Could 'the Venice of the Cotswolds' end up devoid of residents? Bourton-on-the-Water's civic chief says overtourism has killed village life - with residents avoiding going out at peak times and shying away from community

See more Daily Mail on Google - save us as a Preferred Source Published: 06:35 EDT, 4 September 2026 | Updated: 06:38 EDT, 4 September 2026 Bourton-on-the-Water, often dubbed the 'Venice of the Cotswolds' for the river that flows through its centre, is one of the UK's most prominent victims of overtourism.Now, councillor Jon Wareing, who represents the village at Cotswold District Council, has expressed his concern that the number of visitors has destroyed village life in the idyllic riverside spot.Bourton-on-the-Water has just 4,000 residents – a number far outweighed by the number of tourists who visit the town each year, estimated to be around 300,000. The civic chief has called for a 'coalition of the willing' to deal with the problems at hand arising from this discrepancy between tourists and locals.Last month, a 'polite' protest took place on Bourton's streets in response to rampant overtourism.There were no arrests, but some 100 residents gathered on the village green by the River Windrush at 8am, holding a few placards and wearing T-shirts with 'We love tourists' printed on the front and 'Just not this many!' on the back. Picturesque village Bourton-on-the-Water has been overrun by tourists District and Parish Councillor Jon Wareing has expressed his concernHowever, the councillor said residents have avoided the town centre during peak times, and there has been a loss of sense of community as a result, the Cotswold Journal revealed.He argued it is now a village learning to live without its villagers.He said: 'It is simply not about seeking to regulate or control tourism. It's about considering how local and national government think about what sustainable communities mean in practice.'There appear to be no mechanisms at present geared to determining whether a settlement can continue to perform its essential functions as a place in which people can live, work and build a community when exposed to an economic model that values intensity of visitor presence. 'That is a planning question, not simply a tourism-management question. I am seeking to build a coalition of the willing amongst all the relevant local authorities to take this issue forward.'The first step is to ensure that people see and understand the driving forces. If they don't, we're sleepwalking into a future where claims about community, affordable housing, and fewer cars on the road are simply rhetorical pipe-dreams.' Thousands of tourists and day-trippers flock to one of the Cotswolds' 'prettiest villages' Bourton's county councillor Paul Hodgkinson has echoed his concerns: 'Yes it brings jobs and stimulates the economy which is important but it also has to balance the needs of people who live here.'But the situation also needs a blueprint for how to plan for and manage the sheer numbers of people wanting to visit and move to our area.'Being an iconic destination with the likes of Harry and Meghan arriving means the Cotswolds attracts even more attention.'Great to be attractive but homes become even more expensive and out of the reach of young people trying to stay local and get onto the housing ladder.'It comes after Bourton-on-the-Water introduced new parking charges for tourists to allow residents access to parking spaces in the morning – and then charge visitors coming for the day later on. New measures aimed to make parking more challenging for day visitors, hoping to combat the mass overtourism affecting the region.The Daily Mail has contacted Bourton-on-the-Water and the Cotswolds council for comment.