Overtourism in Southern Europe: When Demand Overwhelms Supply, and Growth in the Tourist Trade is Unsustainable

  Local residents in tourist hotspots across Southern European countries bordering the Mediterranean Sea are increasingly unhappy, as demonstrated by recent anti-tourism protests in Spain, Italy, and Portugal. Last year, the numbers of tourists in Spain, Portugal, Italy, Greece, and Croatia far exceeded the national populations of those countries, as international travel continues to pick up after the COVID pandemic. These huge numbers account for the phenomenon of overtourism that is afflicting many popular tourist destinations, all to the detriment of quality of life for locals as well as of tourists’ own experiences.

 Overtourism is being driven by social media, cheap coach travel, budget airlines, giant cruise ships, digital short-term rental platforms, and a proliferation of new hotels. At peak season, many popular destinations are deluged by an influx of incomers, who take up rental properties while depriving locals of affordable housing. Businesses increasingly cater for tourists rather than locals, as shown by a growth in bike rentals, fast-food outlets, souvenir shops, and tourist cafés and restaurants that pander to visitors’ tastes rather than showcasing regional specialties. The cultural identities of some destinations are being submerged by the expressions of a globalised mass culture. Water and energy supplies are compromised, particularly in areas with pre-existing shortages, such as the Greek islands. Public spaces are congested, public transportation is crowded, and long queues form at popular attractions, including museums and galleries. Hospital emergency rooms are much busier than usual. Excessive garbage and sewage are inevitably produced. Long-term residents cannot readily access their own beaches and other sought-after local spaces, while domestic tourism is restricted by high prices.

 The problems of overtourism are mostly confined to certain popular destinations. Spain is the second most-visited European country, with 94 million visitors in 2024, and the most favoured destination for British tourists. Catalonia (Barcelona), Valencia, Andalucia (Malaga), the Balearic Islands (Ibiza, Mallorca), and the Canary Islands (Fuerteventura, Tenerife) have borne the excesses of the tourist trade in Spain. Within the frequently cited example of the city of Barcelona, which received 12.7 million visitors last year, tourists predictably congregate along the Las Ramblas promenade, and at the Sagrada Familia basilica, Parc Güell, and La Boqueria market, causing intolerable overcrowding at these locations. In Greece, the city of Athens, the island of Zakynthos in the Ionian Sea, and the Cycladic Islands (Santorini, Mykonos) and the Dodecanese Islands (Rodos) in the Aegean Sea have been similarly affected. The cities of Florence, Rome, and Venice, the ruins of Pompeii, the Cinque Terre in the Italian Riviera, and the Amalfi coast are among the most notable victims of mass tourism in Italy. Lisbon, Porto, and Sintra continue to lure visitors to Portugal. In Croatia, the Istrian Peninsula (Pula, Rovinj) and the glorious town of Dubrovnik on the Dalmatian coast also draw disproportionately large crowds. The most-visited European country of all, France has, however, largely been spared the backlash against overtourism, probably because, apart from Paris, tourism is not concentrated in any particular locations, being more evenly spread out across the country.

Authorities in the most-affected regions are finally responding to the threat of overtourism. In June 2024, Barcelona’s mayor announced that the city will phase out all 10,100 apartments licenced for short-term rentals by 2028.  Airbnb was ordered by the Spanish government in May 2025 to take down almost 66,000 unregulated holiday rental properties from its platform. Greece has levied a passenger tax of 20 euros on cruise ship arrivals visiting the most popular islands, and 5 euros for less visited islands, between 1 June and 30 September 2025, in the first instance. Venice undertook a trial of an access tax for day-trippers between April and July 2024, which has been renewed this year over the same period, to restrict entry to the historic centre.

The boom in Spanish mass tourism began in the 1960s and boosted economic growth, especially along the Costas, leading to the construction of hotels, villas, and apartment buildings that disfigured hitherto unspoilt beaches. As a result of substantial investments in tourist infrastructure, tourism currently contributes 12% of GDP in Spain. Other Southern European countries have also similarly benefited from the expanded tourist trade. There are undeniable benefits from tourism, but the tourist trade clearly needs to be managed better.

 The unrestrained herd instincts of some incomers have created unwelcome situations in certain locations. Anti-social behaviour by the visiting hoi polloi, fuelled by cheap booze and drugs of misuse, has prompted calls for higher-income and more discerning tourists, who will be expected to contribute their substantial finances to local economies without trashing the places they choose to visit. Disrespectful dress codes, culturally inappropriate behaviour, public drunkenness, aggression and violence, incontinence, noise pollution, and the vandalism of property are all hallmarks of those undesirable visitors who have helped create a negative image of tourists, to the disadvantage of most others.

 Locals are finally striking back, after years of passive tolerance. Tourists are often being told they are “not wanted” and advised to “go back home.” There have even been some mildly intrusive acts that express this displeasure in a more tangible way. Plastic water guns thus began to be targeted at visitors in Barcelona from July 2024 onward.  It must be noted, however, that anti-tourist diatribes are often indirect criticisms of municipal authorities and regional administrations that have not sufficiently addressed locals’ cost-of-living concerns.  

 Booming tourism has undoubtedly benefited local economies in Southern Europe. But economic growth in the tourism sector comes at a price, in the form of negative externalities such as traffic congestion, air and water pollution, water shortages, and environmental degradation, especially when resources are finite, not to mention higher levels of crime. There can thus be no such thing as unfettered growth in tourism in heavily-visited areas. Diverting people to lesser-known places may help spread out the burden, while disincentives in the form of entry taxes and higher hotel costs may reduce numbers choosing overcrowded locations.  Overtourism can be best considered a manifestation of an unregulated tourism market. Responsible and sustainable tourism, spread out more widely, has to be the way forward.

Ashis Banerjee