Overtourism threatens fragile Alpine landscapes in Trentino
The mountain landscapes of Trentino are facing a dual crisis: climate change and overtourism. Once revered for their inviolability and inaccessibility, these Alpine areas are now overrun by tourism infrastructure, losing their wild character. The Val Genova, a glacial valley of sublime beauty, is plagued by traffic and overcrowded shuttles, while the Lago di Molveno area suffers from unchecked hotel expansion. Even the Dolomitic peaks of the Latemar see crowds at 1,600 meters, bypassing educational trails. Paradoxically, the reintroduced brown bear population in the 1990s is restoring a sense of respect and ancestral unease, reminding locals of their place in the natural hierarchy. The bear's presence has redefined human-mountain relations, reintroducing a healthy insecurity that reveals the ephemeral nature of humanity before nature.
Key facts
- Climate change is causing glacier retreat, drying streams and lakes, and extreme weather like Storm Vaia which uprooted 42 million trees.
- The Nave d'Oro inn in Predazzo once hosted geographers like Dolomieu and von Humboldt.
- Val Genova is connected to Pinzolo by crowded 'luna park' trains and suffers from car traffic allowed in the natural park.
- Molveno has seen uncontrolled expansion of hotels and residences, with a crowded cable car to the Pradel plateau.
- The Latemar geotrail Dos Capèl at 2,200 meters is avoided by overtourism crowds who instead gather at 1,600 meters.
- Bears were reintroduced to Trentino in the 1990s and now influence local behavior, such as walking dogs or whistling in the woods.
- The bear's presence has restored a sense of wildness and insecurity to the landscape.
- Gabriele Mulè is the author of the article.
Entities
Institutions
- Artribune
- Amazon
Locations
- Trentino
- Predazzo
- Val Genova
- Pinzolo
- Lago di Molveno
- Molveno
- Pradel
- Latemar
- Dos Capèl
- Giudicarie
- Lomasona
- Adamello-Brenta
- Presanella
- Nardis
- Sarca