Island off northern French coast imposes quota to tackle overtourism

A small, picturesque island off the north coast of Brittany has imposed a summer tourist quota in an effort to ensure visitors have a more enjoyable experience and its 400-odd permanent residents do not feel swamped.

From this week until 23 August, the number of people allowed on to Ile-de-Bréhat – excluding local people, second homeowners and workers – between 8.30am and 2.30pm must not exceed 4,700, said the island’s mayor, Olivier Carré.

The move to tackle overtourism follows similar steps by cities such as Amsterdam, Paris, Seville and Venice, big tourist draws including Istanbul’s Hagia Sophia and the Acropolis in Athens, and even sites of natural beauty such as the Calanques outside Marseille.

All have recently taken measures to regulate or reduce visitor numbers by increasing tourist taxes; introducing entrance fees, time slot systems or advance reservation schemes; or launching information campaigns aimed at curbing overtourism.

“We’re not actually trying to stop people coming – just to make sure they have a better time when they do,” Carré said, adding that the job of policing visitor numbers would be down to the ferry companies providing the 10-minute crossing to Bréhat.

He told Agence France-Presse that the restrictions were a repeat of a trial last summer that helped keep day tripper numbers below a critical threshold of 5,500.

“Once you reach or pass that level, nothing works – there’s nowhere for people to park at the ferry terminal at Ploubazlanec, not enough seats on the boat, all the restaurants on the island are full, the hire bikes run out, the cycle paths are rammed,” he said.

“As many as 30% said afterwards that they were dissatisfied with their day. Before, we shipped people across whether there were 2,000 of them or 6,000. Now, we’re asking the ferry companies to encourage people to book in advance and regulate the flow.”

The quota does not apply at weekends when holidaymakers are often leaving or arriving accommodation, leading to generally lower visitor numbers.

While some of the island’s hotel, restaurant and shop owners were initially sceptical about the quota system, Carré said the economic impact had been “extremely limited”, with many being unable to point to any significant fall in earnings.

The owner of the La Vieille Auberge hotel, Nathalie Lamidon, nonetheless complained of “a lot of confusion around the time frame when the quota applies”, with some clients unsure they would be allowed to spend the afternoon on the island.

Stéphane André, owner of the Le Crech-Kerio restaurant and bakery, told Le Monde it would take two or three years to accurately assess the financial consequences of the measure, but added: “It doesn’t seem to have changed very much so far.”

Anne-Lise Corlouër, managing director of the main ferry company serving the island, said the quota had dissuaded ad hoc trippers from coming, with passenger numbers in late July and early August about 20% down in 2023 from the previous year.

But Carré said these were teething problems, and that the important thing was that “people are learning that they have to book in advance”.

“We need to get the balance right for everyone, and we’ll be reviewing the impact of this every year,” he added.