Another European city has erupted in protest as locals fight back against overtourism, which they say threatens to price them out of their homes.
Under the rallying cry, “We are in danger; degrow tourism!”, locals in San Sebastian, northern Spain have taken to the streets, echoing recent mass demonstrations seen in the Canary Islands, Madrid, Malaga and the Balearic Islands.
In a movement orchestrated by the civic group Bizilagunekin, translated as “with the neighbours” from Basque, the protest held on Sunday marks the peak of “October against touristification”.
Amaia Oulad from the organisation said that San Sebastian has reached the limit in terms of how many tourists it can accommodate, as locals are already being forced to leave.
She told France24: “We are fighting since 2018, asking for tourism de-growth in our city. We think that this sector has an effect in a lot of aspects of our lives and it has too much weight in our economy.
“We need to put limits to this business … It’s not only about overcrowded streets, this is a consequence of tourism but it’s affecting all of the aspects of our lives.
“[It’s affecting] housing; we have a housing emergency in our city, [and] the precariousness of the working conditions of workers in the tourism sector.
“The community neighbourhoods are weak nowadays because we can’t live in our town, we have to go to live in another town, so we are on the limit (sic).”
October against touristification involves a series of debates, discussions, and events fuelled by concerns that the city prioritises visitors at the expense of its citizens.
Bizilagunekin said: “Tourism, which for a few is the golden goose, is an economic model which is choking the rest of us.”
Frustrations around rental prices continue to simmer across Spain, prompting the Seville City Council to impose a cap where tourist apartments will only make up 10 percent of housing in each of the city’s 108 neighbourhoods.
Europe has witnessed a swathe of overtourism demonstrations this year as tourism industries see numbers soar past pre-pandemic figures, with locals in Spain, Italy, and Greece taking to the streets in defiance.
With expectations set for Spain to welcome upwards of 90 million overseas tourists by year-end, expert analysis from Braintrust forecasts the country to eclipse France’s current leading visitor numbers, anticipating a leap to 115 million by the year 2040.
