Name: The tourist revolt in Lisbon.

Age: Hard to say when it started, but it’s a great summer.

Look: Discreet.

What are they doing to tourists in Lisbon? They charge a lot of money for food.

They do that to tourists everywhere. In Lisbon it is more about what they are not do to the tourists.

And what is that? Charge you less money for food.

I’m tempted to say it amounts to the same thing. Not quite: According to the Portuguese newspaper Expresso, Lisbon restaurants offer lower prices, but only for locals.

How do tourists feel about this? They don’t know about it. Expresso says the reduced prices for locals are “transmitted verbally or in whispers, or indicated on menus placed in inconspicuous or even hidden places, inaccessible to visitors.” Even the Hotel and Catering Industry Association claims to be unaware of this practice.

Why do restaurants do this? They want to charge tourists high prices without scaring away local customers and have therefore quietly introduced a two-class system.

What is so wrong about that? It is illegal.

Illegal? Isn’t it just another form of Price increase? Price hikes vary the price of a product depending on demand. Secretly charging one group of people more than another is discriminatory.

I guess when you put it that way, it sounds bad. At the same time, it may be an inevitable consequence of overtourism.

Overtourism? A surge in visitor numbers to European destinations following the pandemic has led to overcrowding, devastation and price hikes, and sparked a local backlash against tourists.

Where else can the backlash be felt? In Barcelona, ​​people took to the streets in protest, shouting “Tourists, go home!” and spraying visitors with water pistols.

Barcelona was always too touristy. Protests also took place in Malaga, Tenerife and Mallorca. In Menorca, locals occupied beaches. Venice is charging day-trippers an entrance fee to reduce the crowds. Lisbon itself is trying to regulate the tuk-tuks, which are popular with tourists and are causing traffic chaos.

This all sounds like legitimate protests or measures to improve tourism management. In fact, there is a feeling that something needs to be done.

While the discount on restaurant meals for local People is not really a protest – especially if no one should find out about it. I guess it’s not quite as righteous as splashing water on tourists.

Anyway, I’ll be staying home next summer. That’s the idea.

Say: “O menu secreto, por favor.”

Do not say: “You can tell this is a really good restaurant – all the locals eat here.”