Too much of something becomes poison. Too many tourists to picturesque Cinque Terre has made authorities take a drastic decision on access to one of Italy’s most visited and most stunning touristic destination. The government is planning to install a ticketing system to curb the excessive inflow. Once a certain limit is reached, then the roads to the ‘five lands’ will block access. While most economies push towards welcoming tourists for economic benefit, here is a nation that is making efforts to protect its lands instead. Not something you would hear of these days, too rare and respectable.
Cinque Terre which is a UNESCO World Heritage Site welcomed 2.5 million visitors last year. The year before, 470,000 cruise ship passengers visited the village. This kind of tourist influx has only spelt trouble for residents. Cinque Terre has winding trails which run down to the sea. Some are so narrow that people have to walk in a single file. This proved to be disrupting the normal peace and life of its residents. The Cinque Terre National Park president understands that this move will not go down too well with people, but he stands firm with the decision as it is a ‘matter of survival’. Much respect. The world needs more people like them.
[ Via : Travelandleisure ]
