Overtourism is making life harder for locals in Malaga, plus four more major travel stories from last week.
Overtourism continues to be a huge travel topic. And last week’s travel news proves it: frustrated residents are shooing away tourists in Spain and a South American hotspot is charging travelers more. But another common news fixture popped up, too: Boeing had yet another incident. Read on for the top five travel stories from the past week.
ANTI-TOURIST RESIDENTS IN MALAGA SAY: ‘GO F—ING HOME’
Málaga, in the south of Spain, is fed up with tourists and locals have resorted to sticking unfriendly stickers to show their displeasure with the situation. Tourist apartments and buildings are carrying angry words such as “stinks of tourists,” “this used to be my home,” and “go f—ing home”.
It started with a local bar owner, Dani Drunko, who made anti-tourism stickers after his landlord refused to negotiate the rent or sell him the home he had been living in for 10 years. Like many others, it was adapted into a tourist rental. He posted these stickers on apartment buildings and now they’re seen all over the city center, as well as on residential buildings with self-check-in lockboxes for tourists.
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There were 1.3 billion international tourists globally in 2023 according to U.N. Tourism. It is also expected that 2024 will see a full recovery of the tourism sector after the pandemic. While this is positive news for businesses and locals who depend on tourism, overtourism is a growing problem that cities worldwide are trying to solve with tourist taxes and restrictions.
Related: Another European Country Is Planning to Ban Short-Haul Flights. Will You Be Impacted?
GALAPAGOS DOUBLES ENTRY PRICES
Overtourism isn’t just pushing residents out of their homes; it’s also threatening nature and wildlife. The Galapagos islands, a territory of Ecuador, is home to endangered and rare species of plants and animals. The ecologically sensitive group of islands are a popular tourist destination and the continued uptick in visitors is posing a threat to its biodiversity.
So, the tourism ministry of Ecuador has doubled the entry fees to the islands from $100 to $200 for all nations but Argentina, Peru, and Brazil, whose residents will now pay $100 (up from $50). This rule comes into effect on August 1, 2024. Interestingly, the entry fee has remained the same since 1998 despite the popularity of the islands.
The fees will be used for conservation efforts of the UNESCO World Heritage Site.
BOEING PLANE LOSES EXTERNAL PANEL MID-FLIGHT
The Federal Aviation Administration is investigating another incident involving a Boeing plane. A United Airlines flight from San Francisco landed safely in Medford, Oregon, with a missing external panel.
The 25-year-old Boeing 737-800 was inspected on landing and it was discovered that it had lost a panel underneath the wing. Airport operations were paused for a runway safety check. Amber Judd, Director of Rogue Valley International-Medford Airport, said that it’s unclear where the panel is.
The flight had 145 passengers on board and the missing panel didn’t interfere with its functioning and there was no damage reported. United is also conducting an examination of the plane to understand how it was damaged.
NEW VOLCANIC ERUPTION CLOSES ICELAND’S BLUE LAGOON
A fourth volcanic eruption in three months has rocked the Iceland’s Reykjanes Peninsula. No flights were interrupted and no deaths have been confirmed. However, the popular Blue Lagoon thermal spa has been evacuated. It will remain closed at least until March 19 and guests will be contacted, the website said.
The eruption happened a few miles from the coastal town of Grindavik, around 30 miles from Reykjavik. The meteorological office said that the eruption opened a fissure of three kilometers between Stóra-Skógfell and Hagafell. A state of emergency has been declared in southern Iceland and the lava flow is steady. The roads around the town of 3,500 are closed, but the airports are functioning as normal.
JETBLUE CHARGES $5,200 FOR RECLINING SEATS THAT DON’T RECLINE
Jetblue has landed itself in hot water after refusing to fully refund a couple who paid $5,200 for reclining seats that were broken. The 83-year-old pair were traveling from Boston to Los Angeles and for comfort, they booked the JetBlue Mint Class, which comes with lie-flat seats. However during the flight, the seats did not recline and they couldn’t lie flat. One seat was stuck completely upright while the other was halfway between flat and upright. On their return too, only one seat reclined.
The passengers were informed that the flight was full both ways and couldn’t change seats. JetBlue offered a mere $400 in credit, a fraction of what they paid for the round-trip tickets. The offer was eventually increased to $1,200, but the passengers don’t plan to travel with the airline again.
Jet Blue should be investigated by the Department of Transportation and fined for fraud for what they did to those paying passengers.
If they don't care about seats then they don't care about plane maintenace period.