“Experience has shown us that the tourism model of the city has a decisive influence on the life of the city and its inhabitants. In addition, the central objective of this plan must be to seek the benefit of all Donostiarras, and not to continue feeding a devastating market that every day precarizes the life of the city,” they said. For all these reasons, they have asked the municipal government and the tourism department to: “That the new Tourism Master Plan that defines the tourism model of the city is based on a process of real participation; that the participation of citizens and social actors (neighborhood associations, socio-cultural and environmental groups, citizen platforms, etc.) is guaranteed. for the debate to be open, broad and rich, to deal radically with the issues that affect us all.”

Detail of the proposal

BiziLagunEkin has highlighted several passages in its proposed update: “The health emergency caused by COVID-19 has had a direct impact on the city’s economy and has hit especially the dynamics of the tourism sector. According to the document, the general suspension has led to a drastic decrease in travellers, overnight stays, places on offer and employment.”

On the other hand, the proposal states that “tourism must be of a systemic and transversal nature”. “Therefore, it can also be concluded that the impact of tourism on the city model and on the life of the Donostiarras is like this. The excessive growth of the sector in the last decade has led San Sebastian to take the course of monoculture tourism and to become the center of tourist activity. The outbreak of the crisis has shown that the current tourism model, which seeks short-term profitability, has great cracks.”

According to BiziLagunEkin, the proposal aims to “promote growth”, “despite the fact that in these times of uncertainty all the weaknesses of the current tourism model have been revealed”. “The city is understood as a product that adapts to the new needs of the market, proposing adaptations to gain competitiveness and attractiveness and using public resources to maintain an economic model that does not seek the benefit of all.”

They criticize that it covers the “negative effects” related to tourism: “Once again, we are committed to the private business that feeds inequalities, regardless of what it destroys along the way. In this sense, no reference is made to the harm that tourism generates in working conditions, equality, the housing market, the environment, language, and other aspects, as well as to the measures to deal with them”.

The proposal speaks of a participatory process. “This process provides for the participation of key people in the value chain of tourism in San Sebastian, public and private stakeholders or relevant tour operators. However, it is surprising that it has not received a single mention of the multiple socio-cultural associations that fuel the relations between the neighbors and neighbors of the city”, they denounced. In this way, the participation of “the agents who derive an economic benefit from tourism” is foreseen and “there are no channels for those who suffer the damage caused by the tourism activity to provide their opinion and contribution”.