Headline Roundup • June 17th, 2025
Europeans Protest Against Overtourism, Spray Water Guns at Tourists
Summary from the AllSides News Team
Thousands protested against overtourism in Barcelona, Lisbon, Venice, and other European cities on Sunday, in some instances deploying smoke grenades and firing water guns at tourists.
The Messaging: Among the protesters’ top arguments appears to be that the massive influx of tourists has driven up the costs of housing and living, and displaced residents. A protester in Catalan reportedly carried a sign that read, “One more tourist, one less neighbor.” A Barcelona-based housing nonprofit wrote on X that tourism makes cities “unlivable.” It also shared scenes from the demonstrations that included slogans like “No tourists, expats, or digital nomads” and “You put capital before people.”
For Context: Some European cities, such as Budapest, have already taken steps to prevent the establishment of new Airbnb rentals in popular tourist neighborhoods. Other popular destinations such as Venice, Mykonos, and Santorini charge visitors an access fee.
Key Quotes: Sud d’Europa contra la Turistització, a group supporting the protests, said it aims to “defend the city from the plunder to which tourist monoculture is subjecting it,” and address poorly paid jobs that are “too dependent on tourism.” Jaime Rodríguez de Santiago, Airbnb’s general director for Spain and Portugal, told Associated Press (Left bias) that the company isn’t responsible for overtourism: “I think a lot of our politicians have found an easy scapegoat to blame for the inefficiencies of their policies in terms of housing and tourism over the last 10, 15, 20 years.”
How The Media Covered It: The story was widely covered by Western media outlets on Monday. Several outlets across the spectrum highlighted in headlines that demonstrators sprayed tourists with water guns. Fox News (Right) ordered its headline differently than most other outlets mentioning the water guns. For example, Fox wrote, “Tourists sprayed with water guns by protesters…” whereas CBS News (Lean Left) wrote, “Protesters in Spain shoot water guns at tourists…”
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Featured Coverage of this Story
As the summer tourist season comes into swing, hundreds of locals, some holding water guns, gathered in major destinations in Spain, Italy and Portugal on Sunday to protest overtourism.
Footage from news agencies showed protesters spraying water at people standing outside hostels and squares popular with tourists, as well as people sitting at cafes. The protests occurred in Lisbon, Barcelona, Venice and other European cities.
Thousands of people took to the streets of several cities across southern Europe on Sunday in the latest protest against overtourism.
In the Spanish city of Barcelona, where the main demonstrations took place, some fired water pistols at shop windows and set off smoke.
Organised by the alliance "Southern Europe against Overtourism", demonstrators joined forces with groups in Portugal and Italy.
AP Photo/Pau Venteo
As European countries continue to grapple with overtourism, some citizens are taking a stand.
Protesters gathered in Barcelona and on the Spanish island of Mallorca on Sunday to protest against travelers to their country by spraying them with water guns, The Associated Press (AP) reported.
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