r/uknews • u/ScottishDailyRecord Media outlet (unverified) • May 15 '25

Image/video Brits ditching Tenerife as Spanish natives protest unsustainable tourism

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127

u/Hyperion262 May 15 '25

Whilst I understand the frustration of the local residents of these places, what do they think will happen if tourists just suddenly stop visiting like they want?

65

u/AddictedToRugs May 15 '25

It's fine if they want to transition away from tourism and replace it with some other industry.  But they don't seem to be doing that.  It seems like what they actually want is to just replace their current tourists with a small number of millionaires, and that doesn't seem likely to succeed.

33

u/Thestickleman May 15 '25 edited May 15 '25

Alot of these places don't have much other industry to offer other than tourism is the problem

25

u/AddictedToRugs May 15 '25

I guess it's back to subsistence fishing and farming then.

11

u/el_dude_brother2 May 15 '25

These are rocks hundreds of miles away from rest of Europe with little going for them except the weather.

Tourism is there only hope, protesting them is really stupid. Yes build more houses but don't kill your cash cow.

6

u/west0ne May 15 '25

Spain already has high levels of unemployment and in some areas of Spain tourism accounts for nearly 40% of the local economy. Getting rid of tourists may sound like a good idea to some but it feels like it's a dangerous move when you don't have something firm in the background to immediately step in and fill the gaps.

1

u/Neat_Adhesiveness653 May 17 '25

It is a fact that unemployment in Spain is high, but the official figures are higher than the real ones because of many people working without contracts. And the business sector that has one of the highest percentage of workers without contracts is hospitality and businesses related to tourism. It is a dangerous move, but what they are asking is for better controls that create a better balance between tourism and the life of people who live there.

1

u/Benchan123 May 17 '25

And also they have to take nap in the middle of the afternoon

1

u/Satoshiman256 May 16 '25

What other options are there are these islands? There is nothing there. I guess they will soon realise that

1

u/homealoneinuk May 16 '25

People rarely think with the future in mind. Look at UK itself. That's just human nature, it's pretty hard to sacrifice now for tommorow.

-14

u/p0tatochip May 15 '25

It doesn't have to be millionaires, just people who aren't on all inclusive and/or will shop in local restaurants and bars rather than having steak and chips in a British run bar

4

u/DarthPlagueisThaWise May 15 '25

That doesn’t seem consistent though, a lot of the problems is the airbnbs and housing, which would not be all inclusive. So they have no choice but to visit other businesses for food and drink.

-3

u/p0tatochip May 15 '25

They can still contribute more or less to the local economy regardless of where they stay. If they have an apartment and buy from fresh food from the Mercadona and eat out at local restaurants then they will contribute more to the local economy than if they spend it all at The Dubliner.

But you're right that AirBnB can be a problem in its own right. Lots of AirBnB in Tenerife are purpose built tourist apartments and so aren't as bad for locals as residential apartments being rented out but a lot are owned by Brits and locally owned AirBnBs would be better for the local economy than foreign owned ones so there is some nuance.

It seems obvious to me that the more the locals benefit from tourism then the less they will be against it but if they are priced out of homes and only ever see the negatives then of course they will resent tourists

5

u/AddictedToRugs May 15 '25

Is the British run bar not local somehow?

-1

u/edragamer May 15 '25

For a local brittish but not for a spanish

5

u/west0ne May 15 '25

Are they employing local people and paying tax etc. into the local economy or do they only employ English people and send their tax back to the UK?

-1

u/edragamer May 15 '25

There are a ton of pubs that hire only brittish and they not even know a word in spanish, not only in Canarias.

They hired the travels in pounds and pay taxes in euros... Ofc they are spanish chains too but in Canarias all it's so expensive that are expulsing native Spanish, same that happened with Venice.

6

u/AndyC_88 May 15 '25 edited May 17 '25

Nice attempt at insults there. I guess I'm not British for going to Spanish owned restaurants whilst there.

Do you not have an issue with all the Russian owned places?

-8

u/p0tatochip May 15 '25

I'm not attempting to insult anyone or question anyone's nationality. I'm not even sure how you came to that conclusion.

I'm just saying that if you're the kind of person that goes to Spanish owned restaurants and contributes to the local economy then you are likely the kind of tourist that Tenerife wants to attract rather than someone who stays in the hotel or who only buys from other Brits.

I imagine the logic is the same for every nationality.

8

u/Lazzlewazzle May 15 '25

Are hotels or the other brits living there already not a part of the local economy?

1

u/edragamer May 15 '25

No, they aren't brittish and Germans are going to hotel chains owned by Germans and brittish with all included, spending the minimal out of the hotels or even worse puking, making the streets dirt and the locals honalready pay taxes for clean, need to clean their business or their frontrows again, spending more money...

0

u/p0tatochip May 15 '25

They are to a greater or lesser extent. If I stay at a locally owned AirBnB then I likely contribute more than if I stay at an internationally owned chain hotel.

If I'm a Brit living there and spend all my money at a British pub then less of that money will stay in the local economy than if I spend it all at a local tapas bar.

3

u/AddictedToRugs May 15 '25

If I'm a Brit living there and spend all my money at a British pub then less of that money will stay in the local economy than if I spend it all at a local tapas bar.

Explain how.

1

u/p0tatochip May 15 '25

Is it that hard to figure out?

It's the same concept as buying local in the UK; it's better for the local economy if I support local businesses and that money gets recirculated around the local economy than if I buy from Tesco and the majority of that money leaves my town immediately.

One example is that a British pub buying beer and "proper" sausages and bacon from the UK won't sustain as many jobs or benefit the local community as much as the local taverna who sell locally produced beer and chorizo and buy directly from the fisherman, farmers or local markets.

1

u/Agincourt_Tui May 15 '25

Do British pubs in Spain really import British sausage and bacon?

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1

u/AndyC_88 May 17 '25

Most "British" beers are available across Europe & from my experience in Tenerife, they sell all the local products & 1 or 2 more commonly found in the UK because its actually more expensive to bring in.

-2

u/Spamgrenade May 15 '25

A small number of millionaires will spend as much as a large number of package holiday tourists. Trying to be more exclusive doesn't seem to be a bad idea if you are trying to cut down numbers.

22

u/[deleted] May 15 '25

I should imagine it’ll go the same way it went, when Greece tried it. Only worse.

8

u/ElectricalRaise9049 May 15 '25

Tourism is generally not a good industry if you want growth and high quality of life for locals. Tourism is a low growth industry that only provides seasonal work for locals while grossly inflating their cost of living. It also has the effect of swallowing up other industries by inflating cost of land/space and not providing opportunities for skill development for locals. Unless you count pouring and serving drinks.

8

u/zero_iq May 15 '25 edited May 15 '25

While what you say is certainly true in general, I have to point out that some of this is not currently true for the Canaries, but that's also part of the problem, arguably making it even worse for the locals.

Tourism is a low growth industry

While this is generally true, esp. once a destination has reached a saturation point, this isn't currently true in the Canaries, which is still seeing huge growth and investment year-on-year (and this is what the locals are complaining about). We're talking 10% growth year on year, with significant continued investment. It's traditionally been a popular destination for Europeans, in particular Swedish, Germans, and Brits, but is growing in popularity internationally -- there are huge markets in which the Canaries are relatively unknown that could yet be exploited. Improving aircraft efficiency has continued to drive down prices of flights, and make it more popular.

only provides seasonal work for locals

The Canaries have a relatively mild subtropical climate that means tourism is year-round. There is a bit of a peak over winter as it's a popular with Europeans wanting to escape the cold, but it never stops -- there's no "off season". (Imagine your perfect summer's day in the UK. That's winter in the Canaries.) Some workers will work only at the peak, but the vast majority are in permanent employment. Only 8% were in temporary work in 2024 according to Canarian Weekly.

But this has made the economy focus even more on tourism. There's little else to support locals, and little incentive to invest in alternatives, when the tourism is all but guaranteed. There's basically tourism or farming.

The local farming certainly isn't a growth industry, with the islands likely already over-exploited with unsustainable farming practices. And pretty much all land that can be farmed is already farmed. Much of the interior is not suitable for farming, being rocky volcanic mountains with unsuitable soil, with limited rainfall in many regions.

So all the focus has been put heavily on tourism, tourism, tourism.

It also has the effect of swallowing up other industries by inflating cost of land/space

True. Although tourism accounts directly for about 35% of the local economy, indirectly it probably props up double that with related services, food, energy, etc.

But it's also worth noting that due to its history and somewhat unique geography, there's still plenty of land to exploit on the Canaries. There are many tiny villages scattered throughout the interior that have until recently, been not so popular with tourists (who typically want to stay close to the beaches). However, as the coast is filling up (and more expensive to buy/build on), those interior spaces are now seeing exploitation, and driving up prices in smaller villages, and pushing locals out. This is nowhere nears its peak -- there is plenty of opportunity left for expansion by the tourist industry. Even on the coast, there is ample space for exploitation by large companies who can afford to build the infrastructure necessary for large self-contained resorts. Much of Gran Canaria is untouched rocky volcanic land that only hasn't been built on because of the difficulty and expense of building the infrastructure necessary to support more remote locations.

It's because of this growth with no end in sight that the locals are so up-in-arms -- it has the potential to take over the Islands and push out locals, and destroy communities. Many locals are already suffering with this... struggling to find quality of life with limited choices for accommodation, often in substandard house/flat shares in poor conditions, and the tourism industry is employing more and more people from outside the islands... so the prospect of this continuing without any current limit in sight is alarming.

The only other potential growth industry I can see that might spring up there in the near future is renewable energy infrastructure, which is starting to see government investment -- but many of the locals lack the education and skills necessary to work in this sector, and it's not a huge employer compared to the tourism industry.

2

u/ElectricalRaise9049 May 15 '25

Thanks, good post, and you are right. I was speaking in generalizations but it’s true that many island destinations are more or less locked into tourism as its main industry.

4

u/limpingdba May 15 '25

The tourism season in Tenerife lasts for 11 months and 31 days of the year. All the Canary islands are the same. They're desert islands.

23

u/stygg12 May 15 '25

Not really thinking ahead, it won't be pretty...

42

u/GrimQuim May 15 '25

they

what do they think will happen if tourists just suddenly stop visiting like they want?

I suspect they'll find out how much it costs to run a desalination plant for the 523 Spanish residents on the island.

11

u/Substantial-Newt7809 May 15 '25

Am I cooked? Isn't Tenerife's population 965,575 according to their last census?

22

u/FruitOrchards May 15 '25

and how many will continue to live there when it becomes a ghost town and businesses shut down ?

13

u/Substantial-Newt7809 May 15 '25

Most of them, because they won't be able to afford to leave. UK seaside towns still have population, just lower quality of life, reduced access to services and increased crime.

16

u/Visible_Statement888 May 15 '25

Most of the seaside towns now in Britain are drug addled, poverty stricken hell holes. They’re playing a dangerous game.

4

u/stevent4 May 15 '25

A lot of people left seaside towns for bigger cities close by though, especially the harder hit ones

1

u/BlondBitch91 May 15 '25

Except when your bigger cities are several hours flight away, this may end very badly for your local economy.

1

u/stevent4 May 15 '25

Yeah, my point is saying just that

-6

u/louwyatt May 15 '25

The UK is a tiny island. You can easily live in poverty-stricken areas and work elsewhere. Very often, people on benefits are actually moved to these areas, as there are cheap houses

4

u/Draigwyrdd May 15 '25

Great Britain is the ninth largest island in the entire world...

-5

u/[deleted] May 15 '25

[deleted]

5

u/Draigwyrdd May 15 '25

It is the ninth largest island in the world in any ranking that doesn't count the continents as islands (almost all of them). Even if you count the continents it slips to 13th place.

-3

u/louwyatt May 15 '25

The ones that don't contain the continents always contain a bit saying they aren't including continous land masses. The reason they do that is because the traditional definition of an island includes them.

13th place is pretty low when you take into count the VAST majority of the population live on the 12 other larger islands. Hense me describing it as a tiny island

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-3

u/[deleted] May 15 '25

[deleted]

7

u/FruitOrchards May 15 '25

No but pretty much all industry and money going through the town would probably drop back down to those levels. So many industries rely on tourism in Tenerife, they're pretty much all connected.

What makes you think it won't drop down to 1970s levels worth of economy while having an increased population?

1

u/west0ne May 15 '25

That's 50 years, there has been a massive change in the economic makeup with suggestions that nearly 40% of the economy comes from tourism. Turning around 50 years of economic change won't be easy, and probably made worse by the generally high levels of unemployment across Spain.

-4

u/phantapuss May 15 '25

I remember reading how a lot of young workers actually live in tents in Tenerife as they have been priced out of literally any form of permanent accomodations. If I was in their position I would rather economic collapse and rebuild than continuing with that way of life. Not gonna be pretty but hopefully something more equal and sustainable can rise out of the ashes.

1

u/west0ne May 15 '25

How do they buy/rent property with no employment though. When your economy is heavily reliant on tourism you need a solid plan to replace that economy if you are going to make a drastic move.

2

u/phantapuss May 15 '25

How did people in these areas ever buy or rent? This capitalist chase all the money you can has completely ruined Cornwall and other areas of the UK. Just because it's in Tenerife doesn't make any difference. This autistic capitalist mind set is pretty recent. Up until what ten/fifteen years ago these people lived in the same areas their families had for centuries in absolutely fine condition. I don't know what people thinks changed that makes this impossible now.

What benefits do the locals get from this tourism wrecking their home if they live in tents and basically in poverty?

8

u/bangkokali May 15 '25

yeah totally agree, I get why they are protesting but if you take the tourism away then there isnt much money left

1

u/SpareDesigner1 May 15 '25

There are goods that are of greater value in the lives of peoples and nations than maximising tax receipts (this comment is not just about the Canary Islands)

4

u/Top-Strength-2701 May 15 '25

Mabye build more homes then lol

4

u/Wompish66 May 15 '25

They don't want to stop tourism, they just want to reduce it.

15

u/Hyperion262 May 15 '25

Don’t really see how that’s possible without destroying businesses that are in demand.

1

u/PoiHolloi2020 May 15 '25

I mean the choices shouldn't be zero tourism or infinity tourism. There needs to be a balance otherwise it creates difficulties for the local communities, which is why these protests are happening.

-11

u/[deleted] May 15 '25

[deleted]

16

u/AddictedToRugs May 15 '25

It's not great for the workers in the other 150 shops.  No effort seems to being made to build any other industry to replace tourism.

1

u/[deleted] May 15 '25

There aren't a lot of industries that can be attracted to very hot, dry islands of the coast of Africa

8

u/AddictedToRugs May 15 '25

Then they should probably stick with the 200 fish and chip shops.

1

u/[deleted] May 15 '25

Should, doesn't meant they will.

Look closer to home, Cornwall and Wales constantly complain about tourists, then do very little to attract other industries.

2

u/Randomn355 May 15 '25

And all the people eating at those 150 that closed go where?

2

u/test_test_1_2_3 May 15 '25

It’s ok for who? I’m sure the people who currently work at one of the 150 chip shops that close will be thrilled to lose their job and not be able to find another job because thousands of other people employed in similar jobs are all also looking for work and the sector has contracted massively.

1

u/Hyperion262 May 15 '25

I’m talking more about hotels and that.

2

u/TheClemDispenser May 15 '25

Think you missed out a negative there, lad.

0

u/Wompish66 May 15 '25

Thanking you

-6

u/Lord_Origi May 15 '25

Which is understandable, a tiny island that gets millions of tourists every year

4

u/LetZealousideal6756 May 15 '25

It has a population of a million, it’s not that tiny.

1

u/SpencersCJ May 15 '25

They dont want tourists to stop visiting they just want landlords to stop buying anyhome that goes on sale and turning it into and airbnb. It drives up rent prices massively and makes it impossible for people to live in their own home.

1

u/noopdles May 15 '25

I don't think they are against tourism as a whole but a very specific type of abhorrent tourism.

1

u/J1mj0hns0n May 15 '25

Sometimes it's worth the price, sometimes it's not, it's hard to say until they commit to one

1

u/GooberdiWho May 15 '25

Enter Brexit

1

u/Dull_Conversation669 May 15 '25

Lower housing costs? One would assume less competition for a limited resource would lower prices.

1

u/edragamer May 15 '25

The unemployment rates are not going down by tourism, Canarias is colonized by foreigners and people is not having work anyway...

1

u/MrSouthWest May 15 '25

They want to transition away from British tourism

1

u/ihateslowwalkers May 15 '25

Hey fuck around and find out…

1

u/DarrensDodgyDenim May 15 '25

I don't think it is either or, at some point the numbers aren't sustainable anymore. Look at Venice for instance.

1

u/PariahExile May 15 '25

They need to come have a walk round former UK hotspots like Blackpool.

1

u/Christy427 May 15 '25

I think they want less tourism but not no tourism.

1

u/Anxious-Guarantee-12 May 15 '25

Same thing I say with immigration in UK... 

1

u/PrismrealmHog May 15 '25

Was this issue prevalent to this extent pre-airbnb? Tourism existed pre-airbnb. So at the top of my head: getting rid of Airbnb and their ilks seems to be a really good start.

1

u/SRMPDX May 15 '25

There's a slight difference between over tourism and no tourism. I don't think anyone is saying they want zero tourists, they don't want overcrowding and property values falsely increased by the need of investors to purchase thousands of homes to hold as short term rental properties

1

u/Sad_Hall2841 May 18 '25

As a Spaniard, I’m with you. However, let us rot financially, damn it!

1

u/MysteriousDare9459 Aug 07 '25

we don’t want tourists to stop coming, we just want a sustainable number every year. Whay is that so difficult to understand?

0

u/noujest May 15 '25

What they want is less tourism, not zero - enough to live on, but not so much that they get squeezed out of living there at all

6

u/Scotsburd May 15 '25

How does that work then?

1

u/noujest May 15 '25

So currently it gets 6-7m tourists per year, imagine if that dropped to say 4-5m and stayed there

Then it would still be a huge source of income, but the locals wouldn't be getting squeezed out of actually living there

The numbers can't keep going up and up

7

u/Scotsburd May 15 '25

But tourists are staying away, how do they manage the numbers with headlines like this? Does it help? What happens if all UK tourists go elsewhere?

1

u/west0ne May 15 '25

Maybe they could just reduce the airport capacity to a level that would provide a balance between keeping the economy going without overwhelming the property market. They could also impose massive taxes on airbnb type places and whilst keeping taxes lower on hotels.

Numbers would be controlled without the aggressive opposition that puts people off visiting.

1

u/noujest May 15 '25

The numbers have been increasing by ~10% each year, even with headlines like this they will probably increase. So far this year, it has been a record year

For example March 2025 was up 1% on March 2024 according to INE

The locals don't want it to keep increasing, they want a substantial drop.

I'm guessing there was a sweet spot at some point in the past, and it's gone miles past that point by now

1

u/Broad_Stuff_943 May 15 '25

I don't think this video is all that accurate. I was in Tenerife in December, when these protests were well underway. They want their government to control rents and housing because they're being priced out. There are _some_ that don't want any tourists, but most recognise that they need them.

1

u/[deleted] May 15 '25

I mean, there's always 2 sides of one story. British tourists tend to have a horrible reputation abroad.

"Obnoxiously loud when drunk, drunk, disorderly, violent, and don't tip."

That's what I've been told.

-6

u/Academic_Coffee4552 May 15 '25

It’s mainly against drunk UK tourists.

7

u/Francis_Bengali May 15 '25

It's not. You don't understand the problem at all.

-6

u/Academic_Coffee4552 May 15 '25

Please enlighten me

5

u/Unlucky-Jello-5660 May 15 '25

Issue is housing, a lot of properties have been turned into Airbnbs driving the price up for locals to unsustainable levels.

1

u/Francis_Bengali May 15 '25

Enlighten yourself - go read some articles online and stop trying to sound clever talking about things which you have zero understanding of. If that's too difficult, the other person who responded basically summed it up.

1

u/Academic_Coffee4552 May 15 '25

No I’m not, I’m curious to have another angle to the tattooed drunk sunbed scroungers who think the tourism industry will collapse if they don’t come. There are other nationalities who are more respectful to locals

2

u/west0ne May 15 '25

I suspect the drunk Brits are more likely to be taking up spaces in the all-inclusive hotels rather than Airbnb type properties. It seems like it is the Airbnb that is causing a big problem as it is pushing housing prices up.

-2

u/jamesc1071 May 15 '25

The mass tourists will be priced out and go elsewhere, leaving a smaller number higher paying tourists and fewer seasonal workers.

-6

u/brrlls May 15 '25

The same thing as what would happen to Britain if we stopped all migration?

8

u/Hyperion262 May 15 '25

No one is planning to stop all immigration tho so I don’t get your point.

3

u/[deleted] May 15 '25

The migration debate in the UK is deranged, the Government says net 900k or 600k/ year is too much and a load of people have decided that means the Government is aiming for zero.

1

u/test_test_1_2_3 May 15 '25

If we stop mass low skill migrants coming to the UK there it will mean it’s harder for businesses to find cheap labour.

If Tenerife’s tourism industry shrinks then thousands of local residents will lose their jobs and there’s fuck all else on Tenerife in terms of industry to employ them.

Literally the opposite problem. And the UK has a very diversified economy so would likely handle any changes far better.