The protests, referred to by the press as the "Beach Towel Movement" quickly spread from Paros to the neighboring island of Naxos and to other vacation spots in the northern and southern parts of the country, as reported by Reuters and cited by News.ro.

"Locals enjoy the tranquility here, so we don't want this beach to be taken over by businesses that care about money rather than nature and atmosphere", stated Ronit Nesher, a 53-year-old Paros resident. "We don't want the beach occupied by enormous parasols and canopy beds, truly gigantic ones, which have nothing to do with the simplicity of the island", the local explained.

Beaches are public in Greece, a country that welcomes millions of tourists each year, especially during the summer, its main tourist season. However, an increasing number of companies have been licensed to rent sunbeds and parasols, which they set up along stretches of the shoreline.

Protesters argue that prices for two sunbeds and a parasol can often exceed 100 euros for a day, and in many cases, the businesses expand far beyond the agreed-upon beach area, leaving little space for those who wish to lay out a towel and sunbathe for free.

"We come here peacefully. We just want to tell you that we're trying to reclaim our right to have free access to our beaches", one of the protesters said through a megaphone as he walked among the sunbeds on Marcello Beach in Paros.

A prosecutor has launched an investigation into the Paros case.

In Naxos, over 5,000 people have joined the Facebook group "Save Naxos Beaches Now!", which has also filed a legal complaint.

"The beaches are so cluttered with furniture that many people who don't want to sit on a bed or chair simply have no space left to sit", said 47-year-old Eleni Andrianopoulou, one of the organizers of the group.

Greece has a coastline of 16,000 kilometers and hundreds of beaches where companies rent sunbeds. The country emerged from a debt crisis five years ago and heavily relies on tourism for economic recovery.