Anyone who has ever visited Venice in the summer will be familiar with the concept of over-tourism. Crowds of people thronging almost every thoroughfare, the architectural and cultural jewels that made the destination so attractive in the first place in danger of being overwhelmed, physically damaged, or displaced by the cheap tat and inauthentic cuisine that invariably appear when plentiful visitors – not all of them particularly discerning, or appreciative of a location’s discrete charms – descend upon a destination.
It's such a problem in Barcelona that demonstrators waved placards saying “tourists go home” this summer. The latest place to announce publicly that it is suffering from this malady is the island of Bali. Synonymous with beautiful beaches, sea sports, a highly refined culture of dance, painting, sculpture and music, spa-pampering at exquisite hotels, and ancient Hindu temples, Bali drew nearly half of all the tourists who visited Indonesia last year.
But overdevelopment has led to nightmarish congestion on the island’s winding roads, environmental degradation – over half Bali’s 400 rivers have dried up – and a plague of ill-behaved visitors, some wearing inappropriate clothing in sacred spaces, to the extent that one commentator recently said that these days it was “less paradise, more parking lot”.
That’s a bit harsh. But the Indonesian government recognises the island needs protecting, which is why it has proposed a moratorium of up to 10 years on building new hotels, clubs and villas in four of Bali’s busiest areas. The idea has been well received. But Bali is an exceptional case, different to Venice or Barcelona, in that it has built such a strong reputation that many people don’t even know that it is part of Indonesia. In fact the country’s former president Megawati Sukarnoputri once complained that on trips abroad she would be asked where Indonesia was, and only when she answered “do you know Bali?” would her questioners make the link.
That may not have been a disadvantage when Indonesia was primarily known in the English-speaking world through the lens of the “year of living dangerously” – both the words from the fiery speech given by then President Sukarno in 1964, and the 1982 film of the same title starring Mel Gibson and Sigourney Weaver – and for its decades of authoritarian rule under Sukarno’s successor, Suharto.
Visitors – from afar, at least – have heard of a few places, and they then become top of the list, to the partial exclusion of others
But today the country is a stable, vibrant democracy. And that disconnect means that it is likely the concentration on Bali is at the expense of, or is not leading to a spillover to, so many other wonderful locations in Indonesia. If Bali is booked up, for instance, why not visit the over 1000 year old Borobudur temple, the world's biggest Buddhist monument, on the island of Java, as well as the nearby royal city of Yogyakarta? I could go on, but 6,000 of Indonesia’s 17,000 islands are inhabited. Bali is only one of them; there’s quite a lot to see on the others too.
Bali encapsulates two issues that face South-East Asia as a whole, as the region needs tourism. Pre-pandemic, the 10 member Association of South-East Asian Nations (Asean) was receiving up to 140 million visitors annually. The numbers haven’t quite recovered yet, but tourism still contributed over 241 billion US dollars in 2022-23 and has generally made up around 12 per cent of the group’s overall GDP.
Increased visitors and development can be accommodated if managed well. The first time I visited Cambodia’s stunning temple complex of Angkor Wat in 2008, the road outside our hotel in the next door town of Siem Reap was rudimentary. When I returned last year, it had become a modern boulevard and the formerly sleepy town was bustling. But the colonial and Khmer mansions that line the river wending its way through Siem Reap have all been maintained, and it remains one of the most enchanting places I have ever had the pleasure to encounter.
Popularity causes problems, however, when one destination commands such attention that it leads to drastic overcrowding. On the Thai island of Phuket, for instance, tourists now outnumber locals by a startling 118 to 1, leading to damage to the surroundings that made Phuket’s name in the first place. “Is Thailand’s holiday hotspot ruined?” asked a local news portal last week.
Part of the pattern appears to be that visitors – from afar, at least – have heard of a few places, and they then become top of the list, to the partial exclusion of others. Many British people think of Penang when it comes to Malaysia; and the “pearl of the Orient” is indeed a lovely place to visit. There are far better beaches on Langkawi island, next to the border with Thailand, but when I lived in the UK it seemed to be a well kept secret: if you knew, you knew.
Returning to Thailand, it has been so popular for so long that several of its islands are as famous as Bali. But who is aware of the excellent snorkelling and diving that can be had off the coast of Papua New Guinea? Over 30 years on, I can still remember swimming over the coral reef at Submarine Base near Rabaul, in the country’s East New Britain province. There’s a sudden vertical drop of over 75 meters; it’s as though you’re flying.
Promoting tourism has been a focus of Asean (to which Papua New Guinea has observer status) since 1977, when it established a permanent committee on the sector. But Asean doesn’t have the resources to educate the world about the incredible diversity of its islands, rainforests, mountains, monuments, rivers and coasts.
One solution to over-tourism is for would-be visitors to delve a little more deeply into the region they’re intending to go to. To take South-East Asia, it couldn’t be easier nowadays to find out that there is far more to Thailand than Phuket, for example. And for those in search of holiday paradise, may I gently suggest that discovering that Bali is in Indonesia, and not a state in its own right, might be a good start?
Key figures in the life of the fort
Sheikh Dhiyab bin Isa (ruled 1761-1793) Built Qasr Al Hosn as a watchtower to guard over the only freshwater well on Abu Dhabi island.
Sheikh Shakhbut bin Dhiyab (ruled 1793-1816) Expanded the tower into a small fort and transferred his ruling place of residence from Liwa Oasis to the fort on the island.
Sheikh Tahnoon bin Shakhbut (ruled 1818-1833) Expanded Qasr Al Hosn further as Abu Dhabi grew from a small village of palm huts to a town of more than 5,000 inhabitants.
Sheikh Khalifa bin Shakhbut (ruled 1833-1845) Repaired and fortified the fort.
Sheikh Saeed bin Tahnoon (ruled 1845-1855) Turned Qasr Al Hosn into a strong two-storied structure.
Sheikh Zayed bin Khalifa (ruled 1855-1909) Expanded Qasr Al Hosn further to reflect the emirate's increasing prominence.
Sheikh Shakhbut bin Sultan (ruled 1928-1966) Renovated and enlarged Qasr Al Hosn, adding a decorative arch and two new villas.
Sheikh Zayed bin Sultan (ruled 1966-2004) Moved the royal residence to Al Manhal palace and kept his diwan at Qasr Al Hosn.
Sources: Jayanti Maitra, www.adach.ae
More from Neighbourhood Watch
Zayed Sustainability Prize
More from Neighbourhood Watch:
Mohammed bin Zayed Majlis
THE%20SPECS
%3Cp%3EBattery%3A%2060kW%20lithium-ion%20phosphate%3Cbr%3EPower%3A%20Up%20to%20201bhp%3Cbr%3E0%20to%20100kph%3A%207.3%20seconds%3Cbr%3ERange%3A%20418km%3Cbr%3EPrice%3A%20From%20Dh149%2C900%3Cbr%3EAvailable%3A%20Now%3C%2Fp%3E%0A
PROFILE OF CURE.FIT
Started: July 2016
Founders: Mukesh Bansal and Ankit Nagori
Based: Bangalore, India
Sector: Health & wellness
Size: 500 employees
Investment: $250 million
Investors: Accel, Oaktree Capital (US); Chiratae Ventures, Epiq Capital, Innoven Capital, Kalaari Capital, Kotak Mahindra Bank, Piramal Group’s Anand Piramal, Pratithi Investment Trust, Ratan Tata (India); and Unilever Ventures (Unilever’s global venture capital arm)
Points about the fast fashion industry Celine Hajjar wants everyone to know
- Fast fashion is responsible for up to 10 per cent of global carbon emissions
- Fast fashion is responsible for 24 per cent of the world's insecticides
- Synthetic fibres that make up the average garment can take hundreds of years to biodegrade
- Fast fashion labour workers make 80 per cent less than the required salary to live
- 27 million fast fashion workers worldwide suffer from work-related illnesses and diseases
- Hundreds of thousands of fast fashion labourers work without rights or protection and 80 per cent of them are women
Killing of Qassem Suleimani
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
The biog
Profession: Senior sports presenter and producer
Marital status: Single
Favourite book: Al Nabi by Jibran Khalil Jibran
Favourite food: Italian and Lebanese food
Favourite football player: Cristiano Ronaldo
Languages: Arabic, French, English, Portuguese and some Spanish
Website: www.liliane-tannoury.com
The years Ramadan fell in May
KILLING OF QASSEM SULEIMANI
The five pillars of Islam
1. Fasting
2. Prayer
3. Hajj
4. Shahada
5. Zakat
Mohammed bin Zayed Majlis
Killing of Qassem Suleimani
The five pillars of Islam
The specs
Engine: 4.0-litre flat-six
Torque: 450Nm at 6,100rpm
Transmission: 7-speed PDK auto or 6-speed manual
Fuel economy, combined: 13.8L/100km
On sale: Available to order now
Zayed Sustainability Prize
Killing of Qassem Suleimani
More from Neighbourhood Watch:
More on Quran memorisation:
Sholto Byrnes on Myanmar politics
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
Defence review at a glance
• Increase defence spending to 2.5% of GDP by 2027 but given “turbulent times it may be necessary to go faster”
• Prioritise a shift towards working with AI and autonomous systems
• Invest in the resilience of military space systems.
• Number of active reserves should be increased by 20%
• More F-35 fighter jets required in the next decade
• New “hybrid Navy” with AUKUS submarines and autonomous vessels
The years Ramadan fell in May
More from Neighbourhood Watch:
Mubadala World Tennis Championship 2018 schedule
Thursday December 27
Men's quarter-finals
Kevin Anderson v Hyeon Chung 4pm
Dominic Thiem v Karen Khachanov 6pm
Women's exhibition
Serena Williams v Venus Williams 8pm
Friday December 28
5th place play-off 3pm
Men's semi-finals
Rafael Nadal v Anderson/Chung 5pm
Novak Djokovic v Thiem/Khachanov 7pm
Saturday December 29
3rd place play-off 5pm
Men's final 7pm
Cricket World Cup League Two
Teams
Oman, UAE, Namibia
Al Amerat, Muscat
Results
Oman beat UAE by five wickets
UAE beat Namibia by eight runs
Namibia beat Oman by 52 runs
UAE beat Namibia by eight wickets
Fixtures
Saturday January 11 - UAE v Oman
Sunday January 12 – Oman v Namibia
The burning issue
The internal combustion engine is facing a watershed moment – major manufacturer Volvo is to stop producing petroleum-powered vehicles by 2021 and countries in Europe, including the UK, have vowed to ban their sale before 2040. The National takes a look at the story of one of the most successful technologies of the last 100 years and how it has impacted life in the UAE.
Read part four: an affection for classic cars lives on
Read part three: the age of the electric vehicle begins
Read part one: how cars came to the UAE
KILLING OF QASSEM SULEIMANI
Killing of Qassem Suleimani
Company%20profile
%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3ECompany%20name%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20FinFlx%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3EStarted%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20January%202021%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3EFounders%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20Amr%20Yussif%20(co-founder%20and%20CEO)%2C%20Mattieu%20Capelle%20(co-founder%20and%20CTO)%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3EBased%20in%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20Dubai%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3EIndustry%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20FinTech%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3EFunding%20size%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20%241.5m%20pre-seed%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3EInvestors%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20Venture%20capital%20-%20Y%20Combinator%2C%20500%20Global%2C%20Dubai%20Future%20District%20Fund%2C%20Fox%20Ventures%2C%20Vector%20Fintech.%20Also%20a%20number%20of%20angel%20investors%3C%2Fp%3E%0A
The years Ramadan fell in May
Key facilities
- Olympic-size swimming pool with a split bulkhead for multi-use configurations, including water polo and 50m/25m training lanes
- Premier League-standard football pitch
- 400m Olympic running track
- NBA-spec basketball court with auditorium
- 600-seat auditorium
- Spaces for historical and cultural exploration
- An elevated football field that doubles as a helipad
- Specialist robotics and science laboratories
- AR and VR-enabled learning centres
- Disruption Lab and Research Centre for developing entrepreneurial skills
Analysis
Maros Sefcovic is juggling multiple international trade agreement files, but his message was clear when he spoke to The National on Wednesday.
The EU-UAE bilateral trade deal will be finalised soon, he said. It is in everyone’s interests to do so. Both sides want to move quickly and are in alignment. He said the UAE is a very important partner for the EU. It’s full speed ahead - and with some lofty ambitions - on the road to a free trade agreement.
We also talked about US-EU tariffs. He answered that both sides need to talk more and more often, but he is prepared to defend Europe's position and said diplomacy should be a guiding principle through the current moment.
Specs
Engine: Electric motor generating 54.2kWh (Cooper SE and Aceman SE), 64.6kW (Countryman All4 SE)
Power: 218hp (Cooper and Aceman), 313hp (Countryman)
Torque: 330Nm (Cooper and Aceman), 494Nm (Countryman)
On sale: Now
Price: From Dh158,000 (Cooper), Dh168,000 (Aceman), Dh190,000 (Countryman)
The five pillars of Islam
