Spain tourism crisis continues with hotspot loved by Brits declares: ‘We’re full!’

A beautiful historic Spanish city has added its voice to the country’s mounting tourism crisis by declaring it’s “full” and threatening to cut off the water supply to illegal holiday homes. 

Seville, the stunning provincial capital of Andalusia, is loved by British tourists who travel to see the stunning Moorish-influenced architecture and to walk along the orange tree-lined avenues.

But despite welcoming three million visitors a year, growing tensions over the numbers mean the city’s mayor, José Luis Sanz, has warned that “at this moment in Seville there is no room for one more tourist accommodation”.

Spanish publication La Sexta reports it is estimated some 5,000 homes in the settlement of 700,000 residents are being operated illegally as holiday lets. 

Mayor Sanz added: “If it is indeed operating illegally, and the owner is not domiciled in that home, within a month the water supply can be cut off by the municipal water company.” 

The mayor added: “The coexistence between tourism, the city’s fundamental driving force, and the day-to-day life of the Sevillian people is and will continue to be a priority.”

It’s reported that around 715 tourism apartment licences have also been withdrawn and those that have been approved will now be reviewed one by one. 

Iconic monuments in the city, such as the Giralda Tower, the Cathedral and the Real Alcázar of Seville, often have long queues to enter from early in the morning.

The tapas bars are also doing a roaring trade from as early as January when temperatures in the sun-kissed city can still reach into the mid-20s. 

But across Spain there has been a nationwide revolt against what some claim is over-tourism in many locations which groups claim is stopping locals get onto the property ladder. 

In Barcelona, Madrid, and on the Balearic Islands and Canary Islands, thousands have taken to the streets in mass protests, many carrying signs with the slogan “Guiri go home”. Guiri is a sometimes derogatory term for foreign tourists, especially those of Northern European heritage.