CAPRI ISLAND ITALY: The risk of exploding under the weight of mass, tourism.

       Holiday warning : mayer of the capri  island italy.

Located in Italy's Bay of Naples, Capri has long been favoured for its exclusive holiday appeal.

From designer hotels and shopping to the famed Blue Grotto sea cave which glows electric blue, the island is a major tourist destination. 

But Capri’s mayor has issued a stark warning that its future is severely under threat. 

Giovanni De Martino told  “There’s the risk that Capri could explode — you can’t fit a litre and a half of water into a one litre bottle.

“We welcome tourists but two million a year is bit too much.”

Capri is inundated with up to 15,000 tourists each day during the peak months of summer. 

Cruise ship passengers comprise a significant proportion of them, while package holiday tourists in large groups carve out another large slice. 

A staggering 80 per cent are tourists on day trips from Naples and Sorrento, who flood the town’s narrow streets and tiny restaurants. 

The mayor said: “We don’t want to limit arrivals and we are very reluctant to talk about a fixed number of people being allowed to visit the island each day. But we do want people to come at a less frenetic pace.”

Italy has soared in popularity as a holiday destination this year due to ongoing terror threats in traditional European tourist zones like France, Turkey and Tunisia.