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A brief 700-year history of overtourism
Tourist hordes go way back. Pilgrims in Rome likely inspired Dante when he sketched out his eighth circle of hell in the 14th century.
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Tourists visiting the Trevi Fountain in Rome on June 26. We tourists should be more conscious of why we are travelling, says the writer.
PHOTO: AFP
Howard Chua-Eoan
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In Rome, all roads seem to lead to the Trevi Fountain. On my last visit, every other time I asked Google Maps to figure out a route to sites in the historic centre of the city, the app coursed me through the tourist magnet commissioned by Pope Clement XII in the 18th century.
If I’d never seen the Trevi before, I’d be grateful. But three round trips on one day past the baroque aquatic fantasy made me rococo loco. The standing room in front of the fountain was an intake pond for tourists streaming in from all over. I was drowning in the tussle and drenched in summery sweat – not all my own. Ick and eek. And this was just the start of Rome’s high season.
