This is an interesting story of Pomfret, a town in the US which banned influencers to ensure the beauty of their town doesn’t get spoiled.
The locals said that when cities like Venice have imposed tourist tax to visitors and the trendy restaurants are banning influencers and their phones from dining, Pomfret is also trying to fight the challenge of overtourism by banning influencers.
A person on Instagram referring to Pomfret said, “We have experienced an unprecedented surge in Instagram and TikTok-fuelled tourist ‘influencers’… [who] have damaged roads, had accidents, required towing out of ditches, trampled gardens, defecated on private property… and verbally assaulted residents.”
Eventually, town officials choose to close the roads leading to the farm during the peak fall foliage season (23 September to 15 October) to non-residents, spurring the ire of travellers who had driven to the area in hopes of capturing a perfectly curated autumn photo.
Most Pomfret residents stressed that they’re not anti-tourist; they simply want people to treat their hometown with respect. Even more concerning than issues of private property, several mentioned, are safety concerns for the residents of Cloudland Road, as well as the tourists themselves.
Locals say that the social media influencers would regularly climb over a gate plastered with “No Trespassing” signs, set up changing booths to accommodate their many costume swaps, get their “city cars” stuck on the narrow dirt road, and leave bodily waste by the roadside. The residents went to the [local government] and said, ‘We can’t have this anymore.'”
And hence roads have been closed from September 23 to October 15.