A group of Amsterdam residents marched through the Kinkerbuurt on Thursday night to protest against the gentrification of Amsterdam West and the problems caused by tourism, Het Parool reports.

They carried banners and megaphones, shouting slogans like "Amsterdam, not for sale!" and "Who's city, our city!". The procession stopped at various locations, including at Jan Pieter Heijestraat, where there are plans to build a long-stay hotel with apartments, instead of housing.

Tourism is playing a bigger and bigger part in the Dutch economy, Statistics Netherlands reported on Monday. Since 2010, tourist spending in the Netherlands increased by 27 percent. Last year the tourism sector generated an added value of 24.8 billion euros to the Dutch economy, over 43 percent more than the 17.3 billion euros generated in 2010.

More tourists from Germany and Belgium will be spending their summer holiday in the Netherlands this year, the Telegraaf reports after speaking with several Dutch holiday and tourism organizations.

The national office for tourism and congresses NBTC expects 3.6 foreign tourists in the Netherlands this summer. A third of them are German, and 15 percent are Belgian. Some 4.7 million Dutch will stay in the Netherlands for holiday, according to the NBTC.

The number of cheese shops in Amsterdam increased massively over the past decade, according to figures from Statistics Netherlands. At the start of this year there were 55 cheese stores in the Dutch capital, an 80 percent increase compared to 2007. Nationwide the number of cheese stores increased 27 percent.

An increasing number of homeowners associations have problems with Airbnb rentals, according to umbrella organization VvE Belang. A number of recent court rulings indicated that Airbnb rentals are not allowed without the permission of the homeowners association, and more and more are considering banning rentals to tourists, the organization said to BNR. 

Residents are tired of repeated military helicopter drills in the area between Arnhem, Epe, Ermelo and Apeldoorn. Recreation park owners from Ermelo teamed up to complain about the low flying helicopters affecting their business. They want Defense to only run its helicopter drills outside tourism season, the Gelderlander reports.

Amsterdam coalition parties D66, VVD and SP plan to help shopkeepers in the city center in their fight against high rent increases. They want the municipality to investigate how these small business owners can be assisted legally. They are also planning a campaign to inform these business owners about their tenant's rights and legal options when their property manager increases their rent, Het Parool reports.

Irish low-cost airline Ryanair lashed out at Amsterdam tourism company Amsterdam Marketing following statements by CEO Frans van der Avert about budget airlines and house sharing destroying European cities, naming Ryanair and Airbnb specifically. Instead of disrespecting other companies and the millions of tourists who visit Amsterdam each year, critique should fall on the leadership of the organization responsible of running Amsterdam tourism, Ryanair marketing director Kenny Jacobs said to Irish newspaper The Journal.

About 950 thousand foreign tourists will spend Easter weekend in the Netherlands, according to calculations by NBTC Holland Marketing. "It is expected to be very busy", a spokesperson said to NOS. "In comparison with last year, we expect 100 thousand more tourists."

Most foreign visitors come from Germany, about 600 thousand. And over 200 thousand Belgians are expected to visit this weekend. In both countries spring break coincided with the Easter weekend. Some 300 thousand Dutch will also spend Easter in the Netherlands.

The ongoing political spat between the Netherlands and Turkey resulted in hundreds of Dutch travelers rebooking their vacations to another destination, Arjan Kers, CEO of travel agency TUI Nederland, said to BNR.

"There are now several hundred, most of which found an alternate in Greece or Spain", Kers said, but added that "because a few hundred thousand Dutch annually go to Turkey on holiday, these numbers are not too bad."

Since autumn last year Amsterdam imposed a total of 526,500 euros in fines for illegal vacation rentals, mostly through sites like Airbnb and Booking.com, the Telegraaf reports.