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Thousands of protesters have taken part in demonstrations against mass tourism in Spain’s Canary Islands.
The archipelago, which includes Tenerife, Fuerteventura and Gran Canaria, is a popular destination for British tourists, but the islands are struggling to cope with the influx of visitors.
Holding placards reading “People live here” and “We don’t want to see our island die”, demonstrators said changes must be made to the tourism industry that accounts for 35% of gross domestic product (GDP) in the Canary Islands archipelago.
in 2023 around 14 million foreigners visited the islands in the Atlantic which have a population of just 2.2 million.
Despite decades of mass tourism, the Canary Islands remain poor compared to other regions of Spain and the average salary of workers is one of the lowest in the country.
“It’s not a message against the tourist, but against a tourism model that doesn’t benefit this land and needs to be changed,” said Rosario Correa, Secretary of the ‘Salvar Chira-Soria’ platform.
Residents living in the holiday destination say too much tourism is damaging the environment, driving down wages and squeezing locals out of the housing market.
Some local people say they have been forced to sleep in their cars or even in caves
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A number of provinces have taken matters into their own hands and are providing guidance – and in some case strict rules – for tourists visiting over the summer, as they try and tackle overcrowding and the problems that come with it.
Tourism represents nearly 12% of Spain’s economy but there has been growing pressure from locals for governments to put measures in place to reduce the number of visitors.
According to the police, approximately 20 thousand people participated in the protests, yet organisers claimed the number to be nearer to 50 thousand as reported by Spain’s TVE public television.
Hundreds of people linked arms to form a human chain to demonstrate against the building of an additional hotel and beach resort, as well as future projects aimed at attracting more tourists.
The wider movement is called Canarias Se Agota, which means ‘The Canaries Have Had Enough’.
In an Instagram post the organisation said the Canary Islands are “exhausted” because of the “excessive tourism” and the “lack of attention to the basic needs of the population”.
