A popular Thailand beach has been forced to close due to tourism

It's a beautiful spot.

Tourists hoping to visit Thailand's iconic Maya Bay will not be able to do so for the foreseeable future. The popular destination was due to re-open on Tuesday following a tourist ban, but it was announced on Tuesday that this would not take place. According to CNN, Thailand's Department of National Parks announced that the bay will remain closed indefinitely, as it may need a number of years to recover from the effect that tourism has had in recent times. The news was announced by the department in a letter, which claimed that: "The ecosystem and the beach's physical structure have yet returned to its full condition." The area was popularised by Leonardo DiCaprio's 2000 movie The Beach, and has been a hotspot for tourists from all around the world ever since. The beach is due to remain closed: "Until natural resources return to normal." Data released by the aforementioned department suggested that the park would see as many as 2.5 million visitors in 2018, a year-on-year rise of half a million. The area is less than an hour's boat ride from Phuket, which is a very popular location for Irish tourists who travel there in great numbers every year.