AMSTERDAM could soon ban tourists from buying cannabis in the capital city to reduce the number of visitors.
The mayor of the city is looking for ways to prevent overtourism ruining the city.
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Femke Halsema, the mayor of Amsterdam, commissioned a study to see the affect a cannabis ban would have on travellers.
Many tourists visit the city to go to the coffee shops which sell cannabis legally.
The survey, conducted by the Research, Information and Statistics Department, found 42 per cent would visit less frequently, 12 per cent said they would never visit again.
One in five (22 per cent) said they would get someone else to go to the shop to buy it for them, while 18 per cent said they would find other ways to buy it.
Of the 100 people surveyed, more than half said visiting the coffee shops was a key reason for visiting Amsterdam.
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The study added that the coffee shops are in fact one of the most important reasons for visiting at 33 per cent, compared to cycling through the city (21 per cent) or visiting because the city was cheap (11 per cent).
Amsterdam’s overtourism problem affects the 1 million locals who are outweighed by the 17 million tourists who visit every year.
It isn’t the only ban to be introduced – tours of the famous red light district will end on April 1.
Sex workers are regularly abused and photographed without their consent by members of tour groups, the city said.
It is disrespectful to treat sex workers as a tourist attraction, Amsterdam Deputy Mayor Victor Everhardt said in a statement.
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Tours of the red-light district still will be allowed if guides stick to the new restriction, which takes effect in April, and keep the windows off their itineraries.
Some 115 guided tours pass through the district every day. The city said research has shown that the high number of visitors inconveniences more than half of the residents and businesses in the area.
Banning group tours of the red-light district windows will help to prevent disruptions for residents and businesses, Everhardt said.
Amsterdam has for years suffered a negative side from too many people crowding the canal-side streets of the city’s historic heart, which includes the red-light district.
Sex workers in Amsterdam previously revealed what it is like – with many concerned they could lose their livelihoods.
Many have slammed selfie-loving Brits for ruining the district, leading to the ban on group tours.
However, Eurostar passengers can now travel to the UK from Amsterdam on new direct trains, making it more than an hour quicker than before.
