Trip advisers 'Street tutors' aim to teach tourists good etiquette

In the era of overtourism, every popular holiday destination has its tipping point.

- Angela Giuffrida SIRMIONE

For Sirmione, a sliver of land lapped by the waters of Lake Garda, that watershed moment came during Italy’s long May Day holiday weekend. The medieval Italian village has now introduced “street tutors” to try to manage visitor flow and ensure good behaviour.

The village, considered a pearl in Lombardy’s lake district, was caught off guard last month when a crowd of people became jammed as they tried to walk over its tiny stone bridge and into its warren of narrow lanes.

What should have been a pleasant visit to Sirmione’s 14th-century castle or the villa where the opera singer Maria Callas once lived spiralled into sheer torment for the tourists and 200 or so year-round inhabitants. There were queues of up to 40 minutes to cross the bridge - something that would ordinarily take about 10 seconds - as pedestrians jostled with cars.

Images of the chaotic scenes were shared on social media, catapulting Sirmione, already Lake Garda’s most-visited location, into the centre of Italy’s overtourism debate.

“The bridge was completely blocked,” said Cristina Fontana, who walks to her job at a newsagent's. “We survive off tourism, but this was an exceptional day.”