Deputy mayor of European holiday destination ‘urges Britons to go elsewhere’ days after locals stage anti-tourism protests

Brits have been warned to stay away from one of their favorite holiday destinations as the island needs ‘higher quality’ tourists.

The warning comes after tens of thousands of locals gathered to protest against tourism in their homes, declaring they “have a limit”.

Politician Carlos Tarife, deputy mayor of Tenerife’s capital Santa Cruz, said the island wants to move away from ‘all-inclusive’ tourism and holidaymakers wearing wristbands.

He urged travelers who want to stay in their hotel during their holidays to go elsewhere, telling Radio Marca Tenerife: “Where before there were hotels with 250 beds, today we find ourselves in hotels with fewer beds and a higher quality.

“I think this is the tourism we need in our country, and not the wristband and ‘all-inclusive’ tourism of ‘I stay in the hotel and do everything in the hotel’.

“That’s why there are other destinations,” reports local outlet El Dia.

The politician added that Santa Cruz would like to be known as a place with five-star luxury hotels where tourists “not only come to enjoy some facilities, but also come to eat our local product.”

His comments came after Britons were warned they might be charged a daily “tourist tax” if they visited the Canary Islands.

Canary Islands President Fernando Clavijo raised this possibility as tens of thousands of angry locals – up to 80,000 according to protest organizers – took to the streets of Tenerife to rage against the tourism industry and urge the British to “ to go home.”

Protesters filled a square in Santa Cruz, blowing horns, waving Canary Islands flags and waving banners reading: “You enjoy that we suffer.”

Anti-tourist graffiti had already started popping up on walls and benches in and around southern Tenerife.

Bitter messages – including ‘your paradise, our misery’ – have been hanging around the tourist hotspot for months.

Residents of Tenerife said they were “fed up” with “low quality” British tourists who came just to enjoy cheap beer, burgers and sunbathing.

Some British holidaymakers called their hotels on the island to confirm they would be safe on holiday.

Mr Tarife, head of public services and environment for the municipality of Santa Cruz and also deputy mayor, emphasized on Tuesday that he was against a tourism moratorium, but also that the islands should try to attract a different demographic of tourists.