A threatening anti-tourist slogan seen on a beach in southern Tenerife has raised concerns for UK tourists following a series of protests across popular hotspots in Spain last summer.
The graffiti, which was sprayed across the side of a building, reads ‘kill a tourist’. A concerned local resident told LBC News that ‘things on the island are getting worse’ due to the large number of tourists, housing shortages and damage to the natural environment, but labelled the escalating situation as ‘frightening’.
Footage of the graffiti being painted was posted online by a group called Islas de Resistencia, which describes itself as ‘a project to recover the memory of social movements in the Canary Islands’.
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However, local news site Canarian Weekly has hit back at the report, arguing that ‘the actions of a few do not reflect the feelings of the masses’.
The publication addressed tourists directly, saying: “We know we need tourism for our islands to flourish and be successful, but sustainable tourism and sensible tourist numbers so that the quality of life for the people that live and work here isn’t negatively affected, which it is becoming right now.
“Tenerife, and the other Canary Islands want tourism, they need tourism, they love holidaymakers, but what they also want is affordable housing for the people that serve you your meals and drinks, affordable rents for the people that clean your apartments and hotel rooms, water for everyone not just hotels and golf courses, and a limit on the land that the government is allowing to be eaten up by new holiday complexes and not residential housing.
“This is why we protested against the government. Not against you, you are always welcome here whether in a holiday home, aparthotel, or hotel, we want you.”
Other popular holiday destinations in Spain have implemented measures to address concerns about ‘over tourism’. Malaga imposed a three-year ban on new holiday homes in 43 saturated areas last week, while Barcelona plans to ban all tourist apartments by November 2028.
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