Tourism can benefit both visitors to and residents of many beautiful places, but such benefits require understanding and respect.
A user on the r/VisitingIceland subreddit posted about a tourist incident they witnessed that left them confused and put off.
As a fellow tourist, they were visiting an iconic plane wreck in Iceland and spotted a man ignoring the clear signage that prohibited onlookers from climbing the plane itself.
The man decided to pull himself up onto the nose of the wreck, which caused the worn metal to sag under his weight.
The Redditor who caught the act explained how, as another person touring the space, they were "so annoyed" since the crashed plane is "fragile, decades old, and a historical piece."
When tourist attractions are disrespected, no matter how popular they are, no one wins.
The rules exist for a reason, both to protect those enjoying the sites and the places themselves.
Climbing a broken-down plane wreck poses a great risk to people's health and is an encouragement for others to disregard the wishes of those caring for historical spaces.
Tourist attractions are meant to be toured, as their name implies, but those attracted to them should still value others who want to see the sights, not just themselves.
Rules and signage are not only for the people exploring dangerous wrecks like the one the original poster referenced. Oftentimes, they also protect various wildlife in the area.
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Definitely 👍 Visitors may not know the intricacies of the local flora and fauna and could potentially disturb or even harm them just by ignoring the regulations they were supposed to follow.
Although the climber thankfully didn't injure himself or the surrounding environment, his behavior sets a precedent of disobeying the rules — one that has many times caused detriment to other tourist sites.
Commenters on the Reddit post were in agreement with the OP, with some noting the precariousness of the situation: "It's incredibly dangerous too to climb on such rusty old structures. One bad cut and then you have to go find a hospital."
One spoke about their own visit and cautioned others to "be careful out there! All that bent up sheet metal is sharp."
Another even related how they went "to the geysers a few years ago and being staggered by the fact that they had to have this sign saying repeatedly, 'please don't touch this red hot steaming corrosive water, the nearest hospital is 62km away.'"
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