TERRIFIED British holidaymakers have told of being trapped in a hotel by furious anti-tourist protesters.
Thousands of demonstrators swarmed resorts on the Canary Islands on Sunday.
AFPThousands of demonstrators swarmed resorts on the Canary Islands on Sunday[/caption]
AFPTourists on the beach are swamped by demonstrators telling them to ‘go home’[/caption]
In Gran Canaria, hundreds gathered in Maspalomas with signs reading: “Go Home Tourists.”
Lee Pattemore, 44, was trapped inside the Riu hotel with wife Stacey, 39, and their two daughters, aged 11 and six.
He told The Sun: “They were circling the hotel. My daughter was asking me, ‘Daddy, why are they shouting?’”
Photos showed chaos outside the gates of the hotel as cops tried to regain control.
Landscaping boss Lee, of Epsom, Surrey, said: “There was a lot of pushing and shoving.
“We’re too scared to leave the hotel now.”
In Tenerife’s Playa de las Americas, 2,000 activists stormed Troya Beach, surrounding shocked Brits in their swimwear and chanting: “This beach is ours.”
Protesters also marched in La Palma, Fuerteventura, Lanzarote and El Hierro under the slogan “The Canaries Have A Limit” — calling for a more sustainable tourism.
They say locals are priced out of the housing market and tourism is ruining the environment.
Activist Daniel Cabrera said: “We want tourism — we do not want over-exploitation and garbage tourism that does not benefit the local economy.”
X/TwiterFurious anti-tourism protesters in Tenerife stormed a beach at a Brit holiday hotspot[/caption]
AFPFlag-waving residents beat drums and blew whistles as they wandered along the shoreline in Playa de las Americas[/caption]