18:15, Mon, Jun 30, 2025 | UPDATED: 18:18, Mon, Jun 30, 2025
Most listings that were removed were located in the Canary Islands (Image: Getty)
The Canary Islands remain a top destination for many, attracting over 6 million British tourists last year. However, recent efforts to remove unlicensed rental listings highlight growing concerns about illegal short-term rentals. Booking.com has removed exactly 4,093 listings across Spain, primarily in the Canary Islands, due to properties lacking valid registration or license numbers or failing to verify whether they were managed by individuals or companies.
Other Spanish regions that were affected include Asturias, Cantabria, Castilla y León, La Rioja, Navarra and Castilla-La Mancha. This comes following Spain’s High Court in Madrid approving the Ministry’s demand for Airbnb to delist over 65,000 similar properties across the country, despite Airbnb’s unsuccessful attempts to block the order.
There has been a recent increase in protests across popular tourist spots in Spain (Image: Getty)
Spain's Minister for Consumer Affairs, Pablo Bustinduy, said the crackdown is a 'positive step' to reduce housing shortages in popular tourist spots across Spain.
He told Canarian Weekly: "This kind of unregulated activity puts pressure on the local housing market and reduces the availability of affordable homes for residents."
In response to rising concerns over overtourism, recent protests have swept across Spain, including a large demonstration by thousands of local residents in Tenerife last month.
They called on authorities to implement stronger controls on visitor numbers and emphasised the urgent need for a more sustainable approach to tourism.
Chief Executive of Jet2, Steve Heapy said during a panel at the Spanish embassy in London last month, that there has been a change in tourist perceptions of Spain, with some tourists questioning whether they are still safe and welcome to visit the country.
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He said: "We’ve had people ringing the call centre and going into travel agents, asking questions like 'is Spain safe?', 'are we still welcome in the resort?' It is becoming a big issue unfortunately, and perception becomes truth.
Starting July 1, 2025, Spain is enforcing a new law that requires all properties rented out for short-term stays, such as holiday rentals, seasonal accommodations, and room rentals, to be registered with a mandatory official code.
This registration must be displayed on rental platforms like Airbnb and Booking.com to prove the property is operating legally.
Heapy added: "Unfortunately, there’s been a massive explosion in unlicensed tourism properties.
"Airbnb can be controlled. They don’t rule the world. They are an online platform that we can control and put legislation in place."
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