Anger in Spain falls on the planes

Anti-tourism movements are proliferating in Spain, the world’s second most visited country, prompting authorities to try to reconcile the interests of locals and the lucrative sector.

Under the slogan “The Canary Islands have a limit”, a collective of groups on the archipelago off the coast of northwest Africa are planning a series of protests today.

The Canary Islands are known for their volcanic landscapes, year-round sunshine and attract millions of visitors from all over the world.

Groups there want authorities to halt work on two new hotels in Tenerife, the largest and most developed of the archipelago’s seven islands.

They are also demanding that local people have more say in the face of what they see as uncontrolled development that is damaging the environment.

Several members of the ‘Canaries Sold Out’ collective also started an ‘indefinite’ hunger strike last week to put pressure on the authorities.

The Canary Islands received 16 million visitors last year, more than seven times the population of approximately 2.2 million people.

This is an unsustainable level given the archipelago’s limited resources, said Victor Martin, a spokesman for the collective, calling it a “suicidal growth model.”

Similar movements have emerged elsewhere in Spain and are active on social media.

READ ALSO: Completely Instagrammable: Scotland’s most photogenic destinations

Slogans, fake signs and more

In the southern port of Malaga on the Costa del Sol, a center of the decades-old Spanish tourism model ‘soja y playa’ or ‘sun and beach’, there are stickers with unfriendly slogans such as ‘This was my home’ and ‘Go away’ . home” have appeared on the walls and doors of tourist accommodations.

In Barcelona and the Balearic Islands, activists have placed fake signs at the entrances to some popular beaches warning in English of the risk of “falling rocks” or “dangerous jellyfish”.

Locals complain that an increase in the supply of accommodation on short-term rental platforms such as Airbnb has exacerbated the housing shortage and increased rental prices, especially in city centers.

The influx of tourists also contributes to noise and environmental pollution and taxes resources such as water, they add.

In the northeastern region of Catalonia, where a drought crisis was declared in February, anger is growing over the pressure that hotels on the Costa Brava are putting on depleted water reserves.

“Our concern is to continue to grow tourism in Spain so that it is sustainable and does not arouse social resentment,” said the vice-president of tourism association Exceltur, Jose Luis Zoreda, when asked about the moves.

Visitor records from Spain

The group said it expects Spain’s tourism sector to post a record turnover of $215.4 billion (about $4 trillion) this year.

Before Covid hit the world’s travel industry in 2020, protest movements against overtourism had already emerged in Spain, especially in Barcelona.

Now that pandemic travel restrictions have been lifted, tourism is back with a vengeance. Spain welcomed a record number of 85.1 million foreign visitors last year.

In response, several cities have taken measures to limit overcrowding. The northern coastal city of San Sebastian last month limited the size of tourist groups in the center to 25 people and banned the use of loudspeakers during tours.

The southern city of Seville is considering charging non-residents to enter the historic Plaza de España, while Barcelona has removed a bus route popular with tourists from Google Maps to make more room for locals. – AFP

NOW READ: Get off the beaten track and discover the natural wonders of these European geoparks (PICS)