Amsterdam is prohibiting cruise ships from reducing tourism. The city council of Amsterdam has approved a proposal banning “polluting” cruise ships as part of the city’s latest effort to curb over-tourism.
A spokesperson for Amsterdam Deputy Mayor Hester van Buren, who is in charge of the city’s port, told CNN that the city council approved a proposal to shutter the cruise ship terminal on Thursday.
On Thursday, the council-sitting center-left party D66 said the proposal was “adopted with a clear majority.”
Read more: United reports record earnings and forecasts robust summer quarter profits.
According to van Buren’s spokesman, Amsterdam will now investigate how to implement the proposal. This includes discussions with the North Sea Canal managers, the councils of other communities on the canal, and the Dutch government.
Ilana Rooderkerk, the chairperson of the D66 party, emphasized in a statement that “polluting cruise ships do not align with Amsterdam’s sustainable goals.”
“Cruise ships in the heart of the city do not fit Amsterdam’s goal of reducing the number of tourists,” Rooderkerk said.
This year, more than 18 million overnight visitors are anticipated in Amsterdam. This number could reach 23 million by 2025, with an additional 24 million to 25 million day visits. Under a 2021 ordinance “Amsterdam Tourism in Balance,” the council must intervene when overnight visitors exceed 18 million.
This year, the city launched a campaign to revamp its tourism approach, including strategies to discourage British visitors from attending stag parties.
The online “Stay Away” campaign intended to dissuade young British men between 18 and 35 from “going wild” in Amsterdam by highlighting the negative consequences of excessive drinking, drug use, and antisocial behavior.
This year, Amsterdam also announced that it would prohibit public marijuana use and adopt new measures to discourage alcohol consumption in its red light district, the traditional hub of the city’s legal sex trade.
The city announced in 2019 that it would halt tours of the red light district, citing concerns about the treatment of sex workers as a tourist attraction.
To “limit tourism and prevent nuisance,” Amsterdam plans to restrict river cruises, convert hotels into offices, and enforce earlier closure times for bars and nightclubs.
However, it is unlikely that the city center will become a cruise-free zone soon, according to the deputy mayor’s spokesperson, who told CNN that the proposal would “take some time” to implement.
