Major protests erupted across Southern Europe this weekend as angry locals took to the streets to demand change. Here is a guide to the hotspots affected by tourism protests this summer.
Locals in some of Europe’s hottest hotspots have had enough.
It seems that the decades-long love affair between sun-hungry Brits and parts of the Continent that can deliver heat, sea, and cheap beer may be coming to an end.
Major protests have been erupting across Europe in recent weeks and months, with disgruntled locals taking to the streets and letting the world know that they’ve had enough.
In popular holiday destinations, campaigners, exasperated by escalating house prices, low wages and overcrowded public squares, have targeted tourists with water pistols and chanted for change. These protests were part of a coordinated effort by groups across several countries, united in their dissatisfaction with the current tourism model and now demanding change.
While the UK isn’t the only country contributing to the problem, as big holidaymakers, Brits are a big part of it. Around 18 million Brits visited Spain in 2023, as well as nine million to France, five million to Italy and four million to Greece.
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Spain: Barcelona, Majorca and the Canary Islands
Spain is at the epicentre of the anti-tourism protests in Europe, and has been for several years. As the European country that welcomes the most holidaymakers each year, it’s easy to see why.
For years, Spain has attracted tens of millions of tourists, eager to enjoy the relaxed lifestyle, sunshine and affordable cost of living. However, as daily expenses and accommodation costs have risen for Spaniards, an increasing number have concluded that tourism isn’t benefiting them. Spain welcomed a record 84 million international visitors in 2024, compared to 83 million in 2019.
Major protests have erupted across several popular Spanish holiday destinations in recent weeks, with demonstrators armed with water pistols targeting tourists in Barcelona and Majorca. While the unsuspecting holidaymakers found themselves at the receiving end of watery antics, the protesters’ main beef is with local and national authorities who they believe haven’t properly regulated tourism. They also take issue with big property firms like Airbnb, which they accuse of driving up rents.
The Canary Islands have also been a major flashpoint for overtourism protests, due in part to the high price of housing on the islands, which some locals blame on its growing popularity as a holiday spot.
“The goal is not tourism quality, but that more and more tourists come,’ Sirlene Alonso, who lives in Gran Canaria, told Reuters. “The number of tourists and people who come to live here is crushing us.”
Italy: Venice and the Amalfi Coast
Venice is struggling with overtourism, leading to residents selling their homes and being replaced by holiday lets.
“We’ve been emphasising for a couple of years now that there are more tourist beds than registered residents,” Remi Wacogne from civic housing watchdog Ocio bemoaned. “Tourism is physically and practically taking over homes.”
In an act of protest in Venice, a group unfurled a banner opposing new hotel developments amidst two recently completed buildings, one of which activists claim was the home of the last standing resident in its historic central area. The nuptials of Amazon tycoon Jeff Bezos have also stirred discontent among those fighting the flood of tourists.
Another area that has been struggling with its popularity is the Amalfi Coast. The Mirror’s Sophie Law recently visited there. “Though it was only early June, the port, beach and narrow streets of Positano were already packed with day-trippers who had arrived on various boats, trains and buses,” she wrote.
“At times, particularly near the port, movement became difficult without bumping into other visitors. The smell of engine oil and exhaust fumes filled the air, while the noise of crowds made the experience anything but relaxing. It’s undoubtedly one of the most beautiful towns I’ve ever seen. But the sheer number of tourists (myself included) has ruined the magic.”
Portugal: Lisbon
Lisbon’s residents have long struggled with the impact of high tourism levels and the impact of wealthy digital nomads who some claim have helped to push up rents. Last month protesters from Assembleia da Graça – Parar o Hotel no Quartel and Movimento Referendo pela Habitação hit the streets to rally “against touristification”.
“We join the international call from the SET network – Southern Europe against Touristification to demonstrate against the policy of tourist monoculture that is stealing our city and to demand a Lisbon for those who live and work here”, they announced on social media.
During the protest, which started at the Church of Santo António and concluded at the Quartel da Graça, participants carried out the “procession of the evicted Santo António” to highlight that “in the current state of the city not even the saints are spared from touristification”.
Residents in Lisbon have felt the financial pinch as average rents in the city soared, doubling between 2015 and 2023, a situation partly attributed to an influx of digital nomads. As per Nomad List data from 2020, there were around 16,000 digital nomads living in the Portuguese capital, benefiting from substantial tax concessions and needing to earn at least €2,800 (£2,319) each month to qualify for a special visa.
Greece: Athens and Santorini
In 2024, Greece made headlines by welcoming an unprecedented 40.7 million international tourists, marking a windfall year with €21.6 billion earned from tourism revenue, according to Statista.
One of the worst impact places is the capital. Athens has had its walls smeared with anti-tourist graffiti, including harsh messages such as ‘tourists go home’ and a grim warning labelling it ‘the cemetery of Europe’. Locals have continually voiced frustrations regarding droves of tourists bunging up streets and increasing noise pollution while implicating the proliferation of Airbnb and similar holiday rentals in driving up property prices.
Spirited demonstrations erupted last year with protestors on the street voicing their discontent and declaring, “They are taking our houses while they live in the Maldives”.
Another part of the country that has been hit hard by overtourism is Santorini, a pretty island that has become overwhelmed by tourists. During peak season, crowds of up to 17,000 cruise ship passengers descend daily on the island, flocking to Fira and Oia, renowned for its stunning sunsets.
“I recently endured the unfortunate experience of joining the two million tourists who flock to the island annually. My partner and I spent 36 hours there, concluding an otherwise splendid nine-day Greek odyssey that had delighted us in Athens and Naxos – both exceptional locations,” James Walker wrote following a recent trip to the island which he called a “resounding disaster”.
“Within mere minutes of our arrival, we encountered telltale signs of the worst tourist traps: an out-of-place Indian restaurant in the Mediterranean, a shop touting “100% legal cannabis”, and a dodgy sex store.”
The UK: The Cotswolds
Parts of the Cotswolds have been struggling with overwhelming crowds of tourists, but now locals in one particular village are fighting back.
Bibury is known as one of the prettiest villages in the Cotswolds region. However, it has suffered from tourists flocking to the area in recent years, with some tourists even being spotted getting up close to residents’ houses in a bid to snap the ideal picture.
As a result, the people living in the Gloucestershire village once described by 19th-century writer William Morris as the ‘most beautiful village in England’ are now calling for action. Residents have formed a working group that includes councillors and police, while Gloucestershire County Council has announced plans to tackle overtourism in the village. In the long term, coaches could be banned from stopping and parking in the village.