Holiday island to seal itself off from tourists: ‘We must stop rude behaviour’
The island of Capri, located off the coast of Naples, wants to protect itself from tourists by building a barrier that will prevent boats and ships from approaching.
Holiday destinations are competing with each other in coming up with more effective ways to combat overtourism. Venice, which has introduced a fee for entering the city, and Barcelona, which has banned ships from mooring in its port, is joined by Capri. The Italian island, famous for its celebrity visitors, has decided to build a barrier to separate the mainland from curious tourists on boats and ships.
Capri wants to protect the island
Summer is a particularly difficult time for the inhabitants of Capri. When the number of tourists exceeds the number of permanent residents, life on the island becomes unbearable. The numerous ships and private yachts that come here from nearby Naples also suffer. The mayor of the island’s town of Anacapri has decided to introduce restrictions that will redirect mass tourism to other places in the region. According to The Telegraph, in order to protect the natural attractions of Capri, such as the famous Blue Grotto, Alessandro Scoppa proposes building a special barrier consisting of 40 buoys 100 meters from the shore.
The barrier will scare away tourists
The artificial barrier, which would be 6 kilometres long along the western coast of the island, would effectively deter visitors. “Famous tourists such as Beyonce, Leonardo diCaprio and Kendall Jenner will be forced to drop anchor outside the Blue Island, and tour operators taking one-day tourists to Capri will find the road blocked,” we read. Boats and motorboats negatively impact the safety of residents, sailing far too fast. “There is too much traffic. We must stop the rude behaviour and defend the sea,” says the mayor. Boat operators and travel agency owners disagree with his opinion, seeing the island’s activities as a violation of the right to conduct business. If Scopp’s proposal is accepted, it will not come into force until 2025.
