Frustrated locals in a historic Italian city have hit out at tourists – claiming a sharp rise in visitor numbers over the years has turned the centre into a ‘no-go zone.’
Residents say their day-to-day lives are being impacted by various issues brought on by overtourism – from economic strain, to spiralling rent costs, to the replacement of traditional shops with generic establishments catering to visitors.
Naples, known for its world-famous Neapolitan pizza and ancient architecture, has experienced a surge in foreign visitors over recent years – with over 14 million tourists pouring into the city in 2024.
As of 2025, it ranks as Italy’s third-most visited city after Rome and Florence, according to Napoli Sotterranea.
According to research, most of the city’s visitors – who tend to stay for about four or five nights – hail from other parts of Europe, as well as America, Australia and Korea.
These travellers have provided a significant boost to the local economy, most notably in taxi services, private tour companies and hospitality firms.
Despite this, tourists are now facing growing backlash from residents who claim they’re being priced out while Naples’ authenticity erodes, and experts who say the city is being turned into a ‘theme park.’
Livia Coletta, 79, who has lived in the city all her life, told the Telegraph: ‘The historic centre is practically a no-go zone for us Neapolitans, it’s so overcrowded.
Locals in Naples claim their day-to-day lives are being affected by high tourist numbers – with millions of visitors pouring into the city each year
‘Most of the tourists don’t come to admire the art and architecture of Naples. They drink a Spritz, they eat a pizza, they take a few photos and then they leave.’
Anna Fava, an expert on overtourism in Naples, said the city is undergoing a process of ‘Disneyfication’ and believes the historic centre has been turned into a ‘theme park.’
While a large number of cruise ships have brought pollution into the city, traditional greengrocers and ironmongers have been substituted for carbon copy restaurants, selling overwhelmingly similar Neapolitan specialties, such as limoncello and pizza.
Across the city’s historic Spanish Quarter, once a symbol of cultural identity, narrow streets are now bear murals of Napoli and Argentina legend, Diego Maradona.
A courtyard in the area is lined with shops selling Maradona-themed merchandise, including football jerseys, scarves, stickers, lighters, mugs and even beer.
Ms Fava explained that although the football icon is regarded as a saint by residents, the area has been converted into a place of pilgrimage purely for visitors.
But the most concerning effect of overtourism has been on the local housing supply, with rising rent prices and short-term lets forcing tenants out of their homes.
Almost 70 per cent of Naples residents living in the central districts rent, according to Ugo Rossi, a professor of economic geography at Gran Sasso Science Institute in central Italy.
Traditional greengrocers and ironmongers are being replaced with generic restaurants selling near-identical menus of Neapolitan pizza and limoncello
In the 16th century Spanish Quarter, streets are lined shops selling Maradona-themed merchandise, while walls bear murals of the football legend
In districts with high visitor numbers, such as the Spanish Quarter and nearby Rione Sanità, landlords are turfing out tenants to turn their homes into short-term lets.
As the number of Airbnb properties continues to grow while long-term rentals dwindle, locals are now having to contend with spiralling rent costs.
Rent prices in the city centre have reportedly risen by 40 per cent in the last decade, with campaigners now calling for the authorities to intervene with a cap on Airbnb numbers.
Francesco Calicchia, a sociologist and activist living in Naples, expressed his concerns, adding that tourism is ‘killing’ the city and that the historic centre is ‘lost and gone.’
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