by Lacey Pfalz
Last updated: 9:10 AM ET, Fri January 3, 2025
Alicante, Spain, is a popular destination among the British and a growing one for American travelers, but they’ll all be finding it hard to stay there after local officials impose a new two-year ban on new short-term vacation rental properties in the area.
The new ban comes following Spain’s—and wider Europe’s—growing concerns over overtourism and soaring housing costs attributed at least in part due to a lack of housing caused by the existence of too many short-term vacation rentals.
According to Express, a British news organization, Alicante has banned issuing new licenses for short-term vacation rentals. In these next two years, the local government will review the issue more widely to solve the housing issue, including setting a sustainable limit on short-term rentals.
The news comes after Barcelona’s government announced it would ban short-term rentals in the city beginning in 2028 following the summer’s mass protests by Spanish residents fed-up with lack of affordable housing and the wave of tourists visiting the city during the summer.
Many other cities across Europe are creating legislation to limit, reduce or ban short-term rentals altogether.
Alicante is a popular destination for the British, with a large expat scene and over 4,000 short-term rental properties, many of which are not licensed as short-term rentals, according to the city council.
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