- Last week, 15,000 people took to the streets in Palma to protest against mass tourism
Anti-tourism protests in Mallorca are stopping holidaymakers from visiting the island, according to an investigation by a local news website.
A poll of the Mallorca Daily Bulletin found that around 44 percent of people will now think twice about booking a holiday on the popular island following huge protests over mass tourism.
Fortunately for the tourism industry, around 55 percent of the survey’s more than 650 respondents said they were undeterred by campaigners, who are calling for more affordable housing and fewer holiday homes.
Businesses are reportedly concerned about whether enough tourists will come to the island this summer, with protesters warned to ‘be careful what you wish for’ by calling on them to stay away.
It comes after around 15,000 residents took to the streets in Palma last week, with one British holidaymaker telling MailOnline she felt ‘intimidated’ as protesters told tourists to ‘go home’.
Protesters shout at shocked holidaymakers enjoying dinner and drinks in Palma
Protesters hold a banner reading ‘Mallorca is not for sale’ during a demonstration to protest mass tourism and house prices
Last week, photos emerged of empty beaches in the popular seaside resort of Magaluf
As the summer holidays approach, protesters campaigning against overcrowding are said to be planning more demonstrations.
The protest in Palma was organized by Banc del Temps, a group based in the town of Sencelles in Mallorca’s interior that is outraged by the difficulties locals face in paying for housing on the island.
After Saturday’s protest, Banc del Temps spokesman Javier Barbero warned: “This is just the beginning of things. If no action is taken, we will continue to take to the streets until we see action.”
There are concerns within the tourism industry that the protests will impact their visitor numbers.
Although the high season is still a few weeks away, Mallorca Daily Bulletin reports that some resorts are ‘unusually quiet’ for this time of year.
Last week, images emerged of empty beaches in the popular resort of Magaluf, with a bar owner telling protesters: “Their wishes have been granted.”
Others in the industry have reportedly said protesters are “playing with fire” over their rejection of mass tourism, on which the island’s economy largely depends.
The words ‘Go Home Tourist’ were scrawled in English on a wall beneath a property billboard in Nou Llevant, Mallorca, a neighborhood that has seen a huge influx of foreign buyers in recent years
One campaign group, known as Menys Turisme, Mes Vida (Less Tourism, More Life), has suggested they could ‘collapse’ Palma airport, which received 31.1 million passengers last year, according to The Times.
The tactic, first proposed at a citizens’ meeting in the Mallorcan town of Sineu, also involves creating a traffic jam outside the airport.
“It is a proposal that has no place in a society like the one we live in today, a measure currently classified as a crime,” said Jaume Bauza, Minister of Tourism for the Balearic Islands.
The groups also discussed the possibility of blocking the main port and other tourist sites such as Calo des Moro and Es Trenc beaches.
Despite anti-tourism sentiment among locals and a crackdown on drinking in hotspots like Magaluf, local authorities have repeatedly insisted that British and other foreign tourists are welcome on the island.
Great Britain is the largest tourist market for Mallorca after Germany.
Despite concerns among some in the holiday hotspot, the number of foreign tourists visiting Spain has risen this year.
Spending by holidaymakers from abroad also increased by more than 22 percent in the first four months of 2024 compared to last year, according to the latest government figures.