Hordes of tourists were seen leaving a ferry for the tiny Greek resort of Santorini as fears mount that the relentless stream of arriving tourists is making the island uninhabitable.
Incendiary footage showed long queues of people disembarking from a ferry, while those waiting to board had to queue in the heat en masse.
Locals are increasingly angry at the perceived oversaturation of the picturesque Aegean island, where 17,000 tourists are expected to arrive every day during the peak holiday season, according to councillor Panos Kavallaris.
“I work seasonally here in Santorini,” one user commented on the TikTok video. “There is no respect for the island or for us, from the trash to the times when the buses don’t take us.”
“Santorini was a stop on our cruise last year,” added one tourist, annoyed at the queues. “I should never have gone down (and I won’t next time). Instagram-worthy place, rubbish everywhere and absolutely packed streets.”
The volcanic island, with a population of around 15,500, saw around 3.5 million arrivals last year and more are expected through 2024.
DREAM: The picturesque volcanic island of Santorini, home to a small population of 15,500
FACT: Huge crowds are drawn to the island every year, making life difficult for Santorinians.
Santorini has a population of just 15,500, but last year it welcomed some 3.5 million tourists.
Hundreds of tourists line the steep hills of Santorini to watch and photograph the famous sunset on July 25, 2024.
Stunning images of the picturesque island show masses of tourists queuing in narrow corridors alongside white buildings with the famous navy blue domes for the best holiday photos.
Furious locals have threatened to leave Santorini after authorities told them to stay away from the thousands of tourists (some pictured above this month) who flock to the tiny island every day.
Victor Karayannis, a local tour guide On the island, she shared images of tourists arriving in Santorini with the caption: ‘I heard on the news that Santorini doesn’t have as many tourists nowadays… cap (fake)’.
The video received mixed responses, with some saying they had visited quiet parts of the island or seen less foot traffic when traveling outside of peak months.
One said: “The port yes, it’s always a bit chaotic, but Santorini is getting an unfair bad reputation. It’s stunning and there are quieter areas, like Perissa. I’ve just had a 10/10 holiday here.”
“I’m so glad I went in 2007, before Instagram influencers were a thing!” added another.
“Honestly, what did you expect in mid-July?” asked a third.
But for many on the island, the massive influx of tourists represents a potentially existential threat.
Santorini has been dependent on tourism since the 1960s, prior to which it relied heavily on agriculture to sustain its economy.
“They have to find the right balance,” said hotel worker Onur Kilic, 28. Yo“They could limit the number of cruises, but the government is not doing enough. If this continues, I will leave the island.”
Days earlier, Kavallaris urged residents in a since-deleted Facebook post to stay home and avoid the 17,000 tourists authorities say they expect to arrive on the island each day.
“Another difficult day is coming for our city and our island with the arrival of 17,000 visitors from cruise ships. We ask for your attention: limit your movements as much as possible,” warned the councillor, but the publication quickly provoked the indignation of the residents.
Residents criticised the councillor’s request, with one commenting on social media: “(He) officially asks residents to lock themselves in their houses so that tourists can walk around freely. Wonderful.”
Stunning images from the picturesque island this week show masses of tourists queuing on narrow walkways alongside whitewashed buildings with the famous navy blue domes to get the best holiday snaps.
The queue to reach the viewing point located in the cliff-top village of Oia can now last more than 20 minutes.
Santorini is a key stopover in the Greek cruise experience, but as parts of the island are close to being overcrowded, authorities are considering imposing restrictions.
“We need to set limits if we don’t want to sink into overtourism,” said Santorini Mayor Nikos Zorzos.
“There should not be a single extra bed… neither in large hotels nor in Airbnb rentals.”
Hundreds of tourists gather in the village of Oia, Santorini, to watch the sunset on July 20.
Tourists leave after watching the Santorini sunset from Oia Castle, Santorini, Greece
Concerns about overtourism and its impact on locals have sparked mass protests across Europe this year, with residents calling for restrictions on short-term rentals to control rising house prices and for greater diversification of economies.
Earlier this month, hundreds of residents in Alicante gathered for the first time to demonstrate in areas of the Spanish city popular with tourists to “demand limits be placed on the tourism industry.”
Salva, spokesman for the organising group ‘Alicante, where are you going?’, told MailOnline: ‘It is the administrations (city council, autonomous community, central government) that must take measures to put the needs of the people who live in the city first, over the wishes of those who visit the city.
‘We hope that the demonstration will be the first step towards more people feeling that it is legitimate to claim the right to live with dignity in our city, and to be able to join in to build a neighbourhood movement that says that Alicante is not for sale.’
In early July, tourists in Barcelona were sprayed with water pistols as residents expressed their feelings at perceived inaction by local authorities.
Under the slogan ‘Enough! Let’s put limits on tourism’, some 2,800 people – according to the police – marched through a neighbourhood on Barcelona’s seafront to demand a new economic model that would reduce the millions of tourists who arrive each year.
Protesters carried signs reading “Barcelona is not for sale” and “Tourists, go home”, before some used water pistols on tourists eating outdoors at restaurants in popular tourist spots.
Chants of “Tourists out of our neighborhood” could be heard as some stood outside hotel entrances.
Rising house prices in Barcelona, which have increased by 68 percent in the past decade, are one of the main problems of the movement, along with the effects of tourism on local commerce and working conditions in the city of 1.6 million inhabitants.
Rents rose 18% in June compared with a year earlier in tourist cities such as Barcelona and Madrid, according to property website Idealista.
For years, the city has been plastered with anti-tourism graffiti, with messages like “tourists, go home,” aimed at visitors, who some blame for rising prices and shaping the economy around tourists.
An England fan stands in the crowd near the tourist office as protesters look on.
A banner is raised during a march against excessive tourism in Alicante earlier this month
Another said “Fuck AirBnB,” expressing locals’ frustration with the vacation home rental company.
Violent clashes broke out in Venice in April over a controversial new “tourist tax” aimed at reducing visitor numbers to the historic Italian city.
Protesters armed with signs and banners lined the Italian city’s historic canals and narrow alleys to show their disdain for the unique new policy aimed at curbing excessive tourism during busy periods.
Critics have claimed the 5 euro (£4.30) fee, which will be introduced during the busy summer months, is unlikely to significantly affect the 30 million or so trips made to Venice each year, and could backfire by tarnishing the city’s public image.
Under the new rules, a fee will be charged to tourists who pass through the city without staying overnight.
Authorities hope this will help manage the flow of some 30 million tourists each year attracted by the city’s history and romantic canals.
Venice had to wait a long time to see the plan come to fruition, with initial proposals submitted in 2019 being delayed by the pandemic.
The city also last year abandoned plans to charge hikers 10 euros a day, citing “resistance”.