Swiss town of Lavertezzo overrun with tourists after video goes viral

It's no surprise tourists are flocking to the quiet village of Lavertezzo. Photo / Creative Commons image by Flickr user Irene Grassi

This quiet village in Switzerland has become a sudden tourist attraction — but the locals aren't really loving it.

The mountainous town of Lavertezzo in the Swiss canton Ticino has seen an influx of visitors after a Facebook video went viral. But now locals are complaining that the sudden interest in their home is turning their idyllic valley into an "open air toilet".

Filmmaker Marco Capedri published a video of him and his friends frolicking in the emerald waters of the Verzasca river by an impressive double-arched stone bridge — it looks like something out of a fairytale.

LE MALDIVE DI MILANO

LE MALDIVE DI MILANO! Un magnifico Canyon attraversato da acque color smeraldo. *1 ora da Milano e 45 minuti da Varese* con Federico Sambruni

Posted by Capedit on Monday, 10 July 2017

The video, in which he dubbed Lavertezzo as the "Maldives of Milan", has had more than 2.6 million views since it was published on July 10.

And while tourism can certainly be a boon for small towns, Lavertezzo residents are not impressed with the filth their visitors are leaving behind.

The tourists "have no respect for anything", according to local Italian paper, La Repubblica.

Bottles, cigarettes, food packaging and cans have all been found in the water.

Speaking to the newspaper, Lavertezzo mayor Roberto Bacciarini said he was happy for the free publicity for their little town but said visitors needed to show some respect.

"He did a good job, but it would be a favour to us if he could ask his compatriots to park correctly and respect the rules of the place."