Roberto Faravelli, who runs a Bed and Breakfast near the port, says people like himself might be willing to rent their properties to workers if the region offered incentives to close the gap on lucrative holiday lets.
“The government needs to encourage homeowners to offer long-term rents. What we lack is anyone trying to resolve these problems,” he said.
But mayor Lembo did not expect the authorities to intervene. “It is unfortunate, but this is the market economy at work.”
POST-COVID SURGE
Vacation rental platform Airbnb lists more than 500 properties on Capri against around 110 in 2016. This is just the tip of the iceberg, with local families renting out their properties during the summer months on unregulated portals.
“This short-term rental market is chaotic. There are no controls,” said Lembo.
Despite obvious resentment over the lack of viable housing, Capri has not yet witnessed the sort of protests seen elsewhere – such as Spain’s Canary Islands, where thousands took to the streets this month to demand limits on tourist arrivals.
The end of the pandemic has seen tourism surge across Europe as global travellers seek to make up for lost time.
Italy had near record overnight stays in 2023, according to data collated by the Florence centre of tourism studies, and was the 5th most visited country in the world in 2023, with tourists drawn to its quaint villages and culture-rich cities.
But none were built for mass travel.
In the morning during high season, a fleet of ferries disgorge up to 5,000 visitors into Capri’s tiny port in just two hours. Everyone wants to head up to the town of Capri and the smaller Anacapri, but the buses can only carry 30 people at a time and the funicular 50.
“You can easily wait two or even three hours to get up the hill in summer. The quays get packed. Noone can move,” said Boniello, flicking through videos on his phone of people crammed one against the other.
Lembo acknowledges the problems, but denies tourism is ruining an island his ancestors have lived on for centuries. “I don’t agree with nostalgics who say Capri was more beautiful 100 years ago. There was misery and poverty back then. Now there is wealth, and that is thanks to tourism.”
