The list of destinations to avoid due to overtourism for 2026, from the prestigious travel publisher Fodor’s, includes the Canary Islands as the second destination on a list of eight places to avoid worldwide due to overtourism.
Only behind Antarctica, Canary Islands obtains the second place among the destinations in the world to avoid "due to its fragility and the unsustainable pressure on the territory and local communities" and which has been reported by numerous British newspapers these days
After the Canary Islands, this year's list includes the Glacier National Park in the United States, where visits have multiplied; the Sacred Island, at the mouth of the Tiber in Italy, due to the proliferation of cruises.
Next, the alpine region of Jungfrau, in Switzerland; Mexico City; the coastal city of Mombasa, in Kenya; and the Parisian neighborhood of Montmartre.
Fodor explained first and foremost that the "list is not a call for a boycott, but rather aims to highlight 'destinations where tourism exerts unsustainable pressure'."
"After the postcard scenes, the pressure mounts"
The travel guide highlights that "behind the postcard scenes of the Canary Islands, the pressure mounts. In the first half of 2025 alone, the archipelago welcomed 7.8 million visitors and registered over 27 million airport passengers, a 5% increase compared to the previous year. It's a record that has left residents wondering how much more their islands can endure," it justifies.
The publication also emphasizes that “thousands of people marched through the streets of Lanzarote, Tenerife, and Gran Canaria under the slogan ‘Canarias tiene un límite’ (Canary Islands have a limit). Their message was clear: the tourism boom, the dizzying rise in housing prices, and the growing environmental pressure threaten the foundations of island life.”
Fodor's underlines how tourism contributes more than a third of the Canary Islands' GDP and employs approximately 40% of its population, but also highlights that "that success has come at a price".
"It is now almost impossible for many young people to rent or buy a home"
In his explanation, Fodor's includes the statements of John Dale Beckley, founder of the sustainability platform CanaryGreen.org, who explained: "Residents have started to protest because they are really fed up".Beckley highlights problems such as the increase in vehicle traffic and the housing shortage. On this particular point, he says: "The government modified the regulations that allowed residents to rent their properties on Airbnb and Booking.com, which has sent both rental prices and property values soaring. Many young people now find it almost impossible to rent or buy a home."
Beckley, who has lived on the islands for 25 years, also stated: "Tourism brought money and opportunities, but it also **concentrated wealth**. Nowadays, most hotels belong to **large investment groups**, often managed by foreigners. A large part of the profits leaves the islands".
"Overcrowded buses, constant traffic jams, polluted beaches"
Regarding water scarcity and overloaded infrastructure, the founder of Canarygreen.com explains: “The buses are packed, the traffic jams are constant, and the beaches are closing more frequently due to pollution and wastewater”.
Fodor's also includes in its analysis the view of ATAN (Tenerife Association of Friends of Nature), one of the oldest environmental groups in Tenerife, which emphasizes this: "Access to housing has become practically impossible due to the proliferation of vacation rentals".
In addition, ATAN considers that "natural spaces are constantly degrading, with alarming losses of biodiversity. Overpopulation has erased quiet places where we could once enjoy life; there are no truly local spaces left."
ATAN presents an even more desolate panorama: "The continuous arrival of new residents, mainly Europeans, aggravates overpopulation, environmental degradation, and land occupation, given the islands' very limited space".
