Brits flee Spain's beaches as protesters shout 'go home' and 'more tourists, more misery'

Spanish anti-tourism protesters including a new group called 'The Canary Islands have a limit' have targeted British sunbathers in Tenerife where they demanded "more tourists, more misery"

A wave of protests has hit Spanish holiday hotspots, such as Barcelona and Tenerife, with residents demanding action on increasing rent prices and surging tourist numbers. This past Sunday saw more than 8,000 activists marching in protest with the message: "We don't need more tourists."

Diverging from usual anti-tourist demonstrations, the protesters have taken their cause to the Canary Islands' busiest tourist locations, including beaches frequented by Britons.

Travellers at the Playa de las Americas and Troya beaches witnessed an uproar when hundreds joined a vocal march, endorsing the mantra "The Canary Islands have a limit" while vocalising concerns that "more tourists, more misery."

Other islands like Gran Canaria, Fuerteventura, Lanzarote, La Palma, and El Hierro have experienced similar disruptions.

Over 20 anti-tourism organisations have banded together under the collective theme "The Canary Islands have a limit," according to the Spanish newspaper El Mundo, signalling that more protests may be imminent, reports the Manchester Evening News.

Furthermore, the Mail has reported on incidents where demonstrators brandished signs stating "Go Home Tourist" directly at those enjoying the sun.

An anti-tourism sentiment is brewing in Spain, as a group fiercely opposes the overwhelming number of visitors, declaring: "We will go to the tourist areas because that is where the injustice we are denouncing is taking place and because that is where we want to confront the system that is destroying our islands."

Even though Spanish officials have put measures in place to alleviate the effects of surging tourism demand post-pandemic, such efforts seem insufficient to some residents.

Recent demonstrations by such activists in Madrid led to chaos on the streets, resulting in a prompt reaction from the government. A Royal Decree has been passed to clamp down on over 14,000 unlicensed Airbnb and other holiday lets within the city.

Nevertheless, local inhabitants, particularly in prime tourist locations, continue to voice their discontent as they face economic displacement from rapidly escalating real estate acquisitions by foreigners, including about 300,000 Brits charmed by Spain's sun and sandy shores. In the Canary Islands alone, one out of three houses is now owned by non-residents.

Underpinning their argument, the 'Canary Islands have a limit' collective further emphasised: "While tourist areas prosper at the expense of our landscapes and resources, many local communities suffer the consequences: increased cost of living, loss of housing for residents, job insecurity and environmental deterioration."