European cities see life without crowds of tourists – And want to keep it that way

The coronavirus shutdown has had a devastating effect on European city’s economy like Amsterdam, Prague and Barcelona. Tourism is the lifeblood of many of these continent’s historic cities, many hope the pandemic will end up changing tourism for the better.

According to Shaul Bassi, director of the International Center for the Humanities and Social Change at Ca’Foscari University in Venice; tourism is at a crossroads. Cities could return to the previous model of “tourism, tourism and more tourism,” he said. But, he added, “many others, including myself, see this as a precious window of opportunity to rethink and reinvent.”

Photo: Tom Parkes