Residents of a small mountain village on the island of Tenerife, famous for its unique and wild beauty, have raised an alarm over safety and overcrowding as a result of a surge in tourism. The popular destination, Masca, referred to by many as the “Spanish Machu Picchu”, is now becoming so popular that locals claim their safety and quality of life is suffering.
According to Masca’s residents, the area suffers from a serious lack of infrastructure and public resources, including a lack of police presence, insufficient parking and poor signage throughout the area. Amid the perceived overcrowding, some locals have now reportedly started referring to the village as a “tourist theme park”. They are taking to fight to the next level and are taking on the island’s governing body.
Situated in the Teno area, in northwest Tenerife, Masca is home to around 90 residents. The village lies at an altitude of 2,132 feet in the Macizo de Teno mountains, which extend up to the northwesternmost point of Tenerife, and sits at the head of the Masca Gorge.
As if straight out of a travel guide book, the village is surrounded by cypresses and palm trees. The website Canary Islands Latitude of Life even describes it as “as far away from the tourist resorts as you can get”. Therefore, it’s no wonder it now draws in huge crowds every year.
However, the crowds are now getting too much for its residents. According to the president of the local residents’ association, Jorge Javier Díaz, residents are struggling with their daily routines due to a combination of tourism pressure and disorganised infrastructure.
Díaz claims that illegal parking is a persistent issue, while thefts at viewpoints have become alarmingly frequent: “There are robberies at the viewpoints practically every day,” he said, adding that while the Guardia Civil is doing its best with limited resources, “what we need is a visible police presence”.
The state of the only access road – a narrow single-lane road – is also a major concern, which was built by the residents themselves between the 1960s and 1980s and can no longer cope with the constant stream of cars and tour buses.
Díaz argued that more passing points, resurfacing, and even road widening are urgently needed and that traffic lights or mobile apps would not resolve the situation.
“These might help a little, but they don’t solve the real problem. Many of the issues would be resolved with police presence and a tow truck,” he stressed while speaking to Canarian Weekly. Under current conditions, a badly parked car may be fined by officers, but with no access to a tow truck, the obstruction remains.
Another significant problem identified by locals is the new access fee introduced last summer.
The association is now preparing a formal document outlining its demands, which will be submitted to both the local council and the island’s governing body, the Cabildo de Tenerife.
In a recent act of protest, the village residents informed the Cabildo that they would be changing the lock to one of the access gates. Diaz said: “Two weeks ago, we sent a letter to the Cabildo saying we were going to change the lock. Now, we have the key. Until then, we didn’t”.
“Everything is being designed with tourists in mind,” Díaz concluded, “but when will someone think about the residents?”