Spain at crossroads: Tourism boom vs local discontent

Spain is at a crossroads as it grapples with growing discontent over mass tourism. The unexpected "squirts" heard around the world made headlines this month as anti-tourism protesters in Barcelona targeted visitors with water pistols during a demonstration.

The protesters, who disrupted restaurant terraces with their antics, sparked a global media frenzy from the US to China and Australia, leading to a branding crisis for the Spanish city, Caliber.Az reports citing the foreign media.

Tourism executives have condemned the stunt for its potential to deter tourists. Martí Cusó, a key organizer of the 3,000-strong protest march, described the act as an unplanned but understandable reaction to growing frustration. “People are pissed off,” Cusó said. “It’s natural that discontent gets channelled towards the most visible targets, like tourists on a terrace.”

The backlash against tourism is not confined to Barcelona alone. Europe, often dubbed the world's museum, and the Mediterranean, renowned for its beach resorts, have seen overwhelming numbers of international visitors. Last year, European countries welcomed 709 million tourists, with a significant rise in arrivals from North America, though most visitors travelled within Europe.

In several cities, the influx of tourists has become so overwhelming that locals' patience is wearing thin. From Venice and Amsterdam to Lisbon and the Greek island of Santorini, communities are expressing their frustrations.

Spain, in particular, is at the forefront of this issue. As the world’s second-most visited country, Spain attracted 85 million foreign tourists last year. It relies more heavily on tourism than France, the top destination, and experiences a higher number of visitors per capita.

Pressure has been mounting for years as tourist numbers climb, but this year the strains in Spain have reached a breaking point. Residents are voicing frustrations over a range of issues: skyrocketing housing costs, strained public transport, the commercialization of historic town centres, depleting water supplies, and rampant antisocial behaviour. In hotspots like Benidorm and Magaluf, locals are appalled by drunken British tourists engaging in dangerous activities such as “balconing”—a perilous stunt involving jumping between or from balconies into pools.

Many Spaniards are now declaring "enough is enough." In the past three months, anti-tourism protests have surged, drawing 56,000 participants across the Canary Islands and 10,000 on Mallorca. On the latter island, locals staged a pre-dawn occupation of one of its most popular Instagrammed beaches to make their discontent known.

On Spain's southern mainland, more than 5,000 protesters gathered in Málaga, with several thousand more rallying in Alicante and Cádiz. Demonstrations have also erupted in Seville, San Sebastián, and even in the trendy Lavapiés district of Madrid. This summer, the term “tourism-phobia” has become a rallying cry.

Despite the controversial water-dousing protest in Barcelona, the demonstrators stress that the issue is not with individual tourists but with the broader tourism industry and government policies that they believe have prioritized profit over the well-being of residents. Martí Cusó, one of the protest organizers, explains, “Tourists are not to blame. The responsibility lies with the tourism industry and the governments that have allowed it to run rampant.”

Seated in a rare local bar within Barcelona’s historic Gothic Quarter, Cusó sips a 1.60 euro coffee and reflects on the challenges faced by locals amid rising prices and the encroachment of global brands like Starbucks. “Barcelona has been marked by the violence of tourism,” he says, highlighting how the influx has transformed public spaces, privatized amenities, and displaced local residents.

Spain is emerging as a European test case for whether discontent with tourism can be transformed into meaningful reform without causing destabilization. The tourism industry, a critical economic driver that has significantly boosted Spain’s wealth and accounts for 12-13 per cent of its GDP, faces growing backlash. The slogan from the Canary Islands—“Tourism, yes. But not like this”—captures the tension between economic benefits and local frustrations.

Jordi Hereu, Spain’s tourism minister, acknowledges the need for balance. While last year’s record-breaking visitor numbers were a triumph, with the tourist promotion agency forecasting a 13 per cent increase in visitors from June to September, Hereu emphasizes the importance of addressing local concerns. “We must listen to the demands, wherever they come from, because without citizens there are no tourist destinations,” he notes. The challenge now is to reform the tourism sector in a way that respects local communities and minimizes economic disruption.