Brit holidaymakers face Europe airport misery this summer amid anti-tourism protests

Daily Mirror

25-04-2025

Brits heading to holiday hotspots around Europe this summer may face organised anti-tourism protests as soon as they arrive at airports with locals fuming at rising prices
British holidaymakers jetting to Europe this summer could face airport misery – thanks to anti-tourism protests as protesters refuse to rule out aiming their frustrations at airports.
Fed up locals in holiday hotspots across Spain, Italy, France and Portugal have refused to rule out targeting terminal buildings to deter holidaymakers. They say mass tourism has fuelled soaring rents and a lack of affordable homes - as accommodation is snapped up for tourist lets and land bought for building resorts. The alert comes as millions of us are planning sunshine getaways. At a summit in Barcelona, protestor Elena Boschi yesterday told the Mirror: 'We want tourists to have some level of fear about the situation – without fear there is no change.'
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The English language teacher, 46, a campaigner from Genoa, on the Italian riviera, continued: 'Our cities and regions are not for sale and there is an urgent need to limit the growth of tourism, demand a change of course and decide on a path to tourism de-growth as a way out.'
When questioned by our reporter about demonstrations at airports, which have been mooted by activists, leader Daniel Pardo added: 'It is a possibility – but, it is difficult to say because each territory will decide how they want to take action, there is no one set strategy.'
The organisation, called SET European Network Against Touristification, consists of protest groups representing 17 cities, islands and communities across southern Europe. Representatives from each area have gathered for a three-day summit to call for an end to 'predatory tourism' which they say has left people 'unable to pay the high rents or buy a home' and 'beaches and natural areas visibly damaged.'
Average Spanish rents have doubled and house prices have soared by over 44% in the past decade, while the supply of residential rentals has halved since the 2020 pandemic. At the same time short-term rentals have increased rapidly in major cities and coastal destinations squeezing out hardworking Spanish families.
The meeting comes after hundreds of thousands of Spaniards marched in 40 cities across the country last summer. From May to July, more than 50,000 hit the streets of the Mallorcan capital Palma. They clutched placards with slogans like: 'Mallorca is not for sale' and 'no houses without people, nor people without houses.'
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And earlier this month, further demonstrations kicked off. In the capital Madrid, more than 150,000 protesters marched through the streets, according to the local tenants' union. But SET Network member Maria Cardona, representing Ibiza, said protestors will take things 'one step further' this summer.
'The housing situation is really dramatic, there are hundreds of people living in tents and in cars so I think a lot of protest groups will be prepared to take more decisive action,' she told us. 'On Ibiza, we also have a shortage of water and this is a problem in the winter, so you can imagine in the summer when there is triple the number of people on the island.'
Despite the planned demos, many members were keen to emphasise they are not anti-tourists. One, who didn't want to be named, said: 'We are not against tourists, but what we don't welcome is a way of being in our cities and regions that turns it into a place that is no longer nice to live in for us.
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'People need to think what it would feel like if this were happening in their hometown – we're not interested in scaring anyone. It's just about being mindful of the impact tourism can have on local communities.'
Tourism is hugely important to Spain, with 94 million visitors last year, of which at least 17.5 million were Brits, making it the second most visited country in the world, behind France. Local governments have already launched their own crackdowns on short-term rentals. In Barcelona, officials have pledged to phase out its 10,000 permits for short-term lets, many of which are advertised on platforms such as Airbnb, by 2028.
The SET European Network Against Touristification was formed in 2018. The network's first action saw members release a manifesto about how mass tourism causes rents to soar, local shops to disappear and low wage jobs. A leaflet distributed at the Barcelona summit reads: 'Early action aimed at imposing limits on tourism is an expression of a growing collective awareness that transcends borders.
'Each demonstration marks a moment, and perhaps, a turning point - we must push for the changes and policies that our cities and regions, the people who live in them and the whole planet need.'
Some 747 million tourists visited Europe last year, making it the region with the highest number of international arrivals worldwide. Protests organised by the SET network will begin on June 15. Among the areas represented are top Spanish destinations including the Canary Islands, Ibiza, Mallorca, Barcelona and San Sebastian. Also present are campaigners from Santander, Genoa, Pamplona, Lisbon, Marseille, Milan, Naples, Palermo, the Pyrenees, Rimini, Valence and Venice.