Holiday hotspot makes move to ban cruise ships in attempt to fight ‘overtourism’
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Cannes will no longer roll out the red carpet for giant cruise ships carrying more than 1,000 passengers, city councillors have announced.
Starting next year, the French Riviera city, best known for its glamorous film festival, says the move is aimed at tackling overtourism and protecting its coastline.
It follows other European hotspots that have banned huge liners from their shores and imposed passenger restrictions.
Cannes city councillors voted Friday to introduce new limits on cruise ships entering its ports starting in January 2026.
Only ships with fewer than 1,000 passengers will be allowed into the port, with a maximum of 6,000 passengers disembarking per day.
Larger ships will be expected to transfer passengers to smaller boats to enter Cannes. The council said the goal was for cruise ships to be ‘less numerous, less big, less polluting and more aesthetic’.
Mayor David Lisnard said: ‘Cannes has become a major cruise ship destination, with real economic benefits. It’s not about banning cruise ships, but about regulating, organising, setting guidelines for their navigation.’
France – which drew in some 100 million visitors last year, more than any other European country and more than the country’s population – is on the front line of efforts to balance economic benefits of tourism with environmental concerns while managing ever-growing crowds.
Cannes will no longer roll out the red carpet for giant cruise ships carrying more than 1,000 passengers
Cannes city councillors voted Friday to introduce new limits on cruise ships entering its ports starting in January 2026.
A huge cruise ship pictured anchoring in Cannes bay in front of the beach
The small city hosts around three million tourists to its shores each year
The neighbouring city of Nice announced limits on cruise ships, which are set to start on July 1. Venice banned large liners in 2021, followed by Amsterdam and Barcelona in 2023.
Cruise operators have called such restrictions damaging for destinations and for passengers.
Two cruise ships were scheduled to dock in Cannes yesterday, each bigger than the upcoming 1,000-passenger limit and with a combined capacity of more than 7,000 people. Their owners did not immediately respond to requests for comment on the new restrictions.
The French city was crowned the world’s best destination for festivals and events by the World Travel Awards in 2023 and 2022, in what is considered the ‘Oscars of Tourism’.
The city welcomes around three million tourists each year, according to DeplacmentsPros, with around 10 per cent of those arriving in Cannes for the iconic film festival.
The city itself has a population of around 75,000, but attracts huge numbers for the festival each year.
