Avoid these 15 popular travel destinations in 2025, Fodor’s experts warn — here’s why

If you’re planning your 2025 vacations already, you might want to avoid these places.

Fodor’s has released its 2025 “No List” — a list of destinations that tourists should reconsider visiting because they are “suffering from untenable popularity” and “collapsing under the burden of their own prominence.”

The travel guide starts with Perennial No List Destinations, which “keep getting called out, but things don’t seem to improve. And in many cases, they’re getting worse.”

Topping the perennial list is Bali, Indonesia, where overtourism has created a “plastic apocalypse.”

Fodor’s noted that Bali’s tourism industry and environment are trapped in a vicious, “fragile” cycle: The economy thrives on hospitality, which relies on the natural landscapes.

The island had around 5.3 million international visitors in 2023, according to the Central Bureau of Statistics for Bali Province. That has boosted the economy but strained the infrastructure, leaving once-pristine beaches buried under piles of trash.

“Overtourism affects the very core of Balinese life,” Kristin Winkaffe, a sustainable travel expert focusing on Southeast Asia, told Fodor’s. “Without change, we’re risking more than just beautiful scenery—we’re at risk of losing cultural identity itself.”

Also making the perennial list are “European destinations where locals don’t want you.”

This summer, protests broke out over tourism in places such as Barcelona, Mallorca, the Canary Islands and Venice.

In places like Lisbon, and virtually all popular European destinations, the cost of housing and living has been driven up by tourism. About 60% of dwellings in Lisbon are now vacation accommodations, reducing supply and increasing demand and costs, according to Fodor’s

Koh Samui, Thailand, also made the list, and while it’s always suffered from overtourism, many fear what will happen when the new season of the Max hit drama “The White Lotus” — which will be set in the country — premieres in 2025.

The strain tourism could have on Koh Samui might turn “unmanageable” if “The White Lotus” has the same effect that it did on Sicily.

Mount Everest was also cautioned against due to a degrading environment and huge safety concerns for local workers, as well as climbers themselves.

“The crowds, trash, and cultural dilution in the Everest region put me off guiding,” Amit Khadka, a former Everest Base Camp guide who is now engaged with KEEP, said. “I couldn’t offer my clients a good experience with all that trash and crowds. I felt guilty for being there, contributing to overtourism.”

The list continues to a section of “Destinations Beginning to Suffer,” identified as places that need to be proactive “before it becomes too late.”

Those locations include Agrigento in southwestern Sicily, Italy — which is preparing to be the Italian Capital of Culture in 2025 — as well as the British Virgin Islands; Kerala, India; the Japanese cities of Kyoto and Tokyo; Oaxaca, Mexico; and Scotland North Coast 500 (NC500).

“While these destinations may not have garnered widespread media attention highlighting their dire situations, industry insiders have started expressing concerns based on their observations and experiences,” Fodor’s explained.

The travel guide explains that the destinations on the list “deserve the fame and adoration they receive,” and they are worthy of time and money spent — but the challenges they face are real.

“The ‘No List’ serves to highlight destinations where tourism is placing unsustainable pressures on the land and local communities,” the travel guide says, though Fodor’s clarifies that it does not support travel boycotts as they harm local economies and do not bring about “meaningful change.”

Fodor’s 2025 No List

Perennial No List:

• Bali, Indonesia
• European destinations where locals don’t want you – Barcelona, Mallorca, Venice, the Canary Islands and Lisbon
• Koh Samui, Thailand
• Mount Everest

Destinations beginning to suffer:

• Agrigento in Sicily, Italy
• British Virgin Islands
• Kerala, India
• Kyoto and Tokyo, Japan
• Oaxaca, Mexico
• Scotland North Coast 500