Spanish
Limiting so-called "freetours", imposing tourist taxes or raising fines for urinating in the street, walking around in just a swimsuit or exceeding decibel levels with music, are some of the measures that cities are adopting to confront mass tourism and limit its negative impact on neighborhoods.
In Spain, cities like Toledo (center), a World Heritage Site, are advancing in the regulation of tourism with initiatives such as reducing tour groups to 30 people in its historic center or prohibiting the use of megaphones by guides, under threat of fines of up to 700 euros.
Segovia, another of the most visited cities in Spain, tries to protect its "treasure", the Roman Aqueduct, with fines between 750 and 3,000 euros for anyone who damages the monument, which dates back to the 2nd century.
The Balearic Islands, one of Spain's main tourist destinations, is considering raising the tourist tax (ecotax) from 2 to 6 euros per night and tourist for cruises and high season and creating an additional tax for vacation vehicles with rates that can range from 30 to 85 euros.
Ibiza, the most visited island of the Balearic archipelago (Mediterranean), is going through a severe housing crisis to the point that camper vans have become an alternative for those who cannot afford rent.
But the multiplication of vehicles is also a problem and the authorities announce fines of up to 40,000 euros for those who access without prior authorization and force caravans to spend the night in campsites.
From Italy to Nepal
The problem grows. From Italy to Nepal, cities are preparing to curb tourist overcrowding.
The island of Capri (southern Italy) has banned its shops and restaurants from accosting tourists on the street with "unsolicited" offers because the situation "aggravated by the increasing tourist flows in high season, determines a serious detriment to urban decorum and it is necessary to intervene urgently", alleges its mayor, Paolo Falco.
Without leaving Italy, the tourist tax for spending the night in Venice is 5 euros per person, but eating or drinking while sitting on the ground - in areas near the canals and monuments - can cost 200 euros.
Albufeira, in southern Portugal, has taken a stand against "excessive" behavior in public spaces and has established a code of conduct that includes fines of up to 4,000 euros for those who go nude, urinate, or drink alcohol in the street, identified mostly as foreign visitors.
Nepal is also considering limiting permits to climb Everest to climbers who have previously summited a mountain of more than 7,000 meters, in an attempt to limit the environmental deterioration of the area.
Be careful in beach areas
If these restrictions are not taken seriously, beach vacations can end up turning into a nightmare.
Visitors to Malaga (southern Spain) risk paying up to 700 euros if they do not respect minimum rules of coexistence, from dressing appropriately to responsibly handling electric scooters. In addition, urinating in the sea or on the beach can cost up to 1,500 euros in Marbella, the most touristic city on the Costa del Sol.
In some areas of southern Spain, the use of loudspeakers on beaches is prohibited, so bathers must listen to the summer song with headphones if they do not want to pay fines of up to 700 euros.
In the Galician coast of Nigrán (Pontevedra, northwest) the sanctions reach 200,000 euros for those who violate the prohibition of making holes in the sand.
In the Canary and Balearic Islands, tourists should know that keeping a shell in their pocket to take home can cost them up to 3,000 euros, a practice also sanctioned on some beaches in the Mexican Caribbean.
Also, smoking in public can be very expensive in Spain; lighting a cigarette on the sand on Catalan beaches (northeast) can result in a fine of up to 600 euros.
But neither the restrictions nor the fines seem to discourage visitors. In 2025, historic levels of tourism are expected. More than 300 million travelers have crossed borders worldwide in the first half of the year.
