Anti-tourism protests to take place simultaneously in Spain, Portugal and Italy
Protests against overtourism will be held simultaneously in the most popular tourist cities of Spain, Portugal and Italy on Sunday, June 15. In Barcelona, Spain, organizers called for people to bring water pistols to spray tourists. Reuters reports .
Protests are planned in Barcelona and seven other Spanish cities, including Granada, Palma and Ibiza, in the Portuguese capital Lisbon and the Italian cities of Venice, Genoa, Palermo, Milan and Naples.
According to activists, mass tourism forces residents of tourist centers to move, increases the cost of living, and litters city centers.
Protest organizers in Barcelona have urged demonstrators to bring water guns to spray tourists on the streets, a move activists have already used last year, drawing criticism from the Spanish government and tourism companies.
International travel spending in Europe is expected to rise 11% this year to $838 billion, with Spain and France among the countries set to receive record numbers of tourists.
- On May 19, accommodation booking platform Holidu created a list of cities with the most expensive tourist taxes, which are being introduced to control the excessive flow of tourists.
- Los Angeles is in first place in the ranking. New York is in second place. The US capital, Washington, is in third place.