Stay away from Skye
Travel guide urges tourists to avoid island ‘ruined by its own popularity’
IT is an island of stunning beauty that sees hundreds of thousands of tourists descend on it every summer.
But now Skye has joined a list of holiday hot spots to steer clear of this year.
The scenic isle, which has been voted fourth best island in the world by National Geographic magazine, comes top of the list of ‘12 destinations travellers might want to avoid in 2018’.
Others on the list include Barcelona and the Taj Mahal.
Several tourism destinations want nothing to do with foreign visitors ‘flooding their streets or disrupting their fragile ecosystems’, according to news network CNN Travel.
It said: ‘In 2017, the infrastructure of Scotland’s largest island creaked under the pressure as thousands of tourists in coaches and cars plied its narrow lanes.
‘They made a beeline for the remote Fairy Pools at Glenbrittle, the iconic sunset spot at Elgol and the Old Man of Storr, with traffic snarl-ups an inevitable result.
‘Eventually the residents of beautiful Skye said enough was enough after complaints of noise, overcrowding and even visitors urinating in public.’
The network said police advised visitors to stay away unless they had already booked accommodation, adding: ‘If you must go, visit outside the summer season, when numbers drop and iconic sites can be explored without having to battle crowds.’
CNN Travel also suggested heading to the Small Isles of Rum, Muck and Eigg instead.
Last year, islanders complained Skye had become overcrowded and the single-track roads were choked with campervans and tour buses.
But Kate Forbes, Nationalist MSP for Skye, said: ‘Skye is definitely open for business.
‘Last summer attracted thousands of visitors to the island because of its beauty, delicious food and drink. Businesses throughout the island are preparing for another season.
‘Tourism has long been a cornerstone of the local economy and any stories that turn people off are deeply unhelpful. Tourism employs hundreds of local residents, enables local entrepreneurs and keeps the economy ticking over.’
She added: ‘There is a lot of work ongoing over the winter to ensure there is more parking available at key sites. All are warmly welcome.’