This French beach is banning selfies

Tourists take the most annoying pictures, this we know. And while some unbearable live-and-let-live blowhards passionately defend everyone's right to annoy everyone else (just as long as nobody gets hurt), what if somebody, somewhere finally said, "enough is enough -- cut that sh*t out and put your phone away!"?

Well, it looks like that somebody is a popular beach in the south of France.

In quite possibly the greatest PR stunt/act of governance since Rosanne Barr vowed to shut down the internet in Portlandia, the Garoupe beaches in Antibes, France have designated entire sections "selfie-free", and deployed a squad of "holiday spam police" to quell this summer's surge of self-obsessed sunbathers. So yes, you could say the vacation police have arrived.

Within the beach's "No Braggies Zones" (the word "braggie" has become synonymous with "selfie" in France), no gratuitous bikini shots or hot dog legs are permitted at all -- conveniently culling irksome people both from the sand, and your Instagram feed.

As a spokesperson for the beach told The Daily Mail, "The Garoupe beaches are among the most glamorous and pristine in all of France and we want people to be able to enjoy our exclusive beach in the moment, not spending the majority of their time bragging to their friends and family back home". Can we get an "Amen"?

On high alert, the "holiday spam police" are monitoring the zones (which have been marked with designated signs), although what kind of punishment they can legally dole out is anybody's guess. The public is also being encouraged to help selfie-shame offending beachgoers caught in the act by posting pics of them online, hashtagged "#holidayspam".

Until the "No Braggie Zones" take off on all of our favorite beaches around the world, you'll find us in France.

Chloe Pantazi is an editorial assistant on Thrillist's travel team, and she wishes the beach in Cyprus last week had followed France's no-selfie rule. Follow her on Twitter at @ChloePantazi.