This Italian Village Is Restricting Access to Its Famous Church on Instagram

For more than a decade, images of the Church of Santa Maddalena in Val di Funes, a small village in South Tyrol, northern Italy surrounded by jagged peaks of the Dolomites, have circulated online, causing a flood of visitors last summer.

Local authorities took action by introducing restrictions aimed at limiting day tourism (come and go), reducing pressure on the village.

Starting next May, access to villages near the church, which is listed as a UNESCO World Heritage Site, will be restricted by a barrier that only allows entry for residents and visitors who stay at least one night in the area, according to the local city government.

Meanwhile, tourist cars and buses that bring visitors a day will be rejected.

Those who visit for a day - up to 600 people during peak season - have to walk for 30 minutes or more from the designated parking area to reach the church.

However, the city government has not decided whether shuttle services will be introduced for visitors who cannot walk.

Once the village parking lot reaches full capacity, drivers will be asked to park even further away, said Peter Pernthaler, mayor of the surrounding Funes District, who told CNN that the screened entry system will operate from May to November.

Currently the parking fee is 4 euros - just under $5 - per day, but Pernthaler said the price would go up to deter visitors who come just to take photos.

"I don't want to talk about overtourism. That's not the right word," he said, as reported by CNN (3/3).

"I'm not even saying that tourists are a nuisance. But many of them come, and we have to manage them. For the peace of mind of the residents and also to ensure a positive experience for the tourists themselves," he explained.

The revival of Santa Maddalena as a popular place on social media has been going on for years. The church gained initial appeal among Chinese tourists after appearing on SIM cards issued by Chinese mobile phone operators more than a decade ago.

Nearby Mount Seceda was then featured as a screensaver in Apple's iOS 7 update in 2013, sparking a wave of visitors wanting to see the image in person - with daily numbers reportedly reaching 8,000 at peak hours.

Both locations have since become popular on TikTok and Instagram, attracting what locals describe as "tourists who come and go" - visitors who document the sights before leaving soon, contributing little to the local economy while putting pressure on infrastructure.

Daily tourists crowd the narrow streets and block visitors who stay longer, according to council member Roswitha Moret Niederwolfsgruber.

"They destroy everything around them just to get a photo," he told CNN.

"This is unsustainable, there is no balance," he said.

Local officials stressed that the goal is not to completely hinder tourism, but to slow it down.

"There are professional photographers who come here, and there are tourists who can't wait to take a simple selfie and leave," said Pernthaler.

"Some people stop and stay here for days, but some come and go in an hour and a half," he said.

Efforts to curb mass tourism are not new in this area. Last summer, Georg Rabanser - a former Italian national snowboarder who owns a meadow near Seceda - installed a turnstile to charge visitors who crossed his land to photograph the view of the church of San Giovanni di Ranui across the valley. The move, he later told CNN, actually attracted more tourists.

Pernthaler himself faced a negative reaction to the restrictions, but said he did not want to be remembered as "the mayor who chased away tourists."

Instead, he described the measures as part of a broader "slow tourism" push, encouraging visitors to swap hectic tourist activities for longer and deeper visits.

Law enforcement would cost money, require additional patrols, but Pernthaler argued it was a necessary investment.

"We need order, both for those who live here and for those who want to come, take classic photos, and leave," he told local media.