Fury has erupted in Italy after 75,000 tourists were seen jamming the streets of a quaint village while trying to barge their way into a fairytale castle.
Over the long bank holiday weekend, thousands of sunseekers flocked to Lake Garda to take in the stunning sights, but locals were left fuming with their behaviour.
Footage from the chaotic scenes showed swathes of tourists pushing and shoving one another as they rammed through Sirmione to catch a glimpse of the iconic Castello Scaligero di Sirmione.
Local authorities estimated that about 75,000 people had visited the medieval town, which has an estimated population of just more than 8,000, during the May Day holiday weekend.
The stunning Lake Garda resort was teeming with eager tourists who became clumped together as they struggled to walk through the narrow streets.
Clips shared on TikTok showed queues of angry tourists in the sun attempting to make their way through the village but grinding to a halt due to the sheer number of bodies.
Cars and electric buses were seen trying to squeeze their way through the human traffic but getting stuck in the middle of the road as throngs of people flooded the street.
The peaceful 13th century castle grounds were filled with tourists of all ages attempting to snap photos and find shade among hundreds of others.
Queues of tourists are seen trying to enter the town, which is situated on Lake Garda
Huge crowds flocked to the town over the bank holiday weekend in Italy
Footage from the chaotic scenes showed swathes of tourists pushing and shoving one another as they rammed through Sirmione to catch a glimpse of the iconic Castello Scaligero di Sirmione
Lines of tourists pushed past cars which struggled to get through the entrance into the town centre
Clips shared on TikTok showed queues of angry tourists in the sun attempting to make their way through the village
Over the long bank holiday weekend, thousands of sunseekers flocked to Lake Garda to take in the stunning sights, but locals were left fuming with their behaviour
Roberto Salaorni, the councillor responsible for transport, said there was no intention to limit the number of people allowed in through the narrow bridge giving access to the castle but the flow needed to be better regulated.
‘This is the first thing to do, possibly installing a barrier at the entrance to the castle, which would enable us to manage exceptional situations such as we saw on Friday,’ he said.
‘Controls are absolutely necessary, but I stress that we have never seen so many people before, not just in Sirmione but in the other towns around the lake’.
The dramatic rush made life for locals near impossible and resembled scenes usually seen in larger cities such as Rome and Venice.
Marco Merlo, the president of the hotel and restaurant operators association said: ‘We’re very worried about public safety and the quality of life for tourists, residents and workers.
‘We hope the council will involve us in finding effective and widely agreed strategies.’
Members of a local group, Siamo Sirmione, which translates in English to ‘We are Sirmione’, said the crush was the worst they had ever witnessed.
‘If this is the council’s management model the risk is not just hardship for residents but a real and lasting harm for the tourism and image of Sirmione,’ the group said.
Sirmione is one of the most popular sights in Lake Garda and attracts thousands of visitors due to its picturesque peninsula.
Theresa May, the former prime minister, has visited the lakeside town for the last 25 years with her husband, Philip, staying at the five-star Villa Cortine Palace hotel.
The bank holiday weekend crush in Sirmione comes after an American woman came under fire after criticising a small town on the Amalfi Coast for having too many ‘loud tourists’ and ‘no authentic’ restaurants.
Cars and electric buses were seen trying to squeeze their way through the human traffic but getting stuck in the middle of the road as throngs of people flooded the street
Roberto Salaorni, the councillor responsible for transport, said there was no intention to limit the number of people allowed in through the narrow bridge giving access to the castle but the flow needed to be better regulated
Sirmione is one of the most popular sights in Lake Garda and attracts thousands of visitors due to its picturesque peninsula
Content creator Keri was left impressed during her visit to Positano and said that ‘influencers’ lied about the Italian town.
‘There was maybe one good pizza place and one good pasta place, but most of them were fancy and overpriced,’ she said.
Keri added that the public transportation in Positano, located on the Amalfi Coast, was poor, saying: ‘You basically have to hike everywhere to get around.’
However, despite being a US citizen, Keri said she found too many ‘loud American tourists’ in the town.
She said she was aware that her statement sounded ‘hypocritical’ but proceeded to stand by her view, saying: ‘There were just so many Americans, I don’t know how to put this, but it was like the people that were like weren’t well travelled.
‘Just loud and yelling down the tiny streets while repping their favourite football team.’
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