A river in the village often called “the most beautiful in England” could soon be fenced off after huge numbers of tourists were seen paddling in the water and leaving rubbish behind, raising concerns about damage to local wildlife.
Thousands of visitors travelled to picturesque Bibury in the Cotswolds during the summer, with many making their way to the River Coln to cool down during the heatwave.
Residents have previously said they now avoid the village, which can attract as many as 20,000 visitors a day during peak periods, because of the sheer volume of tourists and coaches.
Councillors have now voiced particular concern over the growing number of visitors entering the river, which flows through the village beneath the historic stone Swan Bridge.
Locals have described the quantity of waste left floating in the water, including bottles and coffee cups, as “unbelievable”.
Bibury is home to around 600 people and draws visitors to its renowned 17th-century weavers’ cottages, which have appeared in films including Stardust and Bridget Jones’s Diary.
The village first gained wider fame through textile designer and writer William Morris, who described it in the 19th century as “the most beautiful village in England”.
However, many residents believe the number of visiting coaches is no longer sustainable. The narrow country road regularly becomes gridlocked, while parking has also led to disputes.
Thousands of visitors descended on Bibury over the summer, with many heading to the River Coln to cool off during record-breaking heatwaves
Residents have said they no longer visit parts of their own village, which can receive up to 20,000 visitors a day at peak times, because it is overwhelmed by tourists and coaches
Tourists queue to photograph Bibury’s picturesque Cotswolds scenery
The large crowds are believed to have created several problems for wildlife, prompting Bibury Parish Council to consider the drastic step of fencing off sections of the river.
Craig Chapman, the council’s chair, said new fences had been approved to protect swans, ducks, water voles and fish living in and around the River Coln.
He said tourists had increasingly been “doing what they want” in the village in recent months.
Speaking to the BBC, he said: “In the hot weather over the summer tourists were sitting on the riverbank with their feet in the river, walking in the river and even setting up tables and chairs in the river. That’s highly detrimental to the wildlife.”
Mr Chapman called fencing off the area a “drastic measure”, adding that it was “absolutely not what we want to do”.
“It seems it’s what we have to do to protect the environment around the River Coln,” he said.
Kris Watts, 71, said that daily life in the picture-perfect village had become increasingly difficult as visitor numbers continued to rise.
She said: “We’ve had people paddling in the river, which is a protected site because we’ve got water voles. You just think – for goodness’ sake.”
Gloucestershire County Council has launched a trial involving designated coach drop-off points to ease congestion. Residents, however, claim some drivers continue to stop at other locations around the village.
Ms Watts, who has been a resident for ten years, said: ‘I don’t go into the village at weekends now, it’s that bad.
‘We knew it was a touristy village when we moved here, but since Covid it’s just got worse and worse.
‘A big part of it is social media influencers advertising how beautiful the village is.’
Victoria Summerley, 70, who has lived in Bibury for 14 years, added: ‘The Coln River is a trout stream. It’s supposed to be a really clean river.
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‘The amount of litter that ends up in the river in terms of drinks, bottles, coffee cups and so on, just unbelievable,’ she added.
The increase in visitors is partly driven by so-called influencers promoting the tiny village.
Locals also complain of tourists walking through their homes and enjoying picnics in their gardens, with some having put up ‘private, no entry’ signs translated into Chinese, Japanese and Korean.
It has caused such frustration for Brian Skarda, a parish councillor in nearby Cirencester, who wrote in the village newsletter that he and his wife, Jill, were leaving after 14 years.
He said they put up with ‘door banging, window peeping and general interference in our private lives’ from swathes of tourists coming off coaches.
Earlier this month, Mr Skarda said: ‘More inconsiderate and the sheer numbers of tourists this year have meant that, on occasions, we have virtually been unable to get out of our front door or move our car along the row.
‘This is a beautiful village and, sadly, it is being ruined by the very people who come to see it,’ he said.
Frustrated owners of gorgeous stone cottages are furious and claim coaches stop in the middle of the road to dump tourists outside of their doors to take photos
For much of the year, residents claim Bibury is overrun by coaches bringing thousands of people into the tiny community
The increase in visitors is partly driven by so-called influencers promoting the tiny villages with a population of 600 as an idyllic destination
Ms Summerley told The Times she suspects the couple are leaving after ‘a hand came through the letterbox holding a phone so they could film inside.’
Speaking of her own experience, she said she once sprayed an ‘entitled’ driver with her hose through his window because he was blocking the drive while waiting for visitors.
‘I sprayed him through the window and he burst into tears… His attitude was so offensive I thought it would teach him a lesson,’ she said.
Frustrated owners of gorgeous stone cottages claim that coaches stop in the middle of the road to dump tourists outside of their doors.
They then line up and take photographs outside of people’s homes before moving on.
Claire Perrin, 64, said: ‘It’s crazy and we just feel like it’s not going to change because it’s the age of Instagram. It makes you question staying here.’
Japanese tourists have also flocked to Bibury after the future Emperor Hirohito, then the Crown Prince, visited in 1921 and called it ‘one of the happiest’ times of his life.
There has also been a surge in middle-class Chinese tourists who say they’ve travelled across the world after seeing Bibury posted on Chinese Instagram.
The parish council wants there to be a limit on the huge daily coaches that come in, but locals don’t have much hope for any regulation.
Last year, Bibury villagers called for action and formed a working group that included councillors and the police, which saw Gloucestershire County Council announce plans to tackle the problem.
A trial scheme was implemented in May 2025, which temporarily closed existing coach bays and created designated, safer drop-off and pick-up points for coaches.
But the plans have not been permanently implemented since the trial, with the county council holding formal public consultations over the future of the restrictions in place.
Last year Bibury topped the list of Forbes Magazine’s 50 most beautiful villages in the world, boosting tourist visits even further.