Tenerife waiters forced to live in tents amid tourist-driven property boom

Hospitality workers in Tenerife are being forced to live in tents as the island’s tourism boom has pushed up property prices, making them unaffordable for many locals.

Low-paid service workers who are vital to the tourism industry are being squeezed out of the market because of the boom in holiday rentals.

José, a 65-year-old kitchen assistant who works in a hotel, told The Telegraph that he was forced out of the apartment he used to rent for €400 (£340) a month last year when its owners turned it into a short-term rental for holidaymakers.

“Now anything with one or two bedrooms costs at least €900. I earn minimum wage, €1,100. If I have to pay that kind of rent, then we won’t be able to eat. Here we eat by cooking on gas,” said Colombia native José, who has lived in Tenerife for 30 years.

His tent sits among several others next to the shell of an empty apartment building in the Arona municipality. Metal sheeting to protect against the heat and strong winds covers some of the tents.

José, who lives with his wife and two grandchildren in their care, moved into the abandoned building where 120 families were squatting. There was no electricity or running water but he was charged €1,000 for the privilege.

“I thought he was the owner, but now we know he was just a swindler.”

In March, the police evicted the residents of the so-called Chasna building. The most vulnerable and those with young children were rehoused, but around 15 people remain in the tented village.

“There is plenty of building going on in this area, but it is always for the tourism market,” said José.

“Tourism is boss here; money talks,” said Jesús Antonio, also from Colombia and who works on the building sites for luxury apartments and now finds himself sharing a tent with his partner, Nora, who cannot work because she does not have legal papers.

“There is no social housing. So who is tourism for if it is not doing anything for the people who make it work?”

Miguel de Abreu Freitas, a 63-year-old Portuguese waiter who travelled the world working in hospitality until settling in Tenerife 18 years ago, said that he has given up all hope after moving into the tent village.

Mr de Abreu Freitas said he had lived in the Chasna building for four years and tiled the floor with material he found on a dump.

“Now I can’t go back to work. You need to wear a clean, ironed shirt and where can I get myself clean? I have hit rock bottom; I get food from the bins outside the supermarket. I have given up hope.”

In April, 57,000 people took part in protests in cities across the Canary Islands against tourism and its distortion of local economies, particularly sky-high property prices.

The Canary Islands government has announced new regulations under which holiday rentals can only be licenced if the building is at least 100 years old and the apartment measures at least 39 square metres.

According to the regional government, only 200 public housing units were completed in 2023.