Transylvania Music Festival Hijacks Protest Signs to Steer Tourists Away from Busy European Hotspots

In Spain, over-tourism is such a problem that locals have been known to hang protest signs urging travellers to leave. A new campaign from the Electric Castle music festival has found a sneaky way to alleviate congestion there, and in other European travel hotspots, while boosting the tourism of less-frequented Romania, a country that lost 45% of its international visitors, post-pandemic.

The campaign from McCann Worldgroup Romania enlisted locals from Spain to turn their anti-tourist protest signs into stealth travel ads for Electric Castle and its native Romania. They simply added the URL extension .Ro to the sign messages, which would then direct tourists to the Electric Castle website and info on other Romanian wonders. The website also gives potential ambassadors a tool kit for creating their own subversive signs with pre-written slogans. 

The campaign began with a guerilla launch in Barcelona, which has seen rising numbers of tourists. 12 million visited the city of 1.2 million in 2019. Post-pandemic, the scenario is expected to be worse. It’s now encouraging locals from other over-visited cities to join and send people to Romania, where they can see the likes of Iggy Pop, The Chemical Brothers, Peggy Gou at Electric Castle, along with many other impressive sites.

"Electric Castle and other notable Romanian festivals have gained significant appeal among international tourists in recent years. Touristsgo.ro is just one more step we take in our effort to promote Romania as a viable alternative for those seeking high-quality events in unique destinations." said Tudor Costinas, head of communications EC.

“Romania deserves a visit for its hijacking spirit! Tourists ourselves, we’ve noticed the protesting messages and wanted to do something about them to promote our country. When Electric Castle needed a campaign to get people talking abroad and gain more international visitors, we seized the opportunity. The campaign is the result of great team work between McCann and Electric Castle and surely just the beginning, with both having ambitious plans for giving the festival the international exposure it deserves.” – Ruxandra Papuc, executive creative director McCann.