Another take on "responsible tourism/travel", from Bright magazine :
https://brightthemag.com/the-next-trend-in-travel-is-dont-226d4aba17f6
https://brightthemag.com/the-next-trend-in-travel-is-dont-226d4aba17f6
I hate to read this about Rome! We haven’t been since 2004 and I’ve been thinking about a return trip. Maybe in the winter.
Pauline, I would like to think these groups would help the economy, but they are rushed around, and never have time to shop, or even enjoy a nice lunch.I hate to read this about Rome! We haven’t been since 2004 and I’ve been thinking about a return trip. Maybe in the winter.
I did not realise that Tuscany was being hit with crowds like this. This is not good for anyone - locals, people running tourist businesses, travelers.
It's a conundrum.
In 2007, my husband and I rented a house on an agritourismo outside Florence. It was our sixth consecutive year of going to Italy. We found it all enjoyable until we drove to Siena. Walking into Siena, there were so many Americans going in at the same time, that there was a throng as wide and long as the street. Frustrated by the crowd, we sat a cafe and drank wine while my son, on leave from UCL in London, toured a few sites. It was in that moment that we decided to make France our yearly destination. That said, a mutual ST friend loved her stay in Siena, so perhaps we just hit Siena at the wrong time?
The Casa Batllo in Barcelona was absolutely the worst experience we've ever had. Literally, wall-to-wall people who could scarcely move.
... but Siena never excited us... I found Siena a little cold/distant, and wondered whether the seemingly dull / soulless experience was down to it being the city of bankers. Probably a harsh assessment, but over a period of a week, it had a fair chance to impress.
Absolutely, one of the loveliest aspects of very slow travel is getting to know places over a longer period. There are some places where I feel I belong because I've spent enough time there to get under the surface. We spend a couple of (off season) months in Spain every year, and for the last two we've been in the area around Almuñecar on the Costa Tropical. It may not look particularly special, but now we catch up with people we know when we go there, have favourite neighbourhood hangouts etc.I think this is a classic example of "your mileage may vary" or the way different people perceive different places.
Siena is quite possibly my favourite city on the planet, and what I love about it is the fanaticism of the people. Campinilismo, and the fierce rivalries between the various contrade (the 17 regions making up the ancient city), the passion of being "Senese", the refusal to accept that the Republic lost the war against Florence.
I'm biased - I spent a couple of months there trying to learn the language, and have been back on several occasions.
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