Revealed: the Spanish city with most illegal tourist apartments, even beating out several Costa del Sol town to take unwanted crown

WITH its eye-catching orange tree-lined streets, renowned gastronomy and spectacular monuments such as the Plaza de España or Royal Alcazar, it’s no surprise that Sevilla has become a leading destination for tourists eager to soak up some Spanish culture.

In fact, the Pearl of Andalucia is Spain’s third most popular city with visitors, with around 4.8 million making the trip in 2024 alone – behind only Madrid and Barcelona.

This constant stream of tourists can lead to some undesirable consequences.

Sevilla has 2,289 apartments, according to figures published by the Ministry of Housing and Urban Agenda.

The number of illegal tourist apartments in other nearby tourist hotspots is also high. These include Marbella (1802), Malaga (1471), Benalmadena (926) and Fuengirola (886).

Andalucia has the highest number of illegal tourist rentals in the country, with 16,740. The Canary Islands are second, with 8,698, followed by Catalunya, Catalunya, Valencian Community, (7,499), and Galicia, (2,640).

Malaga, out of its eight provinces is the worst. Over 8,000 sites do not meet registration standards.

Sevilla (with 2,533), Cadiz (1,250) and Granada (2,849) are the next most popular destinations.

READ MORE Sevilla can cut off water supply for illegal tourist flats, a court ruling says

Sevilla’s City Council vowed last summer to fight the proliferation of illegal tourist rentals by cutting off the water supply for illegally operated tourist apartments.

Three owners appealed but their complaints were dismissed by the court, who said that actions taken by council were lawful.

Jaume collboni, the mayor of Barcelona, announced in 2028 that the city would ban tourist flats by not renewing licenses to over 10,000 legally operated apartments.

On the weekend, Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez revealed plans to remove over 53,000 apartments from rental platforms throughout Spain.

Residents in popular tourist destinations across Spain blame the rise in tourist apartments – whether legal or illegal – for fuelling the country’s housing crisis, with many locals forced to leave their hometowns due to a lack of affordable accommodation.

Rents have increased by 80% in the last decade, outpacing wage increases.

Nearly half of all Spanish tenants now spend at least 40% of their income on rent and utilities – significantly higher than the EU average of 27%.

Click here for more Spain News by The Olive Press.