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- [00:31]
B
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C
Hello, I'm Claudia. I was born and raised in Sardinia and I still live here. I'm the person behind both the Streetlist Rodina blog and this podcast where I share practical tips trips to help you plan your trip to Sardinia in the last episode, I compared the La Maddalena archipelago with the Baune coast to help you decide which to visit. If you have limited time in Sardinia this week, I want to share my thoughts on something I see people saying online all the time that influencers are ruining Sardinia. Now, before we start, make sure to check the episode description. That's where you'll find the link to my blog. On the blog, I go into much more detail on destinations across the island and you'll find hotel recommendations, tours, itineraries, and all the practical information you need to plan your trip. You'll also find a link to book a one hour travel consultation with me if you'd like personalized advice. Now, let's get started. A few weeks ago, I came across yet another comment online. It's something like Influencers have ruined Sardinia. Sometimes it's Instagram that supposedly ruins sardinia. Sometimes it's travel bloggers, sometimes it's people making reels. Sometimes, apparently, it's tourists sharing beautiful beaches. And every now and then someone says something like stop telling people about these places or keep the hidden gems secret. I understand where those comments come from. If you've been visiting Sardinia for 20 or 30 years, you've probably noticed that things have changed some. Some beaches are much busier Parking fills up earlier than it used to. You now need reservations for certain beaches. Not all. Not all. Only 17 or 18 out of hundreds of beaches we have in Sardinia. But tours sell out during the summer, accommodation prices have increased in many destinations, and it's easy to look at all of that and think this must be because of social media. Honestly, I think the reality is much more complicated than that. And because I spend every day day researching Sardinia, writing about it, answering travelers questions, and help people plan their trips, I thought I'd explain how I see it. The first thing I'd like to say is that I don't actually think of myself as an influencer. Technically, some people would probably put me into that category because I have a blog, social media accounts, and this podcast, but that's never really been my focus. I'm a travel blogger. More specifically, I describe myself as a Sardinia travel expert. That distinction matters to me because I think those two jobs are often confused. What Many people hear the word influencer. They imagine somebody who travels somewhere beautiful, takes a few photographs, films a couple of short videos, posts them online, and moves on to the next destination. There is nothing inherently wrong with that. But that's not what I do. My work usually starts long before I even think about taking a photograph. If I'm updating one of my guides, I might spend an entire day driving around a specific destination on the island, revisiting places I've already visited several times before. I'll check whether parking rules have changed, whether reservation system has been introduced, whether a hiking trail is temporary closed, whether restaurants are recommended. Last year is still words recommended, whether the ferry schedules have changed or beach facilities have improved or deteriorated. Stuff like that. Then I go back home and spend hours writing, editing, fact checking, and updating articles that people may read in 10 minutes. Most of that work isn't visible. Nobody sees the spreadsheets, the notes, the hours I spend checking official municipal websites, or reading local regulations. Nobody sees me answering hundreds of questions for travelers every month on Facebook, via email, on Instagram. But that's where the real work happens. My goal isn't simply to convince someone to visit Sardinia. It's to help them have a better trip once they've already decided to come. It's a very different objective. One thing I'm particularly proud of is that I don't just write about the places everyone already knows about. If you've followed my work for a while, you've probably noticed that I spent a lot of time encouraging people to explore beyond the obvious. Of course, I've Written about Cala Golorize, La Pelosa, Tuedda, Calaco, Titcio. People are going to visit these places whether I write about them or not. If someone is planning to go there, I'd rather they have accurate information than arrive completely unprepared. But I also spend a huge amount of time writing about villages like Serdiana, where my mom is from, Carlo Forte, the Sinis Peninsula, the area of Iglesia, small archaeological sites most visitors have never heard of, sceneries, hiking trails or places in Siltron Sardinia that people simply drive past. Why? Because Sardinia is so much more than five famous beaches, and one of my main goals has always been to spread visitors across the island instead of concentrating everybody exactly in the same places. I also encourage people to visit outside the busiest months whenever possible. If everyone wants to come during the second week of August, it's inevitable that the beaches will feel crowded. But Savini isn't only beautiful in August. May is fantastic for hiking and wildflowers, June has long days and pleasant temperatures. September is warm enough for swimming, and October is wonderful for food, festivals, villages and wine experiences. Spreading tourism across a longer season benefits everybody. Visitors have a better experience, businesses enjoy a longer working season, and the pressure on the most famous beaches is reduced. That's something I talk about constantly. I also spend a lot of time explaining how to visit beach popular places responsibly. If reservations are required, I explain how to book them. If a beach has limited access, I explain why. If there are boardworks across protected dunes, I explain why visitors should stay on them. If collecting sandy shells is illegal, I explain the reasons behind the law. Sometimes people complain about these rules. People generally think they don't make sense. But I think most of them do make sense, because the beaches we admire today are still still beautiful precisely because someone decided to protect them. Without those protections, many of them would have suffered irreversible damage years ago. Now, does every content creator approach things this way? No. And I think it's important to acknowledge that there are creators who ignore the rules because getting the perfect photograph is more important than protecting the place they're visiting. I've seen people climbing over protected dunes, flying drones when they're prohibited, walking into restricted areas, landing boats where they shouldn't. One example is every single year, the beautiful pink beach in Budeli Island. Stepping over fences, removing shells, ignoring warning signs. Sometimes they even encourage other people to do exactly the same thing. I don't support that at all. If your content requires damaging the place you're promoting, then something has gone very wrong. The irony is that many of these rules are there to make life difficult. They're there because the environment is fragile. The dunes protect the coastline. The Positonia seagrass keeps the water clear and helps reduce coastal erosion. Protected nesting areas exist before because wildlife needs space too. And one person ignoring those rules may not seem like a big deal. But tourism isn't one person. It's millions of people. If everyone thinks it's only me, the cumulative damage becomes enormous. At the same time, I don't think it's fair to blame every travel creator for overtourism. Sometimes people talk as though Cerdina was undiscovered paradise until Instagram appeared. That simply isn't true. Cerdina has been an international holiday destination for decades. The Emerald coast started attracting wealthy international visitors in the 1960s. Charter flights have been bringing tourists here for generations, and guidebooks have recommended the islands for years. That came online, booking platforms, cheap flights, Google Maps, YouTube, travel television, podcasts, cruise ships, search engines, travel forums, recommendations from friends and family, and yes, social media too. They all influence people's decision. It is very easy to point at one viral Instagram reel and say, that's why this beach is so crowded. Reality doesn't work like that. Tourism is influenced by hundreds of different factors. In many cases, social media simply accelerates trends that were already happening. In fact, plenty of people visit Sardinia without ever opening Instagram. Some discovered the island because of a guidebook, because they found an inexpensive flight, because their friends recommended it, because they watched Stanley Tucci's television series, where I also participated, by the way, because they wanted beautiful beaches somewhere in the Mediterranean. And social media is only a piece of a much bigger puzzle. There's another argument I hear quite often. People say we should stop talking about certain places altogether and that we should keep beaches a secret. Or, you know, a particular destination on the island. The secret I understand the emotion behind that. We all have places that are special to us. Places connected to childhood memories, Places where we found peace. And watching those places become busier can be difficult. But I don't think secrecy is a realistic solution. Has never been easier to find. If someone wants to know about a beach today, they'll probably discover about that beach within a few minutes. The question isn't whether they will find it. The question is what information they will find. Will they watch a 15 second reel that simply shows turquoise water? Or will they read a detailed guide explaining how to get there, what rules apply, where to park, when to arrive, how to avoid the business time and why? Environment needs protecting. I know which option I'd rather people have. I generally believe education works better than secrecy. And if someone is determined to visit Cala Golorize, I'd rather they understand exactly how to visit responsibly than relying on complete information. Good information encourages better behavior. Poor information creates confusion, and confusion often leads to to mistakes. As someone born and raised here, I also think it's important to remember something else. Tourism isn't the enemy. Thousands of Sardinian families depends on tourism. Hotels, restaurants, secreturismi, boat operators, guides, museums, wineries, beach kiosks, shops. Tourism creates employment across the island. It's not the only source of livelihood for us, but it's an important one. The challenge isn't stopping people from visiting. The challenge is making tourism sustainable. And that's a completely different conversation. Visitors should respect local communities, the environment, support local businesses, follow the rules, understand that their guests leave places exactly as they found them. If everyone did those things, tourism would be a much smaller problem. Finally, I'd like to say something to anyone creating travel content. Whether you have 100 followers or a million, we all have some responsibility. If you're encouraging people to visit places, we should also encourage them to protect those places. Mention the reservation system. Explain why drones aren't allowed. Show the board work instead of someone walking across the dunes. Recommend local businesses and talk about shoulder season. Introduce people to lesser known destinations and remind people that Sardinia is much bigger than the handful of beaches that dominate social media. Because if everyone keeps posting exactly the same five places, that's exactly where everyone will go. One of the reasons I love writing about Cerdina is that there are always somewhere new to discover. A village with a fascinating history, a family run winery, an archaeological site, a local festival. And that's the cerdina I try to show through my work. Not because I want to keep the famous places quiet or. And not because I want people to crowd the secret places. Because I just think that p Sardinia has much more to offer than what you see. So are influencers ruining Sardinia? My answer is no. Some creators certainly behave responsibly, some content encourages unrealistic expectations, and some people care more about views than conversation. That absolutely happens. But blaming every travel blogger, photographer or content creator ignores the much bigger picture. Tourism isn't going anywhere. The real challenge is making it better. Helping people travel more responsibly, helping them spread across the island, helping them visit at different times of year, helping them understand local culture, respect the environment, and leave Sardinia exactly as beautiful as they found it. If my work contributes even a little to that, then I'm happy to keep doing what I do because I genuinely believe education is far more powerful than secrecy. And that's exactly what I hope this podcast, my blog, and my Facebook community can help achieve. Before we finish, don't forget to check the episode description for today's episode. That's where you'll find the link to my blog. On the blog you'll find more details on places to visit in Sardinia, plus hotel options to tours and everything you need to plan your trip. You'll also find a link to book a one hour travel consultation with me next week. Finally, I'll be talking about Serdiana, my mom's hometown and a really authentic place to visit. Now, if you found my podcast episode helpful, share with anyone planning a trip to Sardinia and feel free to leave a rating or a review. And until next week, goodbye.
- [15:59]
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- [16:23]
A
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- [16:29]
B
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