From trampled tulips to traffic tie-ups, tourists are making a mess of the Netherlands.
The visitor influx has become so worrisome that flower farmers in the Dutch countryside have started posting signs informing travellers that they are welcome to enjoy the stunning views their operations provide – but only from a distance.
A more tongue-in-cheek approach was taken by travel website Holland.com, which released a video encouraging tourists to take “tulip-friendly” selfies by avoiding trips into the flower fields. Tulip bulbs which are stomped on are not able to grow properly, meaning they cannot be sold.
“Tip-toeing is a good thing, but trampling is not,” Antonia Koedijk, North American director of the Netherlands Board of Tourism and Conventions, told CTV News Channel Tuesday.
Beyond the tulip fields, tourism is booming in the Netherlands. The country saw 18 million visitors in 2018 and estimates that it will have 43 million people wanting to check it out by 2030.
Giethoorn, a small community known for its bridges and canals, receives 350,000 tourists a year despite a population of a little more than 2,500.
Koedijk said that the country is finding ways to stem the crush of tourists to overburdened parts of the Netherlands, including by restricting entry at popular gardens to a manageable number of visitors.
Additionally, tourism officials are looking at programs to encourage foreign travellers to check out other parts of the Netherlands beyond the traditional tourism hotspots.
Koedjik said she recently visited some northern Dutch islands where she saw visitors from within the country and from Germany, but none from North America.
“There is a lot of opportunity to spread the crowds and make sure that they know what else is there to be seen and to be experienced,” she said.
With files from The Associated Press
