Amsterdam Successfully Drives Away British Tourists Following 'Stay Away' Campaign

There is reportedly a significant decrease in UK travellers in Amsterdam, indicating that the Dutch capital's "stay away" campaign is working.

The Netherlands has seen a 22 per cent decline in British arrivals this year in comparison to 2019, as per reports in English media. The country has managed to wave off not just British tourists but also global travellers, as overall tourist arrivals to the Netherlands are down by 26 per cent.

The Dutch nation is one of the most visited countries among tourists from the UK, considering how easily accessible the Western European country is via different means of transportation. While there is excellent access to all parts of Britain from the Netherlands, the highest capacity is on routes from London to Amsterdam, which has been a party hub for British tourists for many years.

The government in the Netherlands earlier this year in March launched a "digital discouragement campaign", aiming to discourage people from using the capital for weekends of sex and drug tourism. As part of their campaign, the government put up online posters showing a young man getting arrested and then in a cell with the captions: "So coming to Amsterdam for a messy night? Stay away."

The campaign was given a go-ahead after the government received several complaints from residents about tourists urinating in public, vomiting into canals and fighting in the streets.

Amsterdam made a massive change this summer to deal with over-tourism, which would have left many first-time visitors in the city disappointed.

The capital banned cruise ships in a bid to cut down the inflow of tourists and reduce pollution from the giant vessels. Since the cruise ships were not in line with Amsterdam's sustainable ambitions, it led to the city council's decision to close the central cruise terminal on the River IJ near Amsterdam's main train station.

The other important reason for removing cruise ships was to lower air pollution levels in Amsterdam. A study in 2021 stated that one big cruise ship produced the same levels of nitrogen oxides (NOx) in one day as 30,000 trucks.

The Dutch government, meanwhile, also put a cap on flights to Amsterdam Airport Schiphol - mostly for environmental reasons, to reduce the sound pollution affecting those nearby.

It was earlier reported that Eurostar's train services between Amsterdam and London could be suspended for up to 11 months, starting in 2024. This is due to renovation work on Amsterdam's main railway station.

According to Dutch infrastructure secretary, Vivianne Heijnen, the renovation work will begin in June 2024 and go on till at least May 2025. In this period, Eurostar's trains from London to Rotterdam also won't be functional.