A campaign group has unveiled a banner in a popular tourist destination calling for action to tackle the “deterioration” caused by mass tourism.
Hundreds of protesters blocked tourists from entering Menorca’s postcard-like Cala Turqueta, carrying banners reading “SOS Menorca”.
Protesters also allegedly filled the first bus to Cala Turqueta in order to “block the arrival of tourists.”
A Menorcan government spokesman said last night: “This is not a protest against tourism, but against massification and the degradation it brings.”
SOS Menorca banner unveiled
GOB Menorca
A spokesman for the group said: “250 people gathered at Cala Turqueta to demand a change in direction for Menorca. They filled the car park with residents’ cars and wrote messages in the sand with towels and other objects. The images show the concerns of Menorcan residents.”
They added that they were calling for “adequate housing, protection of the island’s natural resources, diversification of the economy and the return of young people from overseas.”
This came after around 10,000 protesters took part in a rally against mass tourism in Palma de Mallorca.
Protesters walked the streets of the Mallorcan capital carrying makeshift models of planes and cruise ships and posters reading “No to mass tourism” and “Stop private jets”.
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A banner was hung on the beach
GOB Menorca
Pere Joan Femenia, from Menis Tourism, Mas Vida (Less Tourism, More Life), which organised the protests in Mallorca, told reporters that protesters wanted fewer tourists to the island.
“Mass tourism is hard on locals who cannot afford to live on the islands because tourist apartments drive up prices. In summer, beaches are packed with tourists, putting a strain on public services,” he said.
“We want to cut down on mass tourism and prohibit non-residents from buying homes that are only used a few months a year or are speculative.”
Anti-tourism activists have staged a series of protests this year in popular holiday destinations including Barcelona, Malaga and the Canary Islands, arguing that tourists are making housing prices soaring and making it impossible for residents to live in city centres.
The Balearic Islands were Spain’s second most popular tourist region after Catalonia last year, attracting 14.4 million holidaymakers, according to the Spanish National Statistics Institute.
Tourism generates 45 percent of the Balearic Islands’ gross domestic product, according to data from industry group Exceltur.
Spain received 16.1 million visitors in the first quarter of this year, up 18% from the same period last year.
Tourists in Spain spent 109 billion euros ($118.56 billion) last year, compared with 63.5 billion euros in France.
