The past decade has seen a vast rise in social media use, with Facebook reporting three billion active users and Instagram over two billion, around a quarter of the global population. With such an exhaustive amount of users, endless streams of content are pumped out daily – and some are welcomed more than others.
Some of the most popular online posts fall into the category of travel content, where influencers share secrets and travel tips about their favourite destinations. However, some of these smaller destinations have gone viral online following particularly popular social media posts viewed by millions, and are finding it difficult to keep up with the resulting influx of visitors.
With video streaming platform TikTok giving people the ability to go viral overnight, sights can become global sensations in minutes, giving the destinations little time to cope.
“TikTok’s algorithms mean that videos can go viral a lot quicker than on YouTube or Instagram,” Dina Zubi told The Telegraph.
“That means quirky sights or picturesque spots can reach millions of users within a few hours.”
Below are some of the world’s most beautiful destinations become victims of their own popularity.
Angkor Wat, Cambodia
Cambodia’s Angkor Wat has been a site frequented by tourists for decades. Many of the young people paying a visit to the country on popular ‘gap year’ or South East Asia trips are respectful of the heritage site, but a new worrying trend has seen some harmful repercussions.
Conservationists have criticised a ‘Real Life Temple Run’ video trend that has become popular on TikTok, where people film themselves running through the ancient ruins as it happens in a popular mobile game.
Angered locals have branded this trend as insensitive, adding it poses a risk of damage to the site.
(Image: Getty)
Pomfret, Vermont (USA)
As August has drawn to a close and autumn is creeping up on us, many tourists are enjoying admiring the changing colours of trees.
While your local park’s trees shedding their leaves may be good enough for some, others have been chasing the ‘perfect’ autumn destination, which social media has crowned as a small town in New England, in the state of Vermont, USA.
The tiny town of Pomfret looks like something straight out of an early 2000s TV drama, with picturesque views and a quaint vibe. However, villagers are less than impressed with the tourists coming along with their selfie sticks, and the town’s farmland has now been closed to non-residents for three weeks over September and October to ward away trespassers.
(Image: Getty)