Intrepid Travel is trying to combat crowds.
The company is doing so by expanding its European destinations and offering more departures during off-peak travel times.
Research suggests that American travelers are keen on visiting Europe in the next two years but concern over overcrowding in popular destinations has led to the travel industry discussing how to prevent high-traffic places from becoming overrun with visitors.
"Developing the new frontiers of Europe is critical for combatting overtourism," said Leigh Barnes, North America director for Intrepid Travel. "Together, the travel industry can better preserve the social fabric of these iconic destinations and allow future generations to enjoy Europe as we have."
One of the ways to prevent overcrowding is to entice and encourage travelers to discover new, up-and-coming destinations.
Brand-new tours from Intrepid in 2018 include a variety of alternative and undiscovered European destinations such as the Ukraine, Romania, Moldova, Belarus, Finland and more.
"We have long been concerned about overtourism and its impacts, but this summer, the topic has come up as one of the biggest issues facing the travel industry," said Barnes. "Our style of travel is focused on low-impact, off the beaten path experiences, so in developing our 2018 Europe product, we wanted to focus on new frontiers that stand to benefit from more tourism."
One of the most exciting new European tours travels to a post-Soviet gem, Moldova. The country sees 121,000 visitors in a year, which is the number of visitors that popular Croatia sees every three days.
Get there on the Ukraine & Romania Explorer tour and visit Milestii Mici winery, the world's largest wine cellar, and sample caviar and cognac at one of the largest fish hatcheries in Europe. Visitors will also travel to the republic of Transnistria, a ghost of the Soviet past, and marvel at Orheiul Vechi, a 14th-century cave monastery and UNESCO site built inside a cliff.
[READMORE]READ MORE: Global Tourism is at a Crowded Crossroads[/READMORE]
Combine off-peak with off the beaten path on the eight-day Winter Tatra Adventure. Poland's Tatra Mountains are the alternative to the Alps and a new haven for European skiers looking for something new. The region has stepped up air service, making easier to access and Intrepid's Tatra Adventure includes snowshoeing, sleigh rides and traditional Polish cooking classes.
For those still wanting stops in iconic European destinations, Intrepid is offering more departure dates.
"We are also focused on offering experiences for travelers to visit Europe between October and March, which is widely considered the off-season," noted Barnes. "We've increased our European departures for this time period by 220 percent since 2016, which is a vital part of the solution to overtourism."
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