Lonely Planet’s best destinations list tackles overtourism

Skanderbeg Monument in Tirana, Albania. Photo: Wikimedia Commons

Lonely Planet’s 2018 picks for the best destinations to visit in Europe are not household names. A few may even be new for some readers. But that’s the point, editors say, given the crisis of overtourism sweeping the region.

Topping LP’s Best in Europe 2018 list, for instance, is Emilia-Romagna, a region in northern Italy that is often overlooked by tourists in favour of Florence, Venice and Rome. But for food lovers, the region is a cradle of Italian gastronomy, as the birthplace of ragu, prosciutto di Parma, balsamic vinegar and Parmesan cheese.