Until last week, I understood over-tourism to be an urban problem, limited to cities like Edinburgh, Rome, Paris, New York, Sydney, or Barcelona. I was forced to re-evaluate in the most unlikely of locations—a beautiful beach on the Outer Hebrides of Scotland, about as far away from the likes of a global metropolis as you could possibly imagine.

I was born in the land of the Etruscans, Giotto, Michelangelo, Galileo, Leonardo, Meucci, Machiavelli and hundreds more. All men who, animated by curiosity and spirituality, understood what the key to intellectual progress was - like the philosophers, we must doubt everything, we must be open to new ideas, we must ask questions and explore.

There are things in the world to fear and things that require a prudent approach. But the relentless messages of our culture are telling us to be unnecessarily afraid. I am grateful that travel has exposed me to a world not driven by fear.

Recently, I received a newsletter from Lonely Planet that featured an article titled, “Six Bucket List Destinations at Risk of Disappearing Due to Climate Change.” The list included the Galapagos Islands, a proposed destination for my tour company, Imprint Tours. Once again, I was reminded how a cherished travel goal can be yanked away, sometimes never to return.