When individual routes become well-trodden paths

From the ruined city of Machu Picchu in Peru to the Schrecksee in the Allgäu - travel influencers on Instagram or TikTok have a huge influence on their audience's holiday plans. If they declare a destination to be "hot" in "Lonely Planet" style and post dreamlike pictures, it can happen that the planet there is very quickly anything but lonely. Is it still responsible to share your favourite spots and possibly cause overtourism? How do you handle this carefully?

All about the Lonely Planet phenomenon:

• Sharing is caring
• The goal is a new form of tourism
• Instagrammers are difficult to inform
• With hands and feet against overtourism
• Intelligent visitor management is required
• Tips for responsible travelers
• Respect the places you visit!

Sharing is caring

Anyone who discovers something beautiful, such as a beautiful lake in the South Tyrolean Alps or the best mandarin cheesecake in the world in Lisbon, is happy to share it with other people. Because: "Sharing is caring". In the past, such tips were passed on to family and friends. Today, the target group is thousands or even more Insta followers. "Many people now travel solely or mainly to take the perfect picture for Instagram," says tourism researcher Markus Pillmayer from Munich University of Applied Sciences.

The desire to share your discoveries is part of human nature. And after all, that's exactly what the internet is made for: to communicate, to exchange ideas, to give each other tips.

The goal is a new form of tourism

Today, however, completely overcrowded hotspots such as Hallstatt in the Salzkammergut region, Lake Braies in South Tyrol and Maya Bay in Thailand spoil the joy of "sharing and caring". In the Thai resort, crowds of tourists attracted by the film "The Beach" have caused irreparable damage to the coral reefs there. There are examples like this of the bad effects of overtourism all over the world. Expert Markus Pillmayer from Munich therefore calls in the ZDF interview calls for a "new form of tourism in which locals have a much greater say and, above all, a say in decision-making".

Instagrammers are difficult to inform

Instagram & Co. play a decisive role in this. Biologist Henning Werth, who researches the optimal balance between nature conservation and tourism at the Alpinium in Obermaiselstein in the Oberallgäu region, the "Zentrum Naturerlebnis Alpin", is well aware of this. One of the hotspots here in the area is the Schrecksee - a picturesque turquoise high mountain lake that is literally haunted by up to 900 visitors on peak days. Werth has found that Instagrammers and TikTokies in particular are difficult to convince changing their behaviour: "Instagram tourists in particular are not repeat offenders in very many cases. They come once and take their photo. That's what makes it so difficult to educate and inform these people." On the ground, the biologist told the Bayerischer Rundfunk it's already too late: "You should actually be able to reach these people at home on the computer."

With hands and feet against overtourism

There are now thousands upon thousands of Instagram photos of hotspots such as the completely overcrowded Hallstatt in the Salzkammergut, which reminds Asian tourists in particular of the backdrop to Disney's "Ice Queen". If you search Insta for hashtags like #Hallstatt or #Hallstattaustria you will now find over a million posts. The municipality is fighting tooth and nail against the overtourism and has now erected wooden walls as a self-defense measure to block the view of the most popular motifs.

Intelligent visitor management is required

Other hyped destinations such as Lake Braies are also restricting access by car, requiring online reservations for day tourists or limiting visits to certain days of the week. Anyone looking at the figures in South Tyrol will understand the seriousness of the situation. In 2022, there were around 34.4 million overnight stays per 530,000 inhabitants. Intelligent visitor management is therefore required. Tourism researcher Markus Pillmayer assumes that the rush to the mountains will even increase: "We can assume that the extreme weather events in the Mediterranean region will probably lead to a shift in travel flows." He advocates "degrowth", the healthy shrinking of excessive tourism, from which both local people and visitors will benefit.

Tips for responsible travelers

Smart and responsible travel influencers realize that no one needs more pictures of Hallstatt or the Allgäu Schrecksee on Instagram. They focus on exciting new locations that are still largely undiscovered, that could still use support - and that hopefully won't fall victim to overtourism.

Respect the places you visit!

If you follow the most important influencer rule, you can help prevent this from happening: Think about what you post - and be aware of the impact of your posts and online actions! Travel influencers should also always ask their fans and audience to behave responsibly: Respect the places you visit and leave them as you found them!