Thousands of Brits are flocking to a tiny village known as the 'Venice of the Cotswolds', with locals describing it as "hell".
Bourton-on-the-Water, in Gloucestershire, has been attracting up to 10,000 people every day since lockdown with Brits using the rural idyll as an alternative to going abroad.
The usually peaceful village, which is home to around 4,700 people, has gone "berserk", according to frustrated residents.
Angie Cadwallader-Kemp, 45, told The Sunday Times : "We have never seen it like this before.
"It has been hell."
With chocolate-box cottages and 17th-century bridges that cross the River Windrush, thousands of Brits have visited Bourton-on-the-Water as part of a staycation.
Due to restrictions on flying and quarantine rules, thousands have avoided going abroad this summer and have instead visited small towns and villages.
The influx of tourists Bourton-on-the-Water has experienced has resulted in traffic mayhem, with visitors parking in residents' driveways.
It has also led to a deluge of litter, while there have been widespread reports of people urinating and defecating in car parks and gardens.
Retired farmer Bill Limbrick, 74, said: "Since the lockdown lifted, the place has gone berserk."
His wife Celia, 73, added: "They just keep pouring in. It's like Brighton beach on a bad day.
"It's always busy in the summer, but this year it's been much worse."
Earlier this week police said they were cracking down on ‘inconsiderate drivers’ blocking footpaths and driveways in the Cotswolds tourist hotspot.
It comes after a number of motorists parked illegally on pavements, forcing pedestrians into the road to get around their cars.
Another cause for concern from locals is the village's narrow bridges and pathways, which make social distancing nearly impossible.
Some residents fear there'll be an outbreak of coronavirus.
"It's frightening," Mrs Limbrick said.
"We have every right as residents to use our village, but we can't."
In Bourton-on-the-Water, visitors numbers are now far higher than they were before the pandemic, according to locals.
Around 5,000 cars and coaches usually arrive in the town on the busiest days and when the weather is hot.
Previously, many tourists came from Japan, China and America.
Bob Hadley, chairman of Bourton-on-the-Water parish council, is used to seeing up to 40 coaches packed with tourists from abroad in the picture postcard Cotswolds village, but not the hundreds of cars from across the Midlands and Gloucestershire that have been arriving every weekend during the pandemic.
He says he accepts that families who cannot go on holiday are taking days out during pandemic but sometimes it has been too much for the village to cope with, GloucestershireLive reports.
“It’s understandable that people want to come here to sit on the village green and have a picnic but some don’t give a damn and dump their cars and rubbish anywhere they can," he said.
“The side streets are just crammed with cars and people are parking on pavements and blocking drives.
“Even though we have been given extra bins and Gloucestershire County Council are emptying them three or four times a day, we can’t keep pace with the amount of rubbish.
“We have also had problems with the toilets on Rissington Road blocking and there have been examples of people urinating behind walls.
“We always suffer from overcrowding in the summer months but the volume of people this year has been incredible and we are seeing more visitors than ever before.”
One of the main problems is social distancing when around 6,000 people pour into a town of 4,700 residents, 40 per cent of whom are over 70 and regarded as vulnerable to Covid-19.
Gloucestershire County Council has put up signs warning people of the Covid-19 restrictions and the annual bank holiday football match in the river has been cancelled this year.
“The problem is we have five very small bridges over the river which make it difficult to social distance,” said Mr Hadley .
“It’s the same on the footpaths. There are so many visitors so wherever you go you bump into people coming the other way.”
Gloucestershire Constabulary says the usual bank holiday patrols will be out in Bourton this weekend.
“Parking is predominately the responsibility of Gloucestershire County Council," said a spokesperson for the force said.
“However, we would take action if a vehicle was parked in a dangerous position or vehicles were causing an obstruction.”
Other UK destinations have been mobbed as a result of Brits avoiding summer holidays abroad.
Councils in Bounemouth, Cornwall and Dorset have urged visitors not to visit their areas on several occasions due to an influx of visitors.
