This is the dramatic moment a British holidaymaker became embroiled in a furious fistfight with another tourist on a busy mountain road in Tenerife, bringing traffic to a complete halt. The violent altercation, sparked by a dispute over a photograph, has been seized upon by locals as a prime example of the 'undesirable tourism' they are protesting against.
Mountain Road Melee Halts Traffic
Footage of the incident, which occurred on the winding road leading to the picturesque mountain hamlet of Masca in north-west Tenerife, shows two men trading blows directly in the middle of the tarmac. The British tourist was seen being knocked to the ground during the scuffle before quickly scrambling back to his feet, shouting angrily as car horns blared around the stationary queue of vehicles.
The furious Brit then turned his rage towards a woman accompanying his opponent, loudly accusing her of threatening his wife during an attempt to take a photograph. "She swung at my f*****g wife," he is heard shouting in the video. Another road user attempted to intervene, urging him to calm down with a plea of "Come on, quiet." The tourist later returned to the driver's seat of a white hire car at the front of the queue, ending his foul-mouthed outburst.
Social Media Mockery and Local Backlash
Dubbed 'Hot dog versus smash burger' by social media users who shared the clip, the fight has not been treated lightly by residents of the Canary Islands. Islanders, who are expected to restart their long-running protests against mass tourism in the coming months to coincide with the peak holiday season, used the footage to criticise the type of visitor they wish to deter.
One local commenting on the scene wrote sarcastically: "Quality tourism." Another, responding to a comment about the island's beauty, added: "These are their traditions, they must be respected." A third pointed to the economic dependency, stating: "Tourism leaves thousands of millions of euros in the islands, something which bananas don't do."
Tenerife has been a focal point for protests against the effects of mass tourism across Spain. Last April, graffiti in English appeared in southern Tenerife with messages like 'My misery your paradise' and 'Average salary in Canary Islands is 1,200 euros.' A retort, also in English, was left next to a 'Tourists go home' message, reading: "F**k off, we pay your wages."
A Wider Context of Tourist-Local Tensions
The mountain road brawl is not an isolated incident. It follows a pattern of heightened tensions between tourists and residents across Spanish holiday hotspots. In October last year, demonstrators stormed Troya Beach in Tenerife, surrounding holidaymakers during a protest. Government officials said around 30,000 people took part in those demonstrations, though organisers put the figure at 80,000.
Just two months ago, a confrontation in Valencia's Old Town saw local Spaniards shouting 'Go Home' at a group of Dutch cyclists, who responded with "F**K you." The groups nearly came to blows. A fortnight prior to that, a British holidaymaker in Benidorm was arrested after a road rage altercation at a zebra crossing turned into a fist fight and resulted in damage to his hire car.
The recurring clashes highlight the deepening friction as locals demand action on issues like affordable housing and environmental pollution, which they directly link to the influx of holidaymakers. The brawl on the road to Masca, a village often described as the 'Machu Picchu of Europe', serves as a potent symbol of these escalating tensions as the peak summer season approaches.
