A full list naming the most crowded cities in Europe has been revealed. Holidu, the holiday rental portal, discovered the cities with the highest number of tourists per inhabitant.
Using data from Euromonitor International, a market research provider, this study analysed the number of inbound arrivals in 2023 compared to the city’s population to determine the most overcrowded spots across the continent. Topping the list, is the seaside Croatian city of Dubrovnik. The gorgeous city receives 27 tourists per resident a year, making it less of a laid-back retreat and more of a “bustling human anthill”, the portal said. The Game of Thrones effect (with parts of the popular HBO show being filmed there) only exacerbated the problem, “turning its cobblestone streets into congested thoroughfares and its iconic walls into selfie backdrops”
The city has implemented measures to manage the crowds, including limiting cruise ship arrivals and requiring bus reservations. There are concerns from locals, saying they are being pushed out of Dubrovnik by rising house prices and strained public services.
In second place is Rhodes in Greece. The island is the ninth largest in the Mediterranean and receives 26 tourists per resident a year. It is “a victim of its own popularity”, with its once tranquil streets and beaches transformed into bustling tourist corridors for sunseekers.
The Greek government introduced an array of measures to curb the damaging effects of overtourism, including limiting cruise ship arrivals, a tourist tax, and a climate crisis tax.
And in third place is Venice, Italy, with 21 tourists for every resident. This beloved floating city is literally sinking under the weight of its popularity. It has sunk about 25cm in the past century, and it continues to subside at a rate of about 1-2mm per year.
It is also very popular among daytrippers, with only half of visitors staying overnight. These tend to be off cruise ships, with passengers “seeing little, buying less, and leaving”, bringing little benefit to the city.
Overtourism across Europe is generally attributed to three factors: low-cost flights, peer-to-peer home sharing (such as Airbnb), and cruise ship docking.