Spain is bracing for ‘unprecedented’ anti-tourism protests across the Canary Islands on Sunday.
Tens of thousands of fed-up locals are set to take to the streets over what they claim is an ‘excessive’ tourism model.
Under the slogan ‘Canarias tiene un limite’ (The Canaries has a limit), the demonstrators will gather from 11am on the islands of Tenerife, La Gomera, Gran Canaria, El Hierro, Lanzarote and La Palma.
‘Solidarity protests’ will also take place in various cities on the mainland, including Madrid, Valencia and Barcelona.
Activists believe the current tourism model is ‘unsustainable’ and pushing the islands toward collapse.
They want to limit the number of tourists visiting the islands, ban new hotel construction and introduce a tougher tourist tax, among other measures.
The Canary Islands has a population of 2.2million people, but welcomes around 18million holidaymakers each year – which locals say is placing a strain on resources, causing jet fuel pollution, traffic chaos and a host of other issues.
For this reason, activists are calling for a cap on the number of holidaymakers, to prevent overcrowding and resource depletion.
Among their other demands is a ban on any new hotels or tourism apartment complexes, and the immediate demolition of projects already declared illegal.
These include large-scale luxury projects like the Cuna del Alma and La Tejita hotels in Tenerife, which they accuse of causing environmental harm.
They also want a ‘significant’ tourist eco-tax that will be used to pay for the conservation and maintenance of natural spaces.
One of the biggest gripes is the surge in Airbnb-style properties, which has been blamed for rising house costs and the dwindling supply of homes to rent or buy. Therefore, protesters want much stricter controls on vacation rentals to alleviate the housing crisis.
Another housing issue is the high number of properties being snapped up by foreign purchasers, which locals say is behind skyrocketing prices. They therefore want to ban or restrict the ability of non-residents to buy homes.
