Spain's Love-Hate Relationship With Tourism: Is the Costa del Sol Full?

On Saturday 8th August, Mallorca saw another in a series of protests against what has been dubbed, ‘over tourism’. A statement from the organisers of the protest, the Sóller Youth Movement said: “We are seeing how neighbourhoods are being systematically destroyed to make way for tourism-oriented businesses”. Britain’s Sun newspaper, in its usual diplomatic and restrained way, called the protestors ‘anti-tourism zealots’.

But is that the whole story and has Spain fallen out of love with tourism?

Here are some facts: the Costa del Sol has an overall permanent population of roughly 1.4 million people. In 2025, the area hosted a record-breaking 14.65 million visitors. In summer especially, tourists outnumber local residents by at least, a factor of ten.

In addition, according to a 2024 report by the Bank of Spain, the number of properties rented to tourists exceeds 50 per cent compared to the number of long-term rentals available to the local population. The result of this imbalance is a massive increase in the cost of renting an apartment long-term; in some areas rents have doubled in the last decade while salaries have failed to keep up.

Even this comprehensive report, based on the listings of the 3 most popular online rental sites, underestimates the true scale of the problem as many properties are advertised outside of these booking platforms or offered through private agreement.

When tourists come here on holiday they, quite rightly, expect high standards of service from staff in the Costa del Sol’s many restaurants and bars.

But what many don’t realise is that the friendly waiter in their favourite restaurant will be taking home the equivalent of around €1,200 a month. But, the rent on a barely adequate apartment within reasonable commuting distance of work costs between €1,100 and €1,600 a month (according to Waypoint Sur). Clearly that is a situation which is unsustainable.

Spain isn't turning against tourists — it's questioning a tourism model that can leave local people struggling to afford their own homes

Another consequence is that once the number of vacation homes reaches critical mass, the whole area becomes completely dedicated to the needs of tourists, prices increase in shops and bars and the local residents are obliged to relocate to other, cheaper areas.

Many workers in the hospitality sector on the Costa del Sol now come from inland towns and villages and face an hour-long commute before and after their busy shift working to serve the very tourists who have, albeit inadvertently, forced them out of their homes.

Worse off still are those workers who have to sleep in caravans, motorhomes, even cars and tents. As tourist numbers rise, work is easy to find but the cost of housing has soared beyond the means of the local working population.

The Sóller Youth Movement clarified that the recent demonstrations are, “not against tourism or against tourists but against the economic model of tourism-driven monoculture”.

In a move to address the housing problem and stop local residents being forced out, Málaga has implemented a three-year moratorium on new short term rental licenses for tourist apartments.

The government of Pedro Sánchez also wants to eliminate the IVA (VAT) exemption on short term rentals which will add 21 per cent to the cost of a stay in an AirBnB apartment.

The draft decree also proposes doubling the IBI, (council tax), on all rentals of fewer than 30 days, affecting the country’s almost 100 million annual visitors who choose to rent a holiday apartment instead of a hotel room. Unfortunately, this legislation is not going to come into force until after the summer of 2026 at the earliest. In the meantime, the Spanish government recently ordered AirBnB to remove nearly 66,000 short-term rental listings advertised on the platform as they lacked the appropriate tourist licenses. By law, all short-term rentals have to be licensed although, with high taxation in Spain, some property owners choose to fly under the radar. According to some reports, up to 40 per cent of all vacation accommodation in Spain is unlicensed, does not comply with the law or safety regulations and are therefore illegal. So, what can you do? Well, first of all, contrary to many reports in the media, Spain is definitely not anti-tourist, the country just wants a return to more manageable levels of tourism. Visitors are still very welcome: according to Turismo Costa del Sol, tourists spend over 20 billion euros each year and are therefore a crucial part of the local economy. Visitors can help by eschewing the large rental platforms, opting instead for accommodation in hotels for their vacation, ideally family run establishments where the money will go directly into the local economy. And if you really want to stay in an apartment, just make sure the owner has a valid tourist license. Either of these choices will mean you become part of the solution and not part of the problem. Enjoy your stay!