IRISH tourists heading to Spain this summer face fresh holiday fears after locals confirmed that they are planning another protest.
The anti-tourism protest, which organisers say they hope has a “massive” turnout, comes a month after thousands turned out to protest against tourists in Tenerife.
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Locals in Ibiza, a popular holiday choice for thousands of Irish people each year, say they are the victims of “selfish tourism”.
Campaigners behind a protest organised in Ibiza this Friday said they are against the “massification” of the island.
Citizens’ platform PROU! branded the current situation a “total disaster” and claimed the island is being “exterminated” in hard-hitting comments ahead of the upcoming demo outside the Ibiza Council’s offices.
Urging people to join them in a show of strength before it is “too late”, organisers said overnight: “We are completely fed up with the failure to properly address the complaints of so many citizens about the nefast consequences of a massive and selfish tourism which ignores the future of the island.”
Claiming Ibiza was heading for a precipice, one of the organisers added: “Our beautiful island is in danger.
“Tourist crowds not only affect our quality of life, but also the beauty and authenticity that makes Ibiza such a special place.
“Tourist overcrowding makes the cost of living unattainable for many residents.
“We fight for an Ibiza where we can all live in dignity. It is time to raise our voices and protect our home. Your presence is crucial.
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“We hope the turnout will be massive and people will be able to stop the barbarity that has brought us this uncontrolled, disorderly and chaotic growth.”
The protest will be the first of its kind since April 20 when thousands of people in the Canary Islands took to the streets of the Atlantic archipelago to demonstrate against the problems caused by mass tourism and demand their politicians take action.
Government officials in Tenerife, where protestors held up banners which said: ‘You enjoy we suffer’ and ‘Tourism moratorium now’, said around 30,000 people had taken part but organisers put the figure at 80,000.
The Ibiza protest is due to start at 8pm on Friday.
The following evening a platform called Banc del Temps has organised a separate protest against ‘tourist overcrowding’ in the centre of the Majorcan capital Palma under the slogan ‘Mallorca no se vende’ which is Spanish for ‘Majorca is not up for sale.’
The idea of an airport protest in the peak tourist season which involves collapsing Palma Airport with cars was discussed at a brain-storming session last Friday in the inland Majorcan town of Sineu.
Mass protests outside hotels and on beaches were also put forward as proposals at a citizens’ assembly attended by more than 300 people and organised by association Menys Turisme, Mes Vida, which translates into English as ‘Less Tourism, More Life.
Anti-tourist graffiti has appeared in both Majorca and Tenerife in recent weeks.
Last month the words ‘Go Home Tourist’ were scrawled in English over a wall underneath a real estate promotion billboard in the Majorcan neighbourhood of Nou Llevant, which has undergone massive transformation with most new properties being snapped up by Germans.
It was billed as a smaller version of San Francisco’s Silicon Valley when the transformation of the neighbourhood five minutes from Playa de Palma got underway.
Locals have been echoing some of the same complaints protestors in the Canary Islands have been making, claiming code-operated key lock boxes have appeared on many of the entrances of new apartment blocks.
Tenerife Tourist Tax
A TOURIST tax will be introduced in Tenerife following the protests.
Tenerife Island Council agreed to “approve the tax from January 1 2025 for the provision of services in the protected natural areas of the island of Tenerife and to improve their conservation and protection, following the relevant studies.”
An eco tax where tourists pay extra on their hotel bill to stay in many destinations in Spain and other parts of Europe has been talked about for the Canaries but had previously been ruled out.
As well as the 12,188ft Mount Teide, Irish tourists will also have to pay to get into the Anaga and Teno Rural Parks in the north-west of the island once the system is in place from its scheduled start date of January 1 2025.
The amount Irish visitors will be charged has not yet been indicated.
Campaigners in Tenerife were quick to distance themselves from anti-tourist graffiti which appeared on walls and benches in and around Palm Mar in the south of the island at the start of April.
Messages in English left on walls and benches in and around the resort included ‘My misery your paradise’ and ‘Average salary in Canary Islands is 1,200 euros.’
In an apparent UK backlash, a response left in English on a wall next to a ‘Tourists go home’ message said: “F##k off, we pay your wages.”
A picture was subsequently published in local press showing the words ‘Go Home’ on a hire car in Tenerife.
Canarias Se Agota, the lead platform behind the Canary Islands protests grouping together a number of ecological associations, has voiced demands which include a halt to two controversial hotel projects, an eco-tax and more sustainable tourism.
Some foreign holidaymakers have shown their support for the issues raised by the islanders but others have accused them of biting the hand that feeds them.
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