Do Photos of Cornwall Cause Overtourism?

How many times have you stood in front of something so majestic, took a picture to share the view with people and felt crushed when the camera capture didn’t do it justice? That’s how I feel about my photos of Cornwall.

On a five day holiday Mr Sunny and I went to Boscastle, Tintagel, St Ives, Port Isaac and Padstow. The array of sights in just this small area, even on days when it rained, makes it a great destination for tourists. In fact, it’s starting to be too great.

When I first posted photos of Cornwall with Mr Sunny on Instagram, my Florida friends were in disbelief. On many levels I was too. Living in London for six years has taught me to keep my distance from the making physical contact with the River Thames. It’s murky and filthy. But, to be fair, ocean water in Daytona Beach, (my hometown) isn’t very transparent either! The water in Cornwall is such a beautiful shade of blue.

Let’s see what you think.

And in terms of rugged coastlines and beaches, Cornwall scores high on the wow factor too.

It’s no wonder that Cornwall is experiencing overtourism. It is certainly the most beautiful place I have been in England. However, I haven’t made it to the Lake District yet, and I hear that is insanely gorgeous. What do you think Sunny friends, have any of you been to both? If so, how do they compare?

So, this brings us to the idea of overtourism. Like Dubrovnik and many areas, Cornwall is suffering the backlash of an abundance of social media photos publicizing its beauty combined with popular television shows filming on location. These two factors bring tourists to the area in droves.

While that might drive the area’s economy up initially, it also has negative effects. One of the big concerns is people actually causing erosion of the locations. Some cities have imposed additional taxes for tourists to compensate for the destruction caused.

What do you think is the answer for this? With London’s tourist population expected to grow 30% by 2025, what will happen to London? Will promoting less popular neighborhoods in London help balance the traffic? Will the tourism boards follow the lead of the Netherlands and stop promoting London internationally?

Mr Sunny and I tend to pick less popular places to travel because we really like to avoid crowds.Will overtourism affect your travel plans? Could it stop you from choosing a holiday destination?