British travellers are facing an uncertain reception should they be going on holiday this summer to The Canary Islands, where mass protests are have been taking place by locals hacked off with the number of holiday-makers heading their way.
Protests are set to continue in to the summer months with more than 50,000 people turning up to vent their anger and dissatisfaction.
In 2023, around 13.9 million tourists visited the seven main islands in the Canary Islands archipelago and thousands of the islands' 2.2 million population have taken to the streets in recent weeks, complaining about the over-tourism of the islands. official figures show.
Most of those protesting speak of tourists not respecting the islands and accusing them of making locals' lives unbearable. Lydia Morales told the BBC."We are feeling we're being pushed away, our priorities are not taken in consideration," adding politicians were "more focused" on building tourism complexes and hotels than helping the local inhabitants.
National Statistics Institute INE warned that last year 34% of Canary Islanders were at risk of poverty or social exclusion last year. Which is the second highest after the region of Andalusia.
There are reports of a number of protesters going on hunger strikes in Tenerife, over what they believe is the destructive growth of tourism.
"We Canarians are fed up with being second and third class citizens, we are fed up with overcrowding, with institutional mistreatment, with low salaries, with our heritage being destroyed," Nieves Rodrigues Rivera, a teacher and writer told France 24.
Antonio Bullon, from Tenerife, told Sky News: "The authorities must immediately stop this corrupt and destructive model that depletes the resources and makes the economy more precarious."
Whilst most of the protesters are peaceful and the main group The Canaries Have Had Enough say their actions are not against tourists themselves, but against the over-development of the islands. There are reports of tourists being targeted and verbally abused. In some cases holidaymakers have been barred from entering shops and restaurants, villa driveways have been blocked and rubbish put in pools. There have also been a few reports of graffiti saying 'tourists go home' being sprayed on buildings and hotels.
Tourism represents 35% of the GDP of the islands and nearly 40% of all jobs are reliant on the tourist industry.
FCO advice
Terrorists are likely to try to carry out attacks in Spain.
Attacks could be indiscriminate, including in places visited by foreigners. Stay aware of your surroundings, keep up to date with local media reports and follow the advice of local authorities.
Recent terrorist attacks in Spain include:
in January 2023, one person was killed and others injured in a machete attack at 2 churches in Cadiz
in 2017, 14 people were killed and over 100 injured across 2 incidents where vehicles were driven into pedestrians in Barcelona and Cambrils.
Political situation
Demonstrations, political gatherings or marches can take place with little or no warning, particularly in cities. Follow the advice of police and local authorities.
While most demonstrations are peaceful, there is a risk of unrest or violence. If you’re in and around areas where demonstrations are taking place, be aware of what is happening around you and move away if there are signs of disorder.
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