It’s a guaranteed social media winner - a picture posing in a stylish outfit flanked by vivid rows of purple lavender stretching to the horizon.
So much so that the photogenic success of this floral backdrop has become unmanageable for one Spanish community.
The town of Brihuega in the province of Guadalajara draws hundreds of thousands of tourists annually to its lavender fields.
With so many visitors descending on the attraction at the weekend during blooming season, local authorities are now mulling how to reduce the impact of tourists on residents.
100,000 tourists visit Spanish town’s lavender fields in July
Brihuega has around 1,000 hectares of lavender fields that social media users have discovered provide an ideal backdrop for Instagram photography.
Thanks to this social media boom, the destination has gained significant popularity over the last 10 years, with tourism helping to reverse population decline in the rural community.
The town has experienced a 24 per cent growth in population and has seen millions of euros flow into the local economy.
But the tables have now turned, as increasing numbers of visitors arrive in Brihuega, creating an overwhelming demand on the town’s local infrastructure.
Over 100,000 people descended on the fields during July, the month when the lavender reaches full bloom, putting immense pressure on the nearby community of fewer than 3,000 inhabitants.
Although local authorities acknowledge the lavender fields' crucial economic importance, Mayor Lusi Viejo has appealed to tourists to consider avoiding weekend visits.
“Take last Saturday, for example: the village collapsed. It was a hard time for me,” Mr Viejo told the Spanish national daily newspaper ABC.
“We have a wide range of tourist, cultural and artistic offerings thanks to the lavender,” he said.
“But my advice is that people come and visit us between Monday and Thursday – please! Weekends are more difficult because of the huge quantity of people who come.”
Lavender field tourism has contributed €8m to the regional economy
The main issue, particularly during the season when the lavender is in bloom, is visitors clogging Brihuega's historic narrow lanes and parking vehicles haphazardly.
"Ahead of next year, we need to build a park-and-ride parking lot on the outskirts of the historic centre and connect it with shuttle buses," Viejo said.
In a recent communication to local residents, Viejo announced plans for a permanent park-and-ride system with connecting shuttle services.
The mayor also noted that field access remains free, preventing the municipality from controlling visitor numbers or implementing tourism taxes.
Despite challenges from excessive crowds, the substantial tourist numbers have contributed €8m to the regional economy throughout this lavender season.
"Managing such an influx of visitors in such a short time is difficult. We work hard, we have a security committee, but it’s still a large turnout," the mayor said.
He added that the goal is to attract year-round tourism and distribute visitors more evenly, rather than experiencing concentrations during the lavender blooming season.
Brihuega’s mayor highlighted the council's efforts to promote visits to the area’s sumac fields during October and November, when the slopes are transformed by the deep red flowers.
