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Full list of iconic travel destinations at risk of destruction from tourism

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Full list of iconic travel destinations at risk of destruction from tourism

Durness is situated along one of Scotland’s most popular road trip routes (Picture: Getty Images/Westend61)

We all have our travel bucket lists, but there are an increasing number of locations suffering at the hands of overtourism – or where, to be frank, locals simply don’t want you visiting.

Now, a list has revealed the trips you’ll want to avoid taking in 2025 – and one famed UK spot spanning 516 miles of coastline has received a mention.

The North Coast 500 road trip covers northern Scotland, and was coined in 2015 by the local Tourism Project Board.

It ticks off an array of stunning beauty spots along the way, including Applecross, Ullapool, Sandwood Bay and Durness Beach, and was visited by a whopping 29,000 people in its first year.

However, almost 10 years on and local communities are becoming increasingly agitated with the overtourism that this picturesque route has brought to the area, from the rubbish road trippers are leaving to the congestion piling up on the roads.

What are the issues with the North Coast 500?

It might cross some beautiful locations and bring economic benefits to local communities, but not everyone is happy with the way the North Coast 500 has panned out, as Fodor’s No List 2025 underlines.

And while Reddit is full of threads asking for advice and suggestions for the North Coast 500, it’s also got its fair share of criticism from locals.

West Coast - Scottish Highlands
The North Coast 500 was coined in 2015 by the local tourism board (Picture: Getty Images)

There’s even a Facebook group entitled NC500 The Dirty Truth dedicated to sharing the reality of the coastal route – including grievances about love locks along bridges and rubbish piling high amid already-full bins.

‘It’s not tourists in campervans I hate, it’s the people who use the roadside passing places as parking spaces and leave their litter lying around,’ @Next_Reflection4664 penned, adding that they’d even seen people ‘emptying their chemical toilets’ into the lochs.

@weekendhiker

The North Coast 500: this is your sign to plan your next road trip 🏴󠁧󠁢󠁳󠁣󠁴󠁿 An amazing 5 days on the road in March, blessed with sunshine, the NC500 was an unforgettable experience and one that should be on your bucket list. Starting and ending at Inverness, I would recommend going anti-clockwise so that you get the best views of the famous Applecross mountain pass. 1 – Applecross mountain pass 2 – Wailing Widow falls 3 – Durness beach 4 – Pink house at Loch Glass 5 – Kylesku bridge 6 – Castle Sinclair Girnigoe 7 – Smoo cave 8 – Ben Wyvis (1,046m) 9 – Torridon #nc500 #roadtrip #scotland #visitscotland #scotland #hiddenscotland

♬ original sound – Tom Sigler

Alternatives to the North Coast 500

The Crieff Cloverleaf, Perthshire

Heart 200, Central Scotland

The Kintyre 66, Argyll & The Isles

South West Coastal 300, South Scotland

North East 250, North East Scotland

The Coig, Ayrshire & Arran.

Source: Visit Scotland.

As many have noted, the route boomed in popularity during the immediate post-lockdown periods, before many other countries opened their borders to tourists.

As such, British people looked for more local options – and as @Alah2 reflects, ‘every camping spot [and] every beauty spot was full.’

‘What wasn’t fine was people who didn’t take care of the places they stopped at. People were going to the toilet on the side of the road, [and] despite bins being full people left bin bags next to them rather than finding another, which were then torn apart by animals,’ they added.

Last light on Ullapool
The fishing town of Ullapool also features on the North Coast 500 (Picture: Getty Images)

‘You hear that a lot in Skye. Some motor homes are so wide that they are slightly off the single-track roads on both sides. With the numbers of them, they do damage the roads as well as causing traffic jams and parking in passing places,’ @squirrelfoot wrote.

What else has been included on Fodor’s No List 2025?

The North Coast 500 isn’t the only destination that, as Fodor puts it, is experiencing ‘unsustainable pressures on the land and local communities.’

Bali, Indonesia

Bali in Indonesia has also topped the list, receiving 5,273,258 international visitors in 2023 – a whopping increase of 144% from 2022’s figures.

In fact, the destination is struggling with overtourism to such an extent that authorities are now overseeing the development of the Benoa Bay artificial islands, comprised of 12 isles that are set to host a golf course, theme park, multiple luxury resorts and even a Formula 1 racecourse.

Tourist exploring historical village on Bali
Bali received almost 6,000,000 visitors in 2023 (Picture: Getty Images)

‘European destinations where locals don’t want you’

Also mentioned on the list are any and all European destinations where locals ‘don’t want you,’ including Barcelona, Mallorca and the Canary Islands.

In July, protestors took to the streets of the Catalonian capital with water guns as a demonstration against mass tourism. Thousands squirted diners in popular areas with water pistols paired with chants of ‘go home.’

Crowds in Barcelona's main "Rambla"
Barcelona locals are also increasingly fed up with tourists (Picture: Getty Images)

Likewise, residents have become increasingly disillusioned with the lack of affordable housing options, resulting in the mayor of Barcelona pledging to eliminate short-term tourist lettings within five years.

Mount Everest

And, of course, Mount Everest was also mentioned. While Everest-related tourism undoubtedly generates millions for Nepal’s economy, there are increasing concerns about the impact on the environment on account of excessive littering and microplastic pollution.

Walking to Everest Base Camp in Nepal.
Mount Everest has also topped the no-go list (Picture: Getty Images)

The Sagarmatha Pollution Control Committee was founded in 1991 to keep the region clean through controlled waste collections, but local initiatives like these are increasingly unable to cope with the vast numbers of mountaineers that visit the world’s tallest mountain.

Though only around 800 people make an attempt at summitting Mount Everest every year, the Sagarmatha National Park receives around 100,000 people each year, while the Everest Base Camp is visited by 500 people each day.

What’s on Fodor’s ‘No Travel’ list in 2025?

Perennial no list destinations:

Bali, Indonesia

European destinations where locals don’t want you, including Barcelona, Mallorca and the Canary Islands

Koh Samui, Thailand

Mount Everest.

Destinations beginning to suffer:

Agrigento, Sicily, Italy

British Virgin Islands

Kerala, India

Kyoto and Tokyo, Japan

Oaxaca, Mexico

Scotland North Coast 500.

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