Photo: Surfenspanol // Instagram
Anti-tourist sentiment has long been simmering in Tenerife, but it recently came to a head in the lineup. Venezuelan tourists Alexandra Caraballo and Cristian Mederos encountered a hostile local at Punta Blanca, on the western side of Tenerife, the largest of the Canary Islands. As depicted in a video posted to social media, the situation quickly escalated to violence.
“From the moment they arrived at the spot, a local surfer began shouting at them from the water, demanding that they leave and claiming they were not allowed to be there,” explained the Instagram account Surf en Español. “Cristian tried to explain that he would not interfere and that he could position himself in another area. There was no dialogue.
The footage shows how the situation escalated into a physical assault, with punches both in and out of the water, pursuit, and stones being thrown — not only at Cristian, but also at Alexandra and the people with them — under the eyes of those on the beach and with no police present.”
The video description also called out another account that it claimed belonged to the local surfer, a man named Tintin. In response, the account posted a series of videos, asserting that his actions were provoked by the tourists, that the video was “manipulated,” that he had been bitten by their dog, and that his intention was to “maintain respect at the beach.” Later, the account posted what appears to be an AI-generated video depicting Tintin apologizing for throwing the rocks, but then making a lengthy explanation of how his actions were justified by ongoing tensions between locals and tourists in the region.
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