if the Spanish don't want us,don't go there

One of my DAC has booked a trip to Venice then cruising to Barcelona in a few weeks time. I'm quite worried as there are protests in Venice by the locals not wanting the tourist tax. Barcelona has many protests atm telling tourists to FO go home etc. Not great for the DGC to see and hear. It's too late to cancel and they would lose so much money after saving hard for 2 years
Really hoping they will all be ok.

Totally agree - boycott Spain!

Jackiest

The problem is some of the British have behaved so badly that we are not welcome in many parts of the world.

We are being judged by the actions of a small number which is wrong and we should not do it either.

Just like a few England supporters in Germany starting fights and being abusive. Goading the German youngsters and screaming at them to go home. It hasn't dawned on these dimwits that the Germans ARE at home. Shows Britain in a good light.

SiobhanSharpe

TerriBull

The northern coastal areas such as San Sebastian have not been tainted in the way that the Costas have been, somewhat cooler but un-spoilt, or was when I went there, a while back now.. I do love the Moorish part of Spain though which is predominantly in the south.

San Sebastián can get very crowded with tourists, especially 'foodie' ones and I've seen many large parties of (eg) Japanese tourists being led around by tour guides to the best tapas and pinxtos bars.
Not that I blame then for that, the food is really special.
But it can get very busy.
It's also busy during the International Film Festival which is held inSeptember.
Still a great place to visit. But Bilbao is also a very good foodie destination as well as a vibrant city and seems to be more popular with Spanish tourists than foreign. So it's less rowdy overall....

San Sebastian is the jewel of Northern Spain´s Basque Country.

Not as frequently travelled but also incredibly beautiful is Zarautz, The Basque Country. Truly another gem and less frequented. For those who like the beach, it is quite beautiful and the cuisine is impressive ..

And a not to miss is: Biarritz, France. Very very beautiful ..

I went a while ago, we stayed St Jean de Luz very near Biarritz, yes all lovely, I particularly liked a town Hendeye on the French side.

Hendaye not Hendeye

One of my favorite destinations has always been Venice and I feel so sorry for the locals there for similar reasons. I believe they have now banned cruise ships because of the damage they do to the environment. Ive only ever travelled there in low and off season but I can imagine the effect of the crowds in those narrow twisty streets. If you visit cities off season there may not be quite so many facilities open. However you will have a more relaxed time and the people are friendly.

TerriBull

I went a while ago, we stayed St Jean de Luz very near Biarritz, yes all lovely, I particularly liked a town Hendeye on the French side.

Definitely an extraordinary location ..

We travelled with our dear friends and the four of us had an incredible time ..

Very beautiful region of France.

Our family home was originally in a little fishing village, the locals were desperate to catch up with the tourist areas either side, which has happened over the last 30 years.

Now it is unrecognisable, and the locals complain constantly, despite the largest percentage of tourists coming from inland areas, so not even foreigners

Be careful what you wish for comes to mind.

The protests in Barcelona have just been on ITV news, so not tabloid hyperbole

Sorry should have said this was in Spain.

It’s a very difficult situation where touristy areas are concerned, because local economies have built up around tourism, very successfully, and need tourism to survive - and there’s the rub, probably, as it’s become too successful in some ways, so that locals find it hard to find places to live and work (affordable places), with many properties becoming air b&b and the areas have become extremely crowded during particular times of year and resentment has built up. The difficulty is finding a balance, but I would say air b&b needs looking at as a start.

Boycotting a place is unhelpful.

babamaman says * Totally agree - boycott Spain*

Totally agree with who ???? most people on here are agreeing with the Spaniards and other locals who are getting wiped out by the ‘tourists’
Horrible post from you
Think again
Spain and Portugal and Canaries are beautiful places with lovely locals but it’s totally understandable how difficult it has become for them
Have a bit of thought and care

Good grief BlueBelle are you now policing threads?
I wasn’t a ‘horrible’ post at all from babamaman if you thought you’d be met with posters saying tourists go home and squirting you with a water pistol while you were sitting happily eating a meal wouldn’t you choose not to go there?
A few really popular countries as tourist destinations have become a victim of their own success, and locals are unhappy.
Airb&b could be clamped down on, with only a % being allowed which would probably help.Hotels aren’t going to want to shut down.

I went back to Spain last February. I will admit..when seeing Spain today I am lucky to remember the country when Franco was in charge and when there were few tourists etc
I can remember being with a Spanish family who lived in a cave by the beach in Almeria which then was a very small town with no sky high apartments.

Threads Oreo ??? I commented on one ‘post’ get your facts right if you want a go at me

I don’t want to ‘have a go at you’ especially BlueBelle but it looked as if you are policing this thread.
Saying the post was horrible ( it wasn’t) and telling the poster to
‘ have a bit of thought and care’ !
It would certainly put me off booking anywhere busy in Spain at the moment, and the busy places with plenty to do are what many tourists want.

TerriBull

The northern coastal areas such as San Sebastian have not been tainted in the way that the Costas have been, somewhat cooler but un-spoilt, or was when I went there, a while back now.. I do love the Moorish part of Spain though which is predominantly in the south.

Try driving up along the coast front San Sebastian to Portugal it is lovely

“Now it is unrecognisable, and the locals complain constantly, despite the largest percentage of tourists coming from inland areas, so not even foreigners”

You’re right on this one GG - the inland town council where we live in Spain organises a weekly day trip through July and August to the coastal resorts for €6.

So who actually owns these Airbnb s
Locals you would think ?

Monica like any business there is the good or bad. The Airbnb's
causing the housing problem are for the most part in the
Cities world wide. Converting your outhouses in the French
countryside for tourism income is not the same thing.

Lollin I think you’re correct AirBnB have ruined a lot of places as people see it as easy money buy a property then rent it because you don’t have to live with the consequences. Edinburgh is a prime example you wouldn’t want to buy a flat in the old town nowadays as most are rental and the few locals who are still there have to live the constant turnover of people that the sense of community is lost

AirBnBs have had to be licensed in Barcelona for a long time so as in New York local government had scope to control it, and gain money from it. A big problem in many areas comes from cruise ship tourists, who are not paying for accommodation in a city at all, but are disgorged in huge numbers. Other than re Venice I have seen little discussion on moves to control cruise ships which seem to be becoming ever larger. London (90 days per property) and many cities control the bookings through the site- though perhaps hard to audit where many sites are used- so it has become a common problem globally. Spain has a housing and second home squatting problem particularly in Catalunya where protest marches on a variety of topics are frequent. (Re tourists in the UK I hope we’ll move soon to charging foreign visitors (as a minimum) to visit London and Britains world class museums to help maintain our heritage. We expect to pay abroad.)

But *halfpint1^ Big city exploitation or small town extra income. All these different properties are available on AirBNB. So to condemn AirBNB as a scheme just because parts of it do not work well, when other bits do, seems to me to be unreasonable.

As some have said even in the UK, local people in a seaside area I visit regularly, complain so much about the numbers of.roieists coming, the number of cottages rented a s the number of people buying up houses on retirement. It's not so much the behaviour but there do seem to be some that leave rubbish, park inconsiderately etc which is horrid for the local people. Much of the employment in the town is seasonal, I think local people.l recognize that there are benefits to the area, they keep shops going, and other local facilities.
I don't know if there is any air bnbs, I have used air bnbs but only ones that are a room in someone's house, the goats have been people who are maybe freelancers so not a steady income, or basically they are trying to pay their mortgage. This seems v different to having them as rental homes. I like that I have access to a kitchen, most of my hosta have been women, not all, the one I went to with a man who was very professional and again, he was using it to help pay the bills, and they have been very helpful with local knowledge. They have all been nice and quiet, which is what I want.
When I've been to ones that have more than one room I've enjoyed chatting to fellow guests

We stay in AirBnBs occasionally, have never had any problem.

Easy reasonable solution - not a hotel with silly people all round, able to cook for ourselves, nice, clean, quiet, and good for the host.