How Tourism Made—and broke—Spain
Spanish anti-tourism protests. Source: AP Photo/Armando Franca.
Following the end of Francisco Franco’s dictatorship in 1975, Spain underwent immense change in just a generation. In 1982 Spain joined NATO, and four years later it joined the EU. Spain’s economy and culture was put on the global stage in rapid succession. Spain, which historically had been a country of emigration and poverty, transformed into one of Europe’s strongest and most important economic and cultural players.
One of the reasons behind this became the massive growth of Spain’s tourism sector, which had already begun at the end of Franquismo, and only continued to grow as the country became better integrated with the West. “Spain is different” became the slogan that drew in millions of tourists annually. The warm, dry Mediterranean climate led to massive growth in cities by the coast such as Málaga and Benidorm. The 1992 Olympics introduced the world to Barcelona, now a global hotspot for tourism. In 2023, 71% of the growth in the Spanish economy derived from tourism. In 2024, tourism accounted for roughly 15.6% of Spanish GDP. However, this economic miracle and tourism boom has not come without consequence.
Housing costs in Spain have reached a record high across many regions, and coupled with the continent wide cost of living crisis, this has made life increasingly unaffordable for many Spaniards. Wages, and hence prices, have historically been very low in Spain, incentivizing tourists from richer countries to visit and spend money. However, as many tourists take up housing via AirBnB or simply buying property, the cost of living (particularly housing) has shot up dramatically, whilst wages have not caught up. Locals have been priced out of cities like Barcelona, Málaga, and Madrid. Spaniards living in the Balearic or Canary islands, massive hotspots for tourism, have protested that their quality of life has deteriorated significantly and called for limits on tourist numbers. In Barcelona, protests made global headlines for throwing water on tourists and occupying luxury shops. Most Spaniards argue that tourism is not the problem in and of itself, but rather that mass tourism strips away their sense of community and ability to find affordable housing.
The current government of Spain led by center-left Pedro Sánchez has unveiled a plan to convert many short-term rentals into permanent rentals for Spaniards, especially young people and those wanting to start a family. However, critics of the plan question its constitutionality and lambast the government for not consulting Spain’s autonomous communities, which do the vast majority of management when it comes to tourism.
As Spain wraps up a year with a forecasted 100 million tourist arrivals, the nation stands at a crossroads. Tourism has undoubtedly fueled Spain’s rise as a global economic and cultural power, yet it now threatens the very communities that made the country so attractive in the first place. Balancing economic growth with sustainability and quality of life will determine whether Spain can continue to welcome the world without losing its soul.