There are protests against mass tourism in Spain

According to data from the city administration, more than 12 million tourists visited Barcelona last year, which has been causing serious problems for years. Protesters chanted slogans such as “Enough! Let’s draw a line in tourism” and “Reduce tourism, now!”, indicating that urgent measures are needed. Many of the protesters feel that they are strangers in their own city, and that the growth of tourism is increasingly displacing them from where they live.

The situation is similar in Málaga, where the real estate market is booming due to short-term tourist rentals. Apartments in the city are increasingly being taken over by tourists, which drastically reduces the housing options available to local residents. More than 15,000 people took part in the demonstrations to express their displeasure with the current situation, and demonstrators came from several other Andalusian cities, such as Cádiz, Granada and Seville.

The demonstrations are not only limited to Spain, similar demonstrations have already taken place in the Canary and Balearic Islands, and further protests are expected in the future. For the locals, the downside of tourism is becoming more and more obvious, as the housing crisis and the deterioration of the quality of life of local communities become a bigger problem.