Unease after village crowned world's most beautiful

The title of being the most beautiful village in the world is "completely a double-edged sword", the chair of Bibury Parish Council has said.

The small picturesque village in the Cotswolds, Gloucestershire, came top of the list when Forbes Magazine unveiled the 50 most beautiful villages in the world for 2025.

Despite having a population of 600, 20,000 visitors can flock there over the busiest of weekends in the summer.

Craig Chapman, chair of Bibury Parish Council, said the level of tourism the village faced was "problematic" and its attraction came "at a cost for locals".

He told BBC Radio Gloucestershire: "I'm fairly flabbergasted, having travelled the world, to believe we're the most attractive village in the world.

"It's a great honour but it's a little bit of a surprise, there's a lot of competition out there."

The village beat other locations such as Hallstatt in Austria, and Oia in Santorini, Greece.

Many of the thousands of tourists arrive on coaches but restrictions were introduced in May, including parking bays in the centre of the village being closed and new drop-off and pick-up points in their place.

Last month, tourists were asked to use smaller vehicles when visiting Bibury to help ease pressure.

"It's completely a double-edged sword," Mr Chapman said.

"The issue is very much about the mechanisms whereby people come to the village and when they come here, how they behave, where they park.

"The reality is we sit on a B-road. The road is narrow, there's one bridge across the River Coln, which is only wide enough for one vehicle.

"We've suffered greatly from congestion, particularly from the larger coaches."

He added there needed to be "harmony" between tourists and local visitors, and said the restrictions were helping.

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