When the pristine Hyams Beach in Jervis Bay south of Sydney scored itself a spot in the Guinness Book of Records for having the whitest sand in the world things began to get a little crazy.
As the snow colour sands gained international fame, the once peaceful seaside village in Shoalhaven began to experience the perils of overtourism.
The narrow roads became congested with traffic, cars parked illegally and rubbish left in the bushland reserves.
Image: Visit NSW
Over the Christmas and New Year period thousands of drivers were turned away from the hamlet, as part of a temporary solution put in place by the local council.
The village has a parking capacity of just 400 but up to 5000 vehicles are around each day in summer.
Hyams Beach Villagers Association member Lois Sparkes said Hyams Beach “has been loved to death”, referecing the endless stream of #HyamsBeach photos on Instagram.
“We are a social media phenomenon … and everyone wants to come and see the white sand at Hyams Beach,” she said.
“The beaches are being damaged, in a way, because people are now coming here and if they can’t get somewhere to stay they are just illegal camping on the beaches, and the rubbish problem is quite concerning.”
Hyams Beach Villagers Association member Lois Sparkes
As part of a more permanent solution residents and tourism groups are pushing for more marketing of other very similar beaches in the area.
Image: Visit NSW
Destination NSW is also encouraging tourists to check out “one of the 15 other equally beautiful and less busy White Sand beaches in Jervis Bay”.
The tourists may be up in arms, but the overtourism needs to be stopped before the environment is destroyed and the beach has to regenerate, as seen in destinations like Thailand and The philippines.
- READ: Philippines’ Boracay Island to reopen with tight restrictions on tourists
- READ: Thailand’s temporary TOURIST BAN on Maya Bay starts soon