Instagram influencers have found their latest target and locals are not happy.
Hoomaluhia Botanical Garden, the largest botanical garden on the Hawaiian island of Oahu, has become a hit with those looking for dreamy images to increase their social media followers.
On Instagram, a photo of the botanical garden's lush entrance went viral, and people have since come together in greater numbers to capture it for the Gram.
Officials say these viral vaccines are behind the increase in visitors: from just under 250,000 visitors in 2017 to more than 550,000 in 2022.
But the influx of visitors has repeatedly broken rules and ignored basic safety precautions in their attempts to get the perfect photo, local officials say.
Even a series of “no photography” and “no parking” signs at the entrance have not stopped the crowds.
“It's still a big problem,” said Honolulu Botanical Garden Director Joshlyn Sand. SF gate. “People will just ignore the signs. “They will literally set up a photograph, you know, right next to the sign.”
“It's our entry point and it's very congested,” he continued. “It is a shared path. It's very narrow. There is no bike lane. There is no pedestrian lane, so you are sharing it with two cars, potentially, and with walkers, pedestrians and cyclists, so photography sessions just don't happen in that exact area.”
The director added that the problem has escalated “enough to be a headache” to the point that there have been some “close calls.”
He added: “To my knowledge, no one has been hurt, but it sure got sticky before.”
For now, entry to the botanical garden is free and no reservation is necessary to visit. However, the Honolulu Department of Parks and Recreation is considering changing that.
The Hoomaluhia Botanical Garden, which spans 400 acres, was built in the early 1980s by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers to prevent flooding in the city of Kaneohe.
“Hoomaluhia” means “to create a place of peace and tranquility” in the Hawaiian language. The gardens contain plants not only from Hawaii but also from Polynesia, the Philippines, Africa, Malaysia, tropical America, India and Sri Lanka.
This isn't the first time locals have been up in arms over masses of Instagram users.
Last year, in the small town of Pomfret, Vermont, the local government was forced to resort to drastic measures to stem the social media-fueled surge of anxious tourists causing traffic congestion while trying to capture the city's famous fall foliage. state.
Instagram users have been primarily drawn to “Sleepy Hollow Farm,” a popular sight in town that has generated thousands of photos of people standing on a lonely, leafy path.
Traffic reportedly clogged several secondary roads including Cloudland Road, a dirt road with stunning rural views used predominantly by locals. However, during the peak “leaf peeping” season in the fall, tourists and influencers caused the secondary road to become congested. At the time, local farmer Mike Doten told the Boston Globe that leaf-peeping tourists hampered the basic safety of local residents.
“There's no way a fire truck or an ambulance can go up this road in the middle of foliage season,” he said. “It's just too crowded.”
Beautiful places around the world are struggling with overtourism, and experts encourage visitors and travel influencers to comply with local rules and regulations, no matter how interested they are in getting the perfect photo.
