THIS is the moment a bunch of Spaniards refused to leave a zebra crossing to block tourists from visiting local beaches.
Residents of a picture-postcard village caused traffic chaos by walking back and forth across zebra crossings in a half-hour demo to thwart frustrated visitors trying to reach the coast.
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Around 80 pedestrians continuously walked in front of stunned motorists, who were forced to sit in their cars waiting for them to finish.
The bizarre protests, which took place on three different zebra crossings, are understood to have been coordinated to force the drivers to take up alternative routes.
Some tourists are said to have given up trying to reach the coast and turned around instead.
Locals in Hio, Galicia. say they are frustrated over the chaotic city traffic caused by a rising number of tourists visiting their village.
They also claim that their white sandy beaches are becoming “degraded” because of overuse by tourists.
Mercedes Villar, boss of the village residents association, said: “This is not tourist phobia – it’s about locals’ right to live in peace.”
He added that residents previously demanded local authorities take strict actions to reduce the traffic in a failed attempt.
In a different protest, Majorca’s angry anti-tourist locals put up fake beach closure signs in a new bid to hold back holidaymakers.
The fed-up residents put up red tape and signs at several coves saying “Beach Closed”.
They include the secluded white-sand cove Cala Varques and a “hidden” cove renowned for snorkelling called Cala Petita.
It comes as droves of defiant Brits rushed to book trips to Tenerife this summer – despite local anger at the holiday-making hordes.
Tenerife is becoming “unsustainable” with the amount of people calling it home for a few weeks a year, he claimed.
Locals say they cannot afford to buy a home and blame the government for allowing holiday rentals and accommodation construction to drive up housing costs.
They hope curbing tourism, which accounts for 35 per cent of Tenerife’s GDP, will mean they are not priced out.
A WAVE OF PROTESTS
A wave of anti-tourism protests has erupted across multiple European holiday hotspots as locals call for an end to “low quality” tourism.
Residents complain of shameful acts by tourists such as the display of nudity and frequent violent brawls after getting drunk.
Just days ago, hateful graffiti urging locals to “kill a tourist” emerged on a wall in Majorca.
Politicians in the Spanish holiday island condemned the bitter act by anti-tourist vandals, calling the behaviour “totally unjustified”.
Hostile messages against foreigners and tourists written on public walls have been on the rise – sparking fears that anti-tourist movements could become more hateful.
Thousands of locals have so far taken part in various anti-tourism protests across the holiday hotspots.
Just a few days ago, anti-tourist fanatics in Majorca mocked Brit holidaymakers over the Euros’ defeat during the hate-filled protest.
They carried placards showing Man City and England defender Kyle Walker and the words: “The only thing coming home is you.”
More than 10,000 protesters packing into the capital Palma complained about hard-drinking revellers and soaring rents.
Banners demanded: “Take back your drunks — give back our homes” and “Your paradise, our nightmare.”
Meanwhile, anti-tourist zealots chillingly warned of a summer of “surprise actions” as they prepared to launch protests in Ibiza.
Protestors said many demonstrations and mass campaigns will be carried out “without warning” – something that could spark chaos in the Spanish holiday hotspot.
The mainland Spanish city of Barcelona has been hit by rallies too, with tourists being sprayed with water pistols.
Spain’s tourism minister condemned protesters who soaked tourists with water pistols during a protest on July 6 in Barcelona city centre.
Now regional officials on the Balearic Islands have made it clear to the mob that there must be no repeat of Barcelona and locals must show tourists “respect”.
Anti-tourist measures sweeping hotspots
A WAVE of anti-tourist measures are being implemented across Europe to curb mass tourism in popular holiday hotspots.
Overcrowding has become the main problem in many sunny destinations, with authorities trying to find a solution to keep tourists and locals happy.
Officials have attempted to reduce the impact of holidaymakers by implementing additional taxes on tourists, or banning new hotels.
Earlier this year Venice became the first city in the world to charge an entry fee for holidaymakers after it started charging day-trippers €5 (£4.30) if visiting the historical Italian centre.
It was followed by an area in Barcelona which resorted to removing a well-used bus route from Apple and Google Maps to stop crowds of tourists from using the bus.
Meanwhile, San Sebastián in the north of Spain, limited the maximum number of people on guided visits to 25 to avoid congestion, noise, nuisance and overcrowding.
The city has already banned the construction of new hotels.
The Spanish government has allowed restaurants to charge customers more for sitting in the shade in Andalucia.
Benidorm has introduced time restrictions, as swimming in the sea between midnight and 7am could cost a whopping £1,000.
The Canary Islands are also considering adopting measures to regulate the number of visitors – and charge tourists a daily tax.
Greece has already enforced a tourist tax during the high season (from March to October) with visitors expected to pay from €1 (£0.86) to €4 (£3.45) per night, depending on the booked accommodation.
Officials in Santiago de Compostela in Galicia want to introduce a fee for travellers to remind people to be courteous during their trips.
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