Forget sex and drugs! Now the next type of tourist is attacking Amsterdam

Amsterdam is a tourist magnet. The city in the Netherlands always attracts many guests. The sights are numerous, the inhabitants are open-minded and the atmosphere has long been considered liberal.

But now the city council is increasingly forced to take action against visitors. Many guests come to Amsterdam to smoke weed, drink or hang out in brothels.

And recently they also come to eat.

And posting photos of her binge eating on social media.

This new phenomenon causes problems for business people and residents of “De 9 Straatjes”, a part of the Amsterdam city center that is currently especially popular with young tourists.

In the center of the dining bustle is a small shop called ‘Fabel Friet’, as the British ‘Guardian’ reports. During the day, large crowds regularly line the streets to finally taste the fries, which are sung by some as the “best fries in all of Amsterdam”.

Many of the especially young culinary enthusiasts take out their mobile phones before they even have the fries in their mouths. Being there and waiting is quite an event for them. Once you have the hot and greasy product in your hand, the filming begins and a few potato sticks, bathed in rich special sauces, fall to the floor.

Social media, Instagram and TikTok are full of short videos and photos of hordes of fast food fans making a pilgrimage to ‘Fabel Friet’. This is called flash crowds – more or less spontaneous gatherings of people. Even the owner doesn’t like it anymore, although the celebrity probably brings him a fair amount of sales. Co-owner Floris Feilzer tells The Guardian:

“For us it’s all about offering the best products, we care about our business and the neighborhood. And the neighbors also like to come to us.”

But the neighbors are increasingly annoyed by the crowds. Warning signs with this inscription can be found in more and more windows. “No place for a picnic. Please sit somewhere else!” And a businessman who doesn’t want to see his name in the newspaper says to the reporter:

Meanwhile, he also fears for his own customers, because they may stay away because of the munching hordes of tourists.

The phenomenon is not new. It is also not exclusive to Amsterdam. The trend is just the latest symptom of rampant overtourism. Moderation applies to both eating and visiting new places. Anyone who does not behave there will quickly get into trouble. That is why the Amsterdam city council is already warning that it is closely monitoring developments and reserves the right to take the necessary measures to control the crowds.

The city has already proven that it can take serious action by imposing strict rules on the illegal rental of living space to tourists via platforms such as Airbnb. Amsterdam marketing expert Joris Demmers, on the other hand, believes that the phenomenon of feeding flash masses is much more difficult to regulate. He is currently warning shop owners not to overextend themselves in light of the crowds. He says:

Instead, the Amsterdam city council is trying to divert the tourist flow from the city center to the outskirts of the metropolis. Unfortunately, social media algorithms prefer to promote what the masses value. For the people of Amsterdam there is probably only one thing left: wait and eat the fries until all the fuss is over.

(t-online, cc)