Amsterdam Tells UK Sex and Drug Tourists: Stay Away! – POLITICS

“So you’re coming to Amsterdam for a messy party? Stay away.”

That’s the message from Amsterdam city authorities, who have launched an online advertising campaign to warn visitors against ‘letting go’ in the Dutch capital.

People who search for terms such as “stag party Amsterdam”, “cheap hotel Amsterdam” or “pub crawl Amsterdam” on the Internet before a visit to the Dutch city will see short videos highlighting “the risks and consequences of nuisance and excess alcohol”. and drug use,” the city of Amsterdam said in a statement on Tuesday.

Initially targeting “British men aged 18-35”, the campaign could be extended to tourists from the Netherlands or EU countries “during the year”, the statement said.

30 second videos are brutally simple.

To the sound of sirens, broken glass and threatening music, one video shows an unconscious young man taken to hospital after “taking drugs”, while another shows a man, visibly in a state of drunk, arrested at dawn. after insulting two police officers.

“Coming to Amsterdam for a messy night + getting ransacked = €140 fine + criminal record,” the ads’ captions read, adding, “Stay away.”

The city of Amsterdam, which welcomes around 20 million tourists every year, is famous for its red light district, which has helped make the city one of Europe’s party capitals.

But local residents have long complained about the disruption caused by drunken tourists – who also make good use of the city’s cannabis ‘cafes’.

The ad campaign is part of a wider crackdown by the city of Amsterdam against rowdy tourists: last month, local authorities passed new regulations banning cannabis smoking in the red-light district.