Spain, protest against overcrowding with tourists - Residents demand limitation of number of visitors to Canary Islands
Thousands of people protested in the Canary Islands against mass tourism, demanding a limit on the number of visitors to the areas. Demonstrators stressed that the uncontrolled growth of tourist numbers is increasing accommodation costs and harming local residents.
Thousands of people protested against mass tourism in Spain's Canary Islands, urging authorities to limit the number of visitors to protect local residents from high housing costs, congested traffic and overwhelmed services.
Marching with the banner "The Canaries have a border," demonstrators took to the streets across the archipelago's main islands and in several cities on mainland Spain. Some protested against the impact of tourism on water supplies.
"Tourism is very important for the Canary Islands, but we must understand that the collapse is total," Juan Francisco Galindo, a hotel manager in Tenerife, told Reuters.
More than 1 million foreign tourists visit the islands each month, compared to a local population of 2.2 million, according to official figures. Spain, which had a record number of tourists in 2024, is expecting even more visitors this year.
Galindo said the number of hotel beds had tripled since the 1970s when the islands' infrastructure was built, leading to skyrocketing housing costs, traffic jams and limited access to health services during the peak tourist season.
In Spain, there have been several protests against overtourism in other popular holiday destinations, including Mallorca, Barcelona and Malaga. Similar demonstrations were held in the Canary Islands last year.
A local lawyer criticized the regional government's plans to build more housing instead of limiting the number of tourists. "The goal is not the quality of tourism, but to have more and more tourists come. The number of visitors and people coming to live here is destroying us," she said.
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