Canary Island Tourist Protest. The facts behind why the locals are protesting

You may have recently noticed articles in the main stream media concerning protests against tourism in the Canary Islands. This has led to a large number of people, who have already committed to travelling, concerned that they won't be welcome or perhaps the islands are unsafe for tourists. This couldn't be further from the truth and is a sly scare tactic used by the UK mainstream media to incite fear into travellers.

It is true, however, that protests have happened here on the islands but these protests are aimed at the government and the way that they handle tourism as apposed to actual tourists themselves. Tourism is the most important source of income for the The Canary Islands and without it the economy would suffer. Therefore it would make no sense for locals and local businesses to not want tourists on the islands at all.

The main issue is that large scale hotel complexes, whilst providing jobs, do not give back what they should into the community; and AirBnB style holiday lets have vacuumed up property and pushed up long term rental prices to more than what an average local earns in a month. Naturally this has led to a huge shortage in housing meaning that local businesses are now also struggling to recruit staff.

The fact of the matter is that the Tourism model in the Canary Islands is broken. It's a cash cow of a system that dates back to the 1980s that has been created to benefit investors through tax breaks and not the local communities through wages and affordable housing.

The media noise surrounding the protests has been 100x worse than it has on the ground. Whilst peaceful, organised protests aimed at the government have taken place there has been no hostility towards tourists apart from a very few isolated incidents, mainly in the form of graffiti. The message the locals have tried to get across to tourists sums the situation up perfectly.. 'My Misery, your paradise.'

Long Term rental prices have been hugely inflated over the last decade and it can be hard to find anything cheaper than €1,000 a month, even for a small apartment. When you consider the average local wage is between €1,000 and €1,300 a month it's easy to see why the locals are unhappy. Instead of building more affordable social housing the Canary Island authorities have sold off land to huge hotel chains so they can build monstrosities on the protected landscape. With employees so difficult to find on the island these days it would make sense for these hotels to provide accommodation for their workers, but this has been overlooked in recent new builds.

Are you visiting the islands soon? Check out some of the best day trips, tours and activities the Canary islands have to offer.

The protests are NOT related to the behaviour of British Tourists

Amazingly, some of the main stream media outlets in the UK managed to twist the story into the locals protesting about the behaviour of the British Public. This is definitely not the reason that people feel the need to protest. The islands population does not hate tourists, but in fact what the islands have become due to over saturation of tourism. Something the late César Manrique warned about before his untimely death back in 1992 where he stated that the Canarians should not become slaves to the Tourist industry. This is their home.

A strain on the infrastructure of the Canary Islands

The Canary Islands are not large in comparison to some destination, and there is a limit on just how many people they can accommodate, ensuring that all services such as water, electricity, transport and health care can all function to an acceptable level. At the time of writing this article there are 40,000 more beds on the island than at the same point 12 months ago through an increase in villa rentals and the construction of large super hotels. The system is broken, and the locals want answers from those in power as to how they propose to fix it. THAT is what the protests are about. THAT is why people are unhappy.

Canary Island Protests. Moving forward

Indeed the Canary Island protests surrounding the tourism model have not fallen on deaf ears. Legislation for holiday rentals is being reviewed and Fernando Calvijo, the president of the government of The Canary Islands has announced they will meet on the 30th April to discuss options for moving forward.

Is it safe to visit the Canary Islands amid the tourism protests?

It's 100% safe to visit the Canary Islands. As we have previously stated, the protests are not directed at Tourists themselves, but rather the Tourism model that the island operates which is hugely outdated and resulting in a lifestyle of suffering and poverty for the locals.

Summing up the Canary Island Tourist Protests

The Canarians are unhappy with their government concerning the regulations and models in place for tourism. The resources of the island are being continuously stretched as huge hotels and holiday rentals increase tourist footfall on the island, and locals are being priced out of affordable, long term accommodation - which in turn leaves local businesses short of employees. The protests are peaceful and a way for the locals to voice their concerns to the government. They are not directed at tourists and they do not want tourists to 'go home'. All the locals we spoke to are extremely warm to welcoming tourists to the island, after all they play a huge part in the economy of the islands, but they should not be treated like slaves and living in poverty just so tourists can enjoy luxurious stays in villas and expensive hotels.

Tourists are more than welcome in the Canary Islands.