Urban touristification in Spanish cities: consequences for the rental-housing sector in San Sebastian

This study aims to analyse the relationship between tourist growth in urban destinations and certain transformations apparent in main recipient cities. Particular attention is paid to the impact of tourism on housing in popular tourist destinations, and on the people who live there. We focus on the case of San Sebastian, in Spain, which is a major tourist destination and, together with Dubrovnik, Venice, Barcelona and Amsterdam, is one of the European cities which has seen a growing concern over mass tourism. Firstly, this study seeks to analyse different research approaches conducted over recent years on the complex relationship between tourism and the rental-housing sector. Secondly, the study examines whether the increase in the intensity of use of the Airbnb platform is related to the price asked when renting a property long-term. The analysis conducted shows that a one standard deviation increase in Airbnb intensity is associated with an increase of 7.3% in rental prices. Our suggestions for urban planners and managers in charge of urban tourist destinations are for greater regulation of tourist accommodation in line with long-term house rentals.