€750 fine for going topless in Malaga

Malaga city is so fed up of tourists dressing inappropriately, they are putting up signs telling tourists to put some clothes on or risk getting a big fine.

During the scorching summer, Malaga crowds with tourists, drawing numerous Northern Europeans to holiday on the southern coast. However, local officials are not best pleased with the increase in revealing outfits worn by tourists, further compounding anti-tourism sentiment.

The City Council is placing posters around Malaga City instructing tourists to follow clothing guidelines that cover the upper body while sightseeing. The posters feature the phrase ‘dress completely’. In accordance with local bylaws, individuals who disregard police warnings about dress code restrictions could face fines up to €750.

Complaints about topless tourists in Malaga

The posters were put up after complaints about tourists strolling city streets in bikinis, or without shirts, or only in swimming costumes. In 2023, it became against the law to be shirtless, or only in undergarments, while walking around the streets of Malaga. In spite of the recent attempts to improve the fashion choices of sweaty tourists, locals are concerned that the enforcement of the law is lacking.

In Barcelona last month in July 2024, protesters sprayed water guns at tourists and blocked them from leaving restaurants in a demonstration against the influx of visitors. Demonstrators walked through well-known tourist spots on shouting ‘Tourists go home’, spraying individuals with water guns while they dined at outdoor terraces.