Teeming with tourists, Barcelona’s historic Rambla has long been a no-go zone for residents. But in July, growing frustration brought thousands of local protesters back to the boulevard to lament the loss of their communities to tourist flats and soaring rents. The protest is part of a growing anti-tourism movement in Spain, one of the three most visited countries in the world.
Lluc Fernandez, 24, is a coast guard living in Majorca’s Palma city, where his grandparents moved decades ago to escape poverty in Andalucia. But the sector that once brought opportunity has become unsustainable, threatening to push locals out. ‘I’m thinking about just leaving [Palma], I can’t pay my rent and have a normal job,’ Fernandez says.
