Iconic landmark shuts to public after being overrun by tourists | World | News

A popular Australian tourist attraction is set to be cut off from public access amid fears it is being destroyed by high visitor numbers. Lincoln’s Rock, a cliff edge offering sweeping views of New South Wales’ Blue Mountains, has long been a favourite spot for travellers, but a recent boost in footfall has sparked fresh fears of danger to visitors and the local environment. A growing prominence on social media has seen up to 3,000 people swarm the unfenced cliff edge every day – an “alarming” trend that has forced officials to take action.

From Thursday, January 22, the lookout will shut for at least three months while solutions are developed to mitigate the site’s risks, Blue Mountains City Council said in a statement. The local authority also hit out at visitors who “have increasingly ignored safety warnings” and caused damage to the landmark while putting their lives at risk.

“Public safety is our absolute priority,” a spokesperson said. “The site will close for at least three months while we develop solutions to ensure safe access and manage the area’s rapid growth in visitation.”

Mayor Mark Greenhill suggested a recent spike in tourists was linked to K-pop singer Jennie Kim, of the band Blackpink, sharing a photo at the lookout with her 80 million followers in 2023.

“The spot where the K-pop star sat and posed is now sat on so often, there is actually a crater in the rock,” he said, as per the Mail.

“The growth has been so fast and alarming that it has meant our infrastructure on-the site can’t keep pace with the numbers that are coming there.”

“I don’t wait for someone to be killed before I act,” Mr Greenhill. “It’s too much – it’s too unsafe and it’s degrading the environment.”

Greater numbers of visitors has also meant a rise in instances of littering and vandalism, according to reports.

Wentworth Falls resident Jo Di Pietro told ABC News that people have been using the surrounding area as a toilet amid a lack of alternative options, and were destroying the vegetation with their incessant footfall.

“They have used my front garden as a toilet and that’s quite a distance from the rock itself,” she said. “It’s a pretty location, but it’s sad to see it in such a state of disrepair.”

While there have been no recent incidents at the lookout, a 17-year-old boy slipped and fell around 30 metres from the cliff in 2017, with a 21-year-old falling from a ledge just below the rock three years later.

Overtourism has increasingly become a global challenge in recent years, fuelled by post-pandemic price cuts and previously “hidden” destinations attracting attention online.

It has caused overcrowding, rising local resentment, strained infrastructure and environmental damage in countries around the world, with residents making their voices heard in an outbreak of protests across Europe last summer.