 😝
I have not really traveled in years but that will hopefully change but I do plan to explore "off season" or at least off peak times to go.
I commend your willingness to travel off season. Between baby boomers and air miles, we are making life very difficult for our hosts in European cities. Let’s get creative about entertaining ourselves, and give the residents of these beautiful cities a break. Fewer cruise ships, fewer planes in the air, therefore higher prices will make a dent. Do we really need to travel more than once a year?
We are running out of time as we age and we’re not able to travel when we were working, are we to deny our opportunities now before we reach an age when we can’t. Many of these countries count on tourism for their economy.
Hello Tina and Norm, it’s always nice to see you in your video. I don’t think it’s the baby-boomer generation who are the cause of the mass tourism. But cruise ships docking in these destinations make it very stressful and packed, then the AirBnb inflating the local real estate market, and then there are sadly tourists who do not behave (getting drunk, disrespecting the local culture, etc.). Having said all this, I definitely think you should continue your travel - travel during the low season, go to destinations that are low-key, off the beaten track, or countries that aren’t yet flooded with mass tourism. I was going to visit the Andalusia next year, but after the recent protest, I’ve decided to go elsewhere and stay away from Spain. I’ve read too many people on social media that the locals were almost hostile, tired of tourists.
There’s a similar growing backlash against tourists here in Japan, which is extremely silly in my opinion. Tokyo (and Barcelona) spent billions on events like the Olympics, in large measure to attract tourists. Japan also spent millions on other tourism promotion programs. Now all of a sudden they’re upset when too many tourists come? You reap what you sow. As for Barcelona, stats show more than 155-thousand people work in the tourism sector. So now, they’re biting the hands that feed them? I’ve been to Barca once and did not enjoy it. I much prefer Portugal: better food, beaches, more affordable and nicer people. Avoid Barcelona.
We agree with you!
Traveling off season is the way to go if you can! We were in Madeira this past spring for a week, which was lovely but we were shouted at by locals saying go home when we were walking down the street and it was very uncomfortable. We try and stay in locally owned hotels as well as eating local.
That was unfortunate and unnecessary
I spent 6 weeks in Europe in May and June and took sold out transatlantic cruises both ways. I experienced sold out flights, lost luggage, mobbed sidewalks in Spain and Portugal and quite a bit of graffiti in Spain of “tourists go home!”
It wasn’t a pleasant experience and I have no desire to return.
I live in southern US.
The prices have also skyrocketed all over the world.
I checked out southern Florida in January and February and the mobs and traffic jams were there also.
I have no further travel plans for the first time in my life which is sad. I’ve been to 43 countries.
Excellent decision that more tourists like you should make.
@@susanaescriba977 "Should' we...://
@@liliindia Es lo que hay.
So sorry you had a bad trip , we love transatlantic cruises 🚢 they are normally great deals 🍷🙂
@@susanaescriba977 Do you ever travel?
hi I too live in Canada, We have vacationed ( Winter) in Algarve last year we went 4 weeks through Europe loved it, this year we had already booked just going to Algarve for 6 weeks also winter time, but worried now about the protests. Vilimoura, lagos and Albufaria are the 3 areas were going to. Im keeping an eye on the area, to protect ourselves we also got cancellation insurance. i was told that some families in spain were kicked out of their homes so they could be turned into airbnb so some are being homeless cause of over tourisium , and prices are too expensive now for the locals, I hope that there is a solution soon ,....PS love watching you both.
I know- I saw that too- in Barcelona- and, it’s absolutely horrible what the local people did to the tourists. They can’t even imagine how they would have felt if that happened to us while we were on vacation- especially abroad. We have crossed Barcelona off of our list and we really wanted to go there soon. Those people really should be ashamed of themselves. I understand their dilemma about housing - but, that is a local policy (to change) and not the tourists’ fault.
A lot of the housing crunch it because of tourists. Spanish seniors only have so much money. And landlords want to make money so they put their property on AirBnB and make in a few days what a senior can pay for a month. Fewer tourist means fewer AirBnBs, which frees housing for local seniors.
Good video. My wife and I have been trying to travel within Canada to see our country but each time we plan a trip it's cancelled due to forest fires, hurricanes or other disaster. We were supposed to go to Can more and Jasper this week. Another Fail!
😢so sad for the locals who lost homes and their businesses 😢 stay safe
Post COVID, all my travels have been Canada and the US. And what I am planning for next year is also Canada and the US. These days, I'm reluctant to go places that are overrun with tourists.
Hi Tina & Norm,
Great video... great discussion. I think the giant cruise ships are a massive problem. Tourism 'can' be good for 'some' economies, in some places... but there just too many people getting off them at one time...
I was 11 (1974) when we went to Alaska (WAY before it was popular). Juneau, Sitka and Ketchikan were so beautiful then... Mendenhall Glacier was a giant then.
I think we 'tourists' must be more respectful in the countries we visit (or move to) and we must be more respectful to the culture and locals. Practice Gratitude instead of Ignorance.
Have a beautiful weekend Tine and Norm xo
Hi Jen, Tourism is getting difficult, we all remember travel from our childhood, maybe we need to become more creative.
Thank you for the information. I love watching your videos!
It’s a bit sad for anyone struggling to pay their rent since prices have gone up so much around the globe. I’m not sure it’s caused by the tourist as much as the corporations that have bought up a lot of inventory to appease their stock holders.
Glad you enjoy them Linda ☕️🙂
Sadly it looks like Cunard may have grown their newest ship ( as others) Queen Anne now 3k! Whereas QM2 is 2k. Be interesting how we are seen by locals when I go on the Anne soon.
Great video and I agree with all us baby boomers retiring that it is increasing the number of people wanting to travel. It's an interesting conundrum
Thanks we agree lots of baby boomers want to travel seems to be causing a problem ✈️🍷🚢🍻
Part of their focus is wrong. Greedy business owners are ramping up prices and lowering quality to profit from tourists, this impacts the locals with high prices and poor quality which they rightly object to. Tourism is the main income for a lot of places and without it, their economy will suffer. This is one of several aspects of tourism which needs better control.
I will take cruises to the Caribbean islands, where they thrive on the tourism, and keep my other travel local. There is so much to see in the U.S., that is where my bucket list starts. The world is a little crazy at the moment, and the cost of flights are RIDICULOUS, so that is a big deciding factor as well.
I think I would be put off visiting somewhere if they’ve had a lot of ‘attacks’ on tourists. Maybe not an entire country, but it may put me off certain cities or islands. It’s a really tricky one to answer. I am conscious when I complain about over tourism, I’m part of that problem. I also have concerns about what my environmental impact is in travelling. I’m totally onboard with local people of whatever nation having issues with over tourism, yobbish behaviour and foreigners buying property; thereby pushing prices up and reducing availability. However, if tourism is a big part of their economy, they need to find a balance of how hard they push back against tourists. Like everything in life, it’s finding the right compromise and balance. I think it’s pretty much a global problem. Even local tourist spots here in the UK have become overrun, particularly in summer during the school holidays, so much so that there are certain places here I’ve given up travelling to altogether in summer. It’s just too much hassle with traffic jams getting there and back, parking and then too many people when you do finally get there. So even staying relatively local can be problematic!
I’m glad I did all the international travel I wanted to before I retired. Now, if I want a change of scene, a trip to Costco is all I need.
Funny you mention that we went to Costco today had a lovely visit 🙂
Agreed that this is a problem and will get worse as more of us travel. Also agree that off season is super important for your pocketbook, less crowds and being in destinations when they NEED the tourism. We will still travel, but we think the key is NOT to go to the same 30 destinations that the rest of the world travels to. Thanks for discussing this topic!
5 to 6k on a cruise ship is child's play. Come to the "Jersey Shore" in the summer. Some places with 10 to 15 thousand pop go up to 200k and even higher, and these places don't have much land. Highways can have traffic backed up for miles. I believe Philadelphia & New York are emptly because they"re all down here! Although I understand the tremendous boost it gives the economy. As long as they "behave," you have to take the good with the bad. Another good video guys!
I recommend visiting Salamanca Spain. We spent 3 nights there at the Salamanca Luxury Hotel in a room that overlooked the Plaza. It was a beautiful view! Our son attends the University there.
For the first time, I decided to go to Spain this year. I empathize with their reasons. I get it. But attacking folks with water guns isn't cool at all. However, I am considering booking a flight out of Barcelona when I land in a couple of months, onto another country. I was going to attend of all things a move abroad meet-up. It wasn't about me moving to Spain. It was where my move abroad coach was having the meeting. My move abroad is to a central European country, actually. My feelings aren't hurt as I was actually gonna be in the region to attend a conference in Italy. But I do not want to upset people with my touristy presence. Their discontent is duly noted. Great topic! 😊
Glad you enjoyed it Cheers 🍷🌺🍻
I am glad I cruised a lot before Covid. I mostly had to pay double or 1.5 times the rate. But now the cruises are sky high in fares. People are loaded financially, and they will pay. Also, most cruise lines have the policy " Kids sail free ". So parents pack the cruises with kids. Why not ???
That is the future market for future cruisers. I do want to try Virgin, because the ship is adult only. Otherwise, I don't cruise anymore. PLUS, so many people on the ships cause trouble and incidents.
Even Don, who is in Ottawa, and is a travel agent says cruises are so high now, why cruise ?? Why not just fly to Europe and see a few countries at a price cheaper than cruising. Also, a recent video was on the cruises being packed, just packed with kids, running all over the ship and spoiling the cruise. AND he has done a few videos too how ports don't want 15,000 cruisers flooding the local ports, just as you say.
When places are too busy it’s no fun for the tourist either. We were in Barcelona in May after a cruise and it was already crazy busy.
Your little trailer sounds a wonderful summer visit