Once the preserve of Hollywood royalty, with stars such as Elizabeth Taylor and Sophia Loren sunning themselves on the private beaches of five-star hotels, the Amalfi Coast is now developing a rather less glamorous reputation.

With one giant cruise liner after another lining up to deposit day-trippers in the port of Positano, the crowded streets are coming to resemble something out of “the Third World,” according to one local hotelier.

In just one 48-hour period, more than 28,000 cruise ship passengers disembarked on the island of Ischia, just north of Capri.

Salvatore Gagliano, who owns the five-star Grand Hotel Tritone along the Italian coast in Praiano, told how the massive influx of tourists was making the once-exclusive resorts practically unliveable. “These are scenes straight out of the Third World,” he told The Telegraph. “The roads are narrow. When they are blocked there is total confusion.”

He added that it is high time limits were imposed on the number of ships bringing vast crowds to the resort towns south of Naples.

Locals say they are effectively prisoners in their own homes during the holiday season. One wrote on Facebook: “We have reached our limit – as citizens we have to lock ourselves inside our homes.”

July and August tend to be the busiest months, and after last summer’s surge, residents turned on their own leaders with furious complaints.

Daniele Milano, the mayor of Amalfi, said he lacks the authority to ban giant cruise liners from dropping off so-called “mordi e fuggi” (eat-and-run) tourists.

His counterpart on Capri argued that criticism of local authorities was misplaced, writing on Facebook: “If we’re going to talk about this, we must do so in a serious and constructive manner; the many pointless comments or attention-grabbing images amount to nothing and serve no purpose.”

A visit by The Mirror’s Sophie Law to Positano last summer painted a similarly crowded picture. “At times, particularly near the port, movement became difficult without bumping into other visitors,” she said. “The smell of engine oil and exhaust fumes filled the air, while the noise of crowds made the experience anything but relaxing.”

Modern cruise liners can carry many more passengers than their predecessors. For example, Harmony of the Seas, currently sailing off southern Spain, can accommodate well over 6,000 guests. When day-trippers disembark from such vessels, they can temporarily double the population of small coastal towns.

Not only ship capacity but the number of voyages is rising sharply. In 2020, an estimated 5.8 million people took an ocean cruise; by 2026, that figure is expected to exceed 37 million, with projections pointing to 42 million annually by 2028.

These trends have fuelled a growing backlash against mass tourism across the Mediterranean, with protests seen in Spain, the Canary Islands and now Italy.

However, figures from the Cruise Lines International Association indicate the sector brings in around €7.3 billion (£6.3 billion) to Italy and supports more than 100,000 jobs—an economic reality that continues to outweigh local frustrations over overcrowding.