Regina Simmons complained Positano, Italy, was full of tourists – and far from the portrayal on social media of a town with “calm empty streets” and “amazing views”
A holidaymaker has described her “complete chaos” trip to an Italian seaside town which she said was “shoulder to shoulder” with tourists.
Regina Simmons, 38, was excited to visit Positano, Italy, after seeing “amazing views” and “calm empty streets” in photographs and videos on social media, including TikTok. After the mother of two had flown 10 hours from her home in Las Vegas, Nevada, she and her family were disappointed with the historic town on the Amalfi Coast.
Regina said: “In the videos, you see everything looks completely empty and calm. In real life there were far too many people. It was just bananas… We were overwhelmed by the amount of people. We had to look for a restaurant to hide in and make a game plan.” Her experience comes after a warning to Brit tourists planning all-inclusive holidays to Spain.
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Regina, her husband Dan Simmons, 46, and their daughters Sofia, 16 and 13-year-old Camila also visited Rome and other tourist hotspots during their time in Italy last month. After watching TikTok clips, Regina anticipated “amazing views” along with “calm empty streets” and “locals buying fresh vegetables from the markets”.
But they encountered difficulties from the moment they arrived at the train station – which Regina described as “like a horror movie” – because of the sheer volume of tourists. It was something Regina, the owner of a chain of restaurants, had not expected.
“Positano is all these tight little streets and everyone is walking together. Half the people are going up and half are going down. It was complete chaos. Everyone was touching, shoulder to shoulder,” the mum continued.
“There are hundreds of beautiful videos of Positano which inspire you to go. This year feels very trendy – lots of my American friends are travelling to Italy this year.”
Regina and Dan, who are from Las Vegas, imagined serene streets, peaceful local markets of fresh produce and hidden-away eateries. When they did see a charming shop, they found the walkways too crowded to stop and browse.
Regina, who had stayed at a hotel in Sorrento and ventured east to Positano for a day trip, said: “We found everything was in English and there were Americans everywhere. I actually took Italian classes, and I never needed to use it.”
If they return to Europe for a holiday, the couple say they will look at other countries. Mum-of-two Regina continued: “If it’s trendy on social media, everyone wants to do what everyone else is doing, Myself included… Don’t believe everything you see on social media.”
