Watch How These 12 Amazing Landmarks Get Ruined By Tourists

Galápagos Islands, Ecuador

Once a remote and isolated archipelago, the Galápagos have experienced a boom in tourism with people desperate to see their natural wonders. There were 1,000 tourists per year in the 1960s, when tourism first began, which swelled to 180,000 in 2007.

There are major concerns about the impact on the once-pristine environment. So much so that they were listed as an endangered UNESCO World Heritage Site in 2007 due in part to the impact of tourism.

If you’re expecting an edge-of-the-world paradise, you’ll be disappointed. There’s been a massive population growth to match the tourist influx – clearly evident in the souvenir shop-laden Puerto Ayora, Santa Cruz’s main town.

Tighter regulations are now in place to help preserve the fragile ecology and extraordinarily diverse wildlife, including limitations on boats, but you may have to dodge fellow camera-wielding visitors as you attempt to snap the photogenic locals.