Swiss Town Bans Tourists From Taking Photos

Kai Brühne, Wikimedia Commons // CC BY-SA 3.0
Kai Brühne, Wikimedia Commons // CC BY-SA 3.0 | Kai Brühne, Wikimedia Commons // CC BY-SA 3.0

In the Swiss village of Bergün/Bravuogn, snapping a photo of a picturesque field of flowers or a spectacular mountain view will cost you. The town in eastern Switzerland is instituting a fine on tourists taking photos, according to Travel + Leisure.

On May 30, the town announced on its Facebook page that it had passed a regulation banning photos over concerns that seeing the incredible beauty of the Swiss village would cause people on social media complete misery. (FOMO is real!) Home to beautiful mountain vistas, a UNESCO-protected railway, and some very photogenic cows, the place does scream #nofilter. The ban is a publicity stunt—clearly an effective one, since we now know where Bergün is—but it’s a real law. If it were enforced, it would only cost you around $5.60 (€5), though.

Luckily, it won’t be. A day later, the mayor released a video announcing a special photography permit that would be granted to anyone with a camera. We can safely assume that Bergün Mayor Peter Nicolay, the face of the ban, would actually be delighted if you did a whole photo tour of his village and posted it on every social media channel possible. And really, who can resist a great Alps photo?

Just look at these photogenic cows!