Does Airbnb have problems in Spain? CSN News reports that Malaga tourist flat reservations have plummeted following a local backlash.

According to economists, the number of MALAGA holiday apartment bookings dropped by 37,000 from July to November last year because domestic demand was down.

Major protests took place in 2024 over ‘saturation’ of tourist areas and whether domestic residents were influenced by those demonstrations remains unclear.

In 2023, there were 609,277 apartment reservations during the same period.

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These figures are based only on licensed apartments. They do not include properties that are not regulated, and thus have no official data.

Malaga’s College of Economists attributes the drop to the fall in demand throughout Spain.

The Tourist Apartment Occupancy survey, conducted between July 2024 and November 2024 showed that 152,192 Spanish citizens stayed in regulated accommodations, compared to the 213,598 residents the previous year.

There were 419.581 foreign tourists last year, up from 395.679 in 2023.

The economists also cite the fact that the number registered apartments dropped by 11,441 last year.

It is not surprising that August was the busiest month, with 160 683 bookings. Of these, 51 612 were Spanish and 109 071 were non-Spanish.

November is quietest. 74,550 tourists registered.

In total, there were 57,334 foreigners and 17,216 residents of Spain.