Protests against over-tourism started in earnest in Spain in 2024 and have resumed this summer, while Portugal and Italy have also seen demonstrations ranging from stickers and graffiti to protest marches and symbolic actions like spraying tourists with water pistols.
Protesters stress that they are not against tourism per se, and recognise the value it brings to the local economy, but they are fed up with the effects on locals - especially on the housing market.
Access to housing was clearly a key factor in the recent protests in Spain - and it's recognised as a problem in certain areas of France too, particularly tourism hotspots.
And yet despite this, these demonstrations have so far largely skipped France, which seems odd, given the pressure on housing in popular parts of the country (and also, let's face it, the French are not usually shy about protesting).
It's certainly not to do with the tourist demand - France is the world's most visited tourist destination, a title it has hung on to since 2016, and it's predicted to break its own tourism records again in 2025.
Tourism problems
This is not to say that there are no tourism-linked problems in France and, as in Spain, the number one issue is tourists pricing locals out of the housing market.
In response, numerous French cities have cracked down on Airbnb with key box bans, for example. France also introduced strict new laws on renting out holiday homes on January 1st this year, and lawmakers voted in favour of a bill to tighten Airbnb regulation.
And it’s not as if there are no tensions between locals and tourists. At the height of the summer 2022 drought, a mystery night-time environmental vandal sabotaged outdoor jacuzzis at holiday lets and second homes in the Vosges.
A small-scale protest in the popular French Alpine tourist town of Annecy last summer had a similar goal to the Spanish demos: “to raise awareness of the issues of overtourism and to denounce the ransacking of the old districts of Annecy”.
Organisers argued at the time that certain newly introduced rules in the picturesque and historic centre favoured tourist shops and terraces, to the detriment of local residents.
Housing shortages
While France does have shortages of housing, especially in tourist hotspots, the pressure is not the same as in Spain - partly due to simple goegraphy.
According to Spain’s Ministry for Territorial Policy, 90 percent of the country’s population lives in 1,500 towns and cities occupying 30 percent of the land while the other 10 percent are distributed across the remaining 70 percent of the territory.
While France has the greater Paris Île-de-France region, the most populous in the country, there are other big cities in the interior of the country such as Lyon, Toulouse and Strasbourg for example. All of which have their satellite towns and villages. As do the big coastal cities of Nice, Marseille, Bordeaux.
Frankly, there isn’t as much empty space in France – much of the interior of Spain is as good as empty because it is far too hot in summer and bitterly cold in the winter. The population here is more spread out.
There's also the fact that the French government has been taking action in this area - apart from the measures limiting tourist rentals outlined above, there is also the 'zone tendue' designation, which indicates that an area either has a housing shortage, or the housing is too expensive for the local market.
Being given this designation gives local authorities powers including a block on new tourist accommodation or the imposition of extra taxes on second homes or tourist rentals, with the money spent on creating more housing.
Over-crowding
It would be accurate to say that France has suffered from knock-on effects of mass tourism, but they seem to be primarily concentrated in certain areas, such as Paris, Mont-Saint-Michel and the Calanques national park, for example.
In 2023, the cliffs of Etretat, in Normandy, and the Calanques, around Marseille, La Ciotat, and Cassis on the Mediterranean coast, made the Fodor’s Travel list of places to avoid because of tourist overcrowding and threats to the environment.
An increasing number of tourist hotspots are either capping the number of visitors allowed or introducing a pre-booking system in order to control numbers.
READ ALSO: Visiting France: What activities and places do I need to reserve in advance?✎
Nor is there any doubt that climate change is already changing the French landscape. During the summer of 2023, France saw soaring temperatures and wildfires around the Mediterranean, leading many tourists to cancel their holidays. Although France has not, so far, been as badly affected as Greece or Italy, the long-term trends are for temperatures to rise and wildfires to become more common.
READ ALSO Visiting France: What activities and places do I need to reserve in advance?
Tourist spread
But despite having obvious problems in some areas, tourism does tend to be more spread out in France - both geographically and seasonally.
The French tourism offering is not just beaches - it has popular cities, seaside resorts, rural areas and a thriving mountain tourism sector. Holidays in France range from lying on the beach to taking up extreme sports in the Alps, from wandering around markets in small towns to hitting up the world-class galleries in Paris.
It's also not just a summer destination - while summer tourism is popular there's also a busy ski season and plenty of year-round tourism in the cities.
READ ALSO: Six reasons why France is so popular with tourists✎
Matt Philipps Managing Editor of travel app Polarsteps told sister site The Local Spain earlier this year: “Spain’s tourism is heavily concentrated in coastal areas and a few major cities, while France spreads its tourists across many different regions and types of destinations, from the Loire Valley châteaux to the French Alps, from Provence to Normandy, and from wine regions to small historic villages”.
Rosie Mansfield, from canal boat holiday specialists French Waterways, agreed. “France has a highly developed tourism offering, with greater geographic spread throughout the country,” she said.
That said, according to the French government, some 80 percent of the country’s tourist activity is concentrated in just 20 percent of the country.
READ ALSO The 10 French tourist spots most likely to be overcrowded
The French government set up an Observatoire National des Sites Touristiques at the end of 2024 to monitor the impact of tourism on 15 popular tourist sites across the country, with the intention of expanding the reach of the survey in the future.
Type of tourism
There's also the profile of French tourists.
Tom Bourlet who works for The Stag Company said: “We don't send any stags or hens [that's bachelor/bachelorette parties, for American readers] from the UK to France. In contrast, Benidorm was our top selling destination in 2024, while we also sent thousands of groups of young Brits to Barcelona and Magaluf”.
Simon Richards, from Provence Holidays, also believes this is an important factor. “Spain has a stronger dependence on mainstream tourism operators, package holidays and all inclusive resorts – which drives mass tourism that can cause a strain on infrastructure,” he said.
READ ALSO 19 alternative places to visit in France to avoid the crowds
“France, on the other hand, has a higher proportion of independent travel agencies who operate a boutique, locally-driven approach that champions positive tourism.”
There's also perhaps the fact that the majority of France's tourists are French - in total only around 30 percent of the total tourists in France come from overseas, the rest are French enjoying a holiday in their own country.
There's a strong cultural tradition of French people taking a long summer holiday in France, while it's also common in the winter to head to the French Alps or Pyrenees to ski.
In total almost 10 percent of France's housing stock is second homes - and 90 percent of those are owned by French people.
Perhaps it's just easier to blame tourists when they're foreign ones?
Comments