Central Mallorca Town Leads Charge Against Mass Tourism

10.06.2024 - 16:13 / skift.com / Jesse ChaseLubitz

Mallorca, long a magnet for sun-seekers and party-goers, has seen its population of just one million inundated by a staggering 10 to 18 million visitors a year. Now, locals are pushing back against overtourism, with protests erupting even in its towns far from the party beaches.

On March 25, at least 10,000 people took to the streets to protest overtourism. On June 1, protestors attempted to “occupy the beaches.” On June 16, protestors plan a mass demonstration.

The latest wave of discontent, the largest the Balearic islands has ever witnessed, was sparked not in coastal hotspots but in a small, inland town called Sencelles.

It’s a sign of how tourism now impacts every corner of the island that even a town without classic tourist attractions has become swarmed by tourists seeking lodging.

“Locals cannot access housing because prices are so high,” said Guillem Colom-Montero, a native of Mallorca and a lecturer at the University of Glasgow who studies the cultural impact of tourism. “The residents have finally found their voice.”

Macià Blázquez Salom, a geography professor at the University of the Balearic Islands, said that foreigners’ buying up land and housing creates high tensions between residents, investors, and tourists. 

Palma de Mallorca and four other cities have seen more than 10% spikes in residential property prices this year, a local real-estate agency said.

On May 9, a protest group posted its first video, displaying signs that read “for sale: but I can’t afford it.”

The initiative’s timing coincided with a series of other incidents, which have made the movement more vocal.

On May 28, the terrace of a Mallorca restaurant collapsed, killing four people and injuring 16. The restaurant, which failed a technical building inspection the year before, had no license to operate. However, restaurant workers set a larger than usual table up for a group of tourists, rather than spreading them out. Police said it caved in due to “excessive weight.” 

Around the same time, a pro-tourist political party said that Mallorcans would have to accept not going to the beach during the summer months to prioritize the economic benefits of tourism.

On June 1, a group of young British men were arrested following a fight at a local restaurant. A video of the brawl shows restaurant workers pulling the men off each other.

The mayor of Palma de Mallorca, the primary tourist town, has proposed some measures to restrict tourism to address the complaints, such as limiting the entrance of rental cars, pausing licenses for holiday lettings, and creating quotas for party boats in the bay. 

However, the government has not yet offered any clear plans in response to the protests. At the end of May, following the first march,