Source: AFP
German travel giant TUI said on Wednesday that it takes protests against overtourism, such as the recent ones in the Canary Islands, very seriously, arguing that its business model does not contribute to the problem.
Tens of thousands of protesters marched in Spain’s Canary Islands in April to demand changes to the mass tourism model they say is overwhelming the Atlantic archipelago.
Last year, around 16 million people visited the Canary Islands, seven times its population of around 2.2 million.
“We take this very, very seriously,” TUI chief Sebastian Ebel told reporters.
However, Ebel said TUI, which offers hotel bookings, charter flights and cruises around the world, was not responsible for rising house prices for locals.
“It has nothing to do with our tourism package because every customer we bring to the islands has a bed in our hotel and we don’t remove beds,” he said.
![](https://images.yen.com.gh/images/f7f4b57a8b7a7491.jpg?impolicy=cropped-image&imwidth=256)
![](https://images.yen.com.gh/images/f7f4b57a8b7a7491.jpg?impolicy=cropped-image&imwidth=256)
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Ebel added that many of the company’s workers are not from the island itself but live in houses “that we have built”.
And on the issue of how many tourists are too many for a location, Ebel said it’s “entirely up to the local population and their elected politicians to define that.”
“We support all actions taken to reduce the burden on people,” Ebel said.
That includes the new five-euro ($5.41) entry price that Venice introduced for day-trippers, Ebel said, stressing that “we are very supportive of that.”
Ebel’s comments came as the German group posted a 16% rise in revenue for the first three months of the year, reaching a record 3.6 billion euros.
The group, which was brought to its knees by the coronavirus pandemic, has seen a strong recovery in tourism from 2022.
Source: AFP