Berlin has just shot to the number three most visited tourist destination in Europe, coming in just behind London and Paris. The difference is that London and Paris have been hosting tourists for a good few hundred years. Berlin, on the other had, has only been welcoming guests for the last 20. Ze Germans aren’t too happy about this.
The Berlin wall only fell about 20 years ago, and since then the flow of tourists into the city has been steadily increasing. This is a good thing for pumping capital into a debt-ridden city, but locals aren’t happy. They’re mostly unhappy with the 20-something, low-cost airline crowd, who flock to the city for it’s hedonistic reputation and über cool-ness. This has led to rising property prices, as well as an increase in noise pollution.
Stickers on traffic lights declare: “Tourists go home!,” and a local gallery had this sign stuck at its entrance:
It reads: “Tonight aftershow party: Sorry, no entry for hipsters from the US. Other people imitating American hipsters are also not welcome. The capacity of Spanish hipsters and tourists is almost overdosed. Portuguese welcome!”
A spokesperson for a tourism advocacy group (such things exist, apparently) said the following about the resentment towards tourists:
We’ve seen people insulted for looking like tourists or get disparaging looks.
There’s some resentment that tourists party loudly or throw up on the streets. I think many Berliners do too, but they feel entitled to act that way.
[Source: Sydney Morning Herald]
