The medieval fortress town of Monemvasia in southern Greece, built on a steep rock island, connected to the mainland by a narrow causeway, is currently in danger of another invasion: tourists. Because of its picturesque old-world charm and a coastal view best seen from high, it also has the potential of being overrun by tourists — if it gets a cable car that makes getting to the top of the rock easy for day trippers disembarking from cruise ships.
“We could become a small Mykonos,” said one fearful resident to the New York Times in This Medieval Greek Fortress Is a Tourist Idyll. Would a Cable Car Spoil It?
Monemvasia’s fortified walls made it nearly impregnable to old world invaders. But today’s invaders, the invaders, have found its old-world charm irresistible. The town’s residents fear too many more of them will only upset the tranquility of this quaint town, raise prices and cause new construction projects — as tourists have done in other European places.
The controversy started when authorities proposed a cable car line to the peak above the historic castle town which is currently accessible only via a steep, winding, 240-yard stone path. A tiring hike for some and impossible for the old and infirm.
Those in support of the cable car argue that the old residents who can no longer climb up to the top “miss the view.” Mayor Iraklis Tricheilis says the cable car will be good for them plus good for visitors with visitors with limited mobility. But many town residents see building a cable car as a cultural and existential threat and say it risks transforming a medieval jewel into a tourist trap, replacing solitude with spectacle and serenity with bustle.
Legal action against the proposal is underway. The cable car opponents have filed an appeal to the Council of State and sought recognition under Europa Nostra’s endangered heritage program. They say local issues, such as inadequate water supply, poor sewage infrastructure, wheelchair access in the lower town and hazardous cobbled streets, should take priority over attracting more tourists.