Pompeii Limits Daily Visitors To Protect Site From Overtourism

According to the most recent news reports, from November 15 onwards, Pompeii Archeological Park is going to implement a very strict visitor restriction policy, allowing only 20,000 guests per day to limit the size of overcrowded audience. Hence, ticketing will be programmed to restrict the number of visitors that will be arriving during peak hours.

Pompeii Limits Daily Visitors To Protect Site From Overtourism

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In addition, during certain periods, the tickets will be sold for specific times, thereby reducing the visitors at the premises. This measure is being taken to protect the integrity of the UNESCO World Heritage Site, which is at risk from excessive tourism. Pompeii broke attendance records during the summer of over 4 million visitors to the archeological sites of the ancient city of Pompeii that famously lay dormant for centuries up until the eruption of Mount Vesuvius in 79 A.D. As per the comments made by the park director, Gabriel Zuchtriegel, furthermore limiting the number of visitors will reduce the chances of injuries to both the visitors and the park itself.

The park has started the “Greater Pompeii” project that entails ticketing limits and free shuttle to other archaeological sites including Stabia, Torre Annunziata, Boscoreale and others. The idea is to help relieve pressure on the central attraction, to encourage vacationers to visit these off the beaten track but culturally rich places in the vicinity of Pompeii. Zuchtriegel explains that such measures, on the one hand, provide the tourists with more satisfying and long-lasting experience, while this time, the objective is to dispel the ‘mass tourism’ even more and encourage the travel slower, in respect of the ecology as well as the culture.

It is observed that the influx of tourists to the historically important places today has not only returned to the figures of 2019 but in some places even exceeded them after the virus outbreak, which is overwhelming the environment and population resources. These new provisions enacted by the park form part of a wider strategy designed to address the challenge of tourism development as well as environmental conservation. The director of the establishment explained that in addition to this new limit, if implemented, will stop even more people from coming because the area receives about 15,000-20,000 visitors a day at the moment. Zuchtriegel mentioned that the aim of this venture is to facilitate travel that is respectful and responsible thereby helping them appreciate the diverse cultural and historical treasures present in the region apart from the main archaeological site.

As for the tourists who are going to make the trip, they are assisted with a new personalized ticketing system and introduction of timed slots which enable management of visitor traffic especially during high seasons. Tourists may also use the ‘Greater Pompeii’ initiative, which offers free shuttle services to several other archaeological sites such as Stabia, Torre Annunziata and Boscoreale, which have been incorporated within the city of Pompeii. All these places have something worth seeing in them, be it beautiful gilded Roman houses or ancient burial sites, therefore it becomes possible to have a delightful trip that is far more than just focused on the central hub.