The list of places fed up with overtourism seems to grow longer every day.
Even in far-flung Juneau, the state capital of Alaska, a vote will soon be held on whether to introduce “shipless Saturdays” to reduce the impact on cruise passengers.
Yet the vast majority of destinations need more tourists, not fewer.
Inbound tourism is the closest a country, resort, state or city can get to free money. Visitors bring highly desirable social and economic benefits.
They stimulate entrepreneurship and create jobs. They also ensure that the facilities in the area are at a level that the local population alone would not be able to provide.
The ‘soft’ benefits include building community pride and improving understanding between people.
Most places would love to have the “problem” of overtourism. They face the same challenges. How:
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Attract more tourists, preferably the high-spending type
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Attracting people outside peak hours, extending the season
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Convince visitors to stay longer
Some try harder than others, and I’ve picked locations around the world that are likely to be particularly welcoming.
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Albania
“Our slogan is ‘Albania – everything you need is here’,” says Tourism Minister Mirela Kumbaro.
Her goal is to make her country “the champion of tourism in the region by 2030”, aiming to reach an annual visitor number five times higher than its 2.8 million inhabitants.
Albania has doubled the capacity of Tirana airport and is building a second airport in the south of the country specifically for tourists.
Mrs. Kumbaro promises: “You can make many friends. Friendship is part of our tourist offer. Hospitality is the most important characteristic of Albania.”
I’ve been visiting this wild and beautiful Adriatic nation since the 1980s – when it was the most hardline communist nation in Europe (and a partner of China rather than the Soviet Union). Since the fall of Enver Hoxha’s dictatorship, it’s become much easier to reach and even more intriguing.
This summer Albania is more accessible and cheaper than ever from the UK. Tirana, the capital, is a nice place to spend a few days, with some interesting museums dedicated to the dark days of state communism.
Inland, Albania shares with North Macedonia the beautiful Lake Ohrid – also known as “the cheap Lake Como”. Albania is certainly affordable.
On the coast, Durres is the main resort – and the one recommended for its proximity to Tirana. It has an attractive beach and some great places to eat and drink.
Cuba
In the early 1990s, Cuba’s ideological soul mate and financial pillar, the USSR, collapsed. Fidel Castro took the remarkable step of declaring in 1994, “Only tourism can save Cuba.” With less bureaucracy and cheap Caribbean sunshine on the horizon, international visitors flocked.
Tens of thousands of British package holidaymakers arrived each year. But our love affair with the Caribbean’s largest and most attractive island faded away, with the last Tui charter flight from Manchester to the main resort, Varadero, leaving in April.
This month, Cuba’s current president, Miguel Díaz-Canel, reiterated the desire of tourists – who, he said, would appreciate “the comfort of our hotels, the beauty of our beaches and landscapes, and the security that visitors and citizens enjoy, among other attractions.”
The main attraction is Havana’s faded glory, its people, their music and a range of architecture ranging from Spanish colonial to early 20th century ostentation.
For a taste of more of Cuba, at a more leisurely pace, head east to the town of Matanzas – on an attractive bay about 20 miles west of Varadero. It is ambitiously known as the “Athens of Cuba” and has some attractive buildings on its main square.
Varadero, Cuba’s most popular holiday resort, is located on a beautiful 19-kilometre peninsula with a gorgeous stretch of beach that looks straight out of a postcard.
Florida
Unlike the communist island just 90 miles from its shores, the Sunshine State isn’t exactly suffering from an undertourism crisis. Overall, Florida attracted fractionally more international visitors in 2023 than it did in pre-pandemic 2019, but the U.K.’s numbers were down 14 percent.
“We continue to invest in the U.K. market, which is our second largest market behind Canada,” Florida’s vice president of marketing, Brett Laiken, said in May, promising an increase in “consumer activity to create that demand.”
American domestic tourists traditionally stay away in July and August, with the vacuum being partly filled by the 21st century equivalent of Kipling’s “mad dogs and Englishmen.”
To avoid too many of their fellow countrymen, British visitors may want to look beyond Orlando’s theme parks and Miami Beach hotels. Tampa and St Petersburg make a great pairing of two cities, while the Florida Panhandle – the thin strip of territory in the northwest – feels like a whole other world.
Morocco
The North African kingdom aims to double the number of international tourists annually to 26 million by 2030, the year in which it will co-host the FIFA World Cup with Portugal and Spain.
As part of this programme, the government has opened its airspace – with fierce competition from the UK between easyJet, Jet2 and Ryanair. Manchester-Tangier on Ryanair is one of the latest new routes. “Morocco is closer than the Canary Islands,” says Eddie Wilson, CEO of Ryanair DAC. “There’s everything from beaches to a sense of mystery.”
Marrakech is the main tourist attraction. The vast open square, Djemaa el Fna, is the heart of the city, populated by makeshift cafés serving food cooked over red-hot charcoal. The ancient medina, with its maze of alleys and crowds of vendors, is the main attraction. I recommend the beautiful Jardin Majorelle: founded by Yves Saint-Laurent and home to the Museum of Islamic Art. But don’t forget Casablanca, the bustling commercial centre; the elegant capital, Rabat; and Fez, which has the most atmospheric medina in the country – rightly a UNESCO World Heritage site.
Outside the cities, the Atlantic coast has notable resorts in Agadir and Essaouira – the latter more relaxed and colourful. Inland, the Atlas Mountains are great for walking, while the desert is also accessible.
Northern Ireland
“For a long time, Northern Ireland has not been seen as an attractive tourist destination because of our recent, difficult past,” the Northern Ireland Department for the Economy said.
There is now a plan for the next 10 years: “To increase the value of tourism to the Northern Ireland economy by 50-75 per cent compared to 2019.”
Part of that ambition: keeping costs down for visitors by subsidising travel. Visitors from Britain flying into City of Derry Airport in the north-west on new easyJet services from Edinburgh and Liverpool can use a small, friendly airport supported by public money at a rate of £6,000 a day.
Derry/Londonderry is Northern Ireland’s most fascinating destination: a walled city on a hill at its heart, with spectacular scenery (and seascapes) beyond – and plenty of stories to be told, ideally by a local guide.
The capital of Northern Ireland is home to the hugely successful Titanic Belfast attraction, the encyclopedic Ulster Museum and the vivid reflection of recent events in the “Peace Wall”. Of the many possible side trips, I particularly recommend the train to the beautiful port of Bangor.
Saudi Arabia
“We win the hearts and minds of people by opening our doors to the world through a tourism industry where life-changing stories happen every day” – that is the goal of the Saudi Ministry of Tourism.
Suppose countries were judged on the scale of their presence at international travel industry events such as the World Travel Market in London and ITB Berlin. The Kingdom of Saudi Arabia would have gone from last place two decades ago (when the attendance, I recall, consisted of one man and a desk) to first place, with a vast, gleaming, crowded pavilion with a footprint that seems bigger than Rutland.
The man with a plan is Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman. The Saudi ruler wants to attract 150 million tourists by 2030. Complicated visa rules have been abolished and women under 40 no longer have to travel with a husband or brother.
A new airline, Riyadh Air, has been launched to help fly in visitors. Major attractions include the desert oasis of Al Ula, the coastal city of Jeddah, and the capital, including its national museum and the “redesigned” Diriyah Gate area, another UNESCO World Heritage site. On the horizon: Red Sea resorts similar to those in Egypt, and a new Saudi Arabian cruise line, Aroya.
Still, many people are put off by Saudi Arabia’s record on human rights and its treatment of women and gays. “Same-sex relationships are illegal,” the State Department warns. Its counterpart, the U.S. State Department, says: “Review travel to Saudi Arabia due to the threat of missile and drone attacks. Exercise extra caution in Saudi Arabia due to terrorism, the risk of arrest based on social media activity, and the importation of prohibited items.”
Some international travelers also enjoy a drink while on vacation. Visit Saudi warns: “The sale, purchase and consumption of alcohol and drugs is illegal in Saudi Arabia.”
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