The Right to Travel, The Right to Live: Tourism’s Responsibility to Locals

When someone gets the opportunity to travel, they’re agreeing to a life-changing experience, where cultural immersion, language barriers, and the ability to meet diverse people create an opportunity for a broader perspective. Travel changes us, and most would agree that change is for the better, but are the places we visit experiencing positive change as well? 

In some cases, the answer is no. A few of the world’s most beloved destinations are suffering from their own popularity, in what is called overtourism, the phenomenon of when too many visitors congregate into a specific destination. Overtourism results in uncomfortable crowding, but can also lead to environmental problems, housing inequality, price surges, and loss of cultural identity. One such example is Venice, Italy. 

As travelers exploring Venice, we get a pretty clear idea of what overtourism looks like on a typical day. Mid-morning at Saint Mark’s Square. Add in some warm weather and blue skies, and you have a recipe for shoulder-to-shoulder crowds that takes ages to maneuver through. Naturally, this is a nuisance for visitors, as we might be hustling through the crowd to keep in line with a tour guide on foot, or might be running to a lunch reservation. We might get exhausted from having to rub elbows and backs with strangers and ultimately end the day by collapsing with relief into our fluffy Airbnb beds. 

The experience of a local is another story. 

The city receives over 30 million annual visitors, contrasting the mere 50,000 residents. 6 out of 10 homes are designated as “tourist only rentals,” leaving about 40% of places to live available to locals. For some who have lived their entire lives in Venice, the city is rapidly changing. Beloved shops replaced by globally recognizable chains; shops selling mass-produced souvenirs take over the boutiques. If the number of people living in Venice continues to decline, it’s estimated that there will no longer be any true local residents of the city come 2030. 

However, when you ask a local Venetian what the true root of the problem is, they often do not say its overtourism, but the lack of local regulations and available education. There is truly no other place like Venice. Paul Rosenberg, a resident of Venice and owner of Campaign for a Living Venice, once told me that when he walks down the street, he sees at least one person experiencing their dream in real life. 

Venetians know the magic of their city and are happy to share it with others. But it needs to be done so responsibly, otherwise Venice as we know it may cease to exist. 

This all ties back to the right to travel, and perhaps even the need to travel, but also, the right locals have to their city. 

https://youtu.be/0WQYSdm-5ps?si=Ak9LlguOb0rDSl6s

When I began the research for my TEDx talk, What it means to be a good traveler, it was important to hear from travel professionals, but it was essential to learn from the locals who actually have to deal with the negative impacts of tourism every day, night, and even during the slow season. 

I began seeking out locals, not only from Venice, but in Barcelona, Paris, Bangkok, Lake Tahoe, and a few other notable world destinations suffering from their own success. So many of the people I spoke to share a similar sentiment. They didn’t blame tourists for wanting to come to their city or country but wanted better systems to ensure that the place remained habitable. 

As I mentioned with Venice, it comes down to a lack of education and regulations. The regulations are, unfortunately, out of our hands for the most part. The average traveler (me included) likely cannot lobby with a law maker for better tourism guardrails on the opposite hemisphere. But here is the thing we can do—we can learn about how that specific destination is being impacted by tourism and do our best to mitigate our contribution. 

Because overtourism affects different places in different ways, the answer to this question will vary, but a quick internet search should help give you an idea of how that destination is experiencing tourism. 

For example, the overwhelming majority of the coastline in The Bahamas has been bought up by resorts, which means that a small percentage of beach access is actually available to people who live there. As it happens, many of these resorts are all-inclusive, which means that the majority of visitors do not carry cash. Instead, you could carry a waterproof bag with small bills and be sure you tip every person waiting on you. If you feel comfortable doing so, you may skip the resort altogether and try a locally-owned bed and breakfast, further ensuring your tourist dollars help the local economy. 

Lastly, many of the locals felt that in the fight for ethical and regulated tourism, they were engaged in a losing battle. There is big money in the tourism industry and from the perspective of lawmakers, it doesn’t make economic sense to stifle tourism. In a lot of ways, we as travelers have quite a lot of power when we visit a destination—some would say it’s an imbalance of power. 

I think we have a great opportunity to change the course of tourism, and it starts with the choices we make abroad. Our power as travelers is to leave the places we visit a little better than how we found them. Whether that means uplifting residents, flushing the local economy with tourist dollars, supporting small businesses, or a combination of all three. Overtourism may be hurting some places, but we have the power and the responsibility to shift this. 

Eryn Gordon is a published travel writer and the founder of Earth To Editorial, a community for authentic and sustainable travel. She's also a journalist and TEDx speaker. Every month, she helps 10,000 travelers unlock a sense of adventure, learn how to explore ethically, and become stewards of their favorite destinations.

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"Our power as travelers is to leave the places we visit a little better than how we found them."   - Eryn Gordon