Mass anti-tourist protests face backlash in Majorca as locals produce 'we love you' stickers in support of holidaymakers and accuse activists of 'biting the hand that feeds us' after huge rally in Palma By Miriam Kuepper Published: 12:14, 22 July 2024 | Updated: 12:28, 22 July 2024 e-mail View comments Mass anti-tourist protests have faced backlash in Majorca with locals producing 'we love you' stickers in support of holidaymakers and accusing activists of 'biting the hand that feeds us' after a huge rally in Palma. The residents, most of whom are from Palma, told local media that 'we must not forget that Mallorcans have been living off tourism for a long time' as they handed out stickers and cards at last night's protest to thank tourists for their visit. The group We Love Tourism Mallorca, whose members wish to stay anonymous, encouraged people to put the 'we love tourism' stickers on top of anti-tourist posters and gave 'we love you' cards to tourists.
'It makes no sense for us to bite the hand that feeds us,' group members said. This comes as a manifesto reveals that the anti-tourist protesters of Menys Turisme, Mes Vida (Less Tourism More Life) are demanding fewer flights, no new hotel beds and higher taxes on holidaymakers. The group We Love Tourism Mallorca, whose members wish to stay anonymous, encouraged people to put the 'we love tourism' stickers on top of anti-tourist posters (pictured) and gave 'we love you' cards to tourists Thousands of Mallorcans have turned out to take part in the latest protest against 'overtourism' on the island Demonstrators are calling for changes to the tourism on Majorca, claiming the amount of foreign visitors is leaving the island struggling to cope Two women sit on a balcony as people taking part in the protest stream past in the street One protester brought a homemade model of an airplane to signify the large numbers of tourists arriving on the island A manifesto reveals that the anti-tourist protesters of Menys Turisme, Mes Vida (Less Tourism More Life) are demanding fewer flights, no new hotel beds and higher taxes on holidaymakers (pictured: people at last night's protest) The campaigners named housing as their first demand, saying that a minimum residency time on Mallorca should be established before people are allowed to sell and buy housing.
They also asked for no new infrastructure like airports and harbours to be built in the service of tourism, a ban on private jets, an expansion of the nature preserves across the island as well as a reduction in the number of ships coming to Mallorca. Additionally, the group wants to reduce the amount of sea-based toys, beach hammocks and sun umbrellas, likely hoping this will discourage as many tourists from flocking to the island's beaches. Read More Barcelona pledges to 'substantially' hike tourist tax for cruise passengers Climate activist Pere Joan Femenia, one of the spokespeople for Menys Turisme Mes Vida, said as the protest got underway: 'The Balearic Islands have a limit.
The ability to receive more people has reached its limit.' We Love Tourism Mallorca addressed this on their website: 'We understand that Mallorca is facing a saturation problem, but we firmly believe that it is not solely the responsibility of tourists nor is the solution to close access to our island. 'The situation is complex and many variables come into play, which is why we cannot demonise tourism alone, which is also the main driving force of the economy of our islands.
'It would be advisable to analyse more parameters and take into account other perspectives. 'That is why we want to send a message of support and affection to all our visitors in the face of the demonstrations of the last few days.' Last night's protest saw some 20,000 protesters hit the streets of Palma in Mallorca for the mass demonstration against overtourism, demanding changes to a touristic model they say is harming the Spanish Mediterranean island.
During the protest, several luxury real estate agencies in the centre of Palma were vandalised with spray-painted messages asking for 'no more real estate' One demonstrator holds up a sign reading 'stop speculation in housing, SOS residents' A protester holds a sign reading 'Take back your drunks, give back our homes' during last night's demonstration in Palma A demonstrator holds a sign which reads 'it's not tourismphobia, it's Mallorcan' during the protest Demonstrators hold a sign which reads 'tourism yes, but not like that' during the march in Palma Thousands of Majorcans have gathered in the capital of Palma to protest what they see as 'overtourism' Protesters in Palma hold a sign reading 'Land threatened, resistance assured' during a demonstration last night Anti-tourism sentiment in Spain In Spain - the world's second most visited country - anti-tourist sentiment appears to have grown, particularly in the Balearic and Canary Islands. Of Spain's 85 million tourists in 2023, 14.4 million and 13.
9 million foreigners travelled to the Balearic and Canary Islands respectively. The visitor figures are a stark contrast with the number of people who actually call the islands their home. According to 2019 figures, just 1.
2 million people live across the Balearic Islands, and 2.2 million people live on the Canary Islands. With locals feeling their way of life is coming increasingly under pressure, discontent has come to a head in several forms this year.
Advertisement Under the slogan 'Let's change course and set limits on tourism', the demonstrators formed a sea of brightly-coloured flags and banners as they surged through the city's most visited streets, in the latest in a wave of mass anti-tourism protests in Spain . 'Your luxury, our misery,' read one sign, while another placard said: 'This isn't tourismophobia, it's numbers: 1,232,014 residents, 18 million tourists.' The protests were called by some 80 organisations and social groups who want limits to be placed on excessive tourism in the Balearic Isles, whose main three islands are Mallorca, Menorca and Ibiza.
They say the current model of tourism has stretched public services to breaking point, harms natural resources and makes local access to housing increasingly difficult. Organisers claimed that 50,000 joined the protests, with police estimating 20,000 participants. Earlier, the central government's delegation in the islands had said 12,000.
During the protest, several luxury real estate agencies in the centre of Palma were vandalised with spray-painted messages asking for 'no more real estate'. Police said they will view CCTV footage today to try and find the perpetrators, who vandalised the real estate agencies to voice their anti-tourist sentiments, according to sources who spoke to local media. Last year, a record 17.
8 million people visited the Balearic Islands, from mainland Spain and abroad, and the figures are expected to be even higher this year. The demonstration followed another mass protest across the archipelago's three main islands at the end of May, in which many thousands of marchers hit the streets to demand steps to limit overtourism under the slogan: 'Our islands are not for sale'. 'From a practical point of view, it is a legitimate economic activity.
But as an economic activity, it should ultimately be regulated in the same way as hotels,' said architect and urban planning expert Jose Maria Ezquiaga. A young man holds a sign which reads 'Stop cruises' and a giant homemade model of a cruise ship at yesterday's protest A Spanish woman with the words 'tourists go home' on a piece of paper attached to her shirt takes part in the protest Protesters have called for curbs on the number of tourists allowed in Majorca, with one sign saying: 'Your "paradise" is our nightmare' A group of people hold up a giant model of an airplane with a banner saying 'stop private jets' at the protest Anti-tourist graffiti in the shop window of a store in Palma before last night's demonstration As thousands of people took to the streets, one held a sign saying: 'We are dying from tourism' A woman holds a sign which reads 'Enough!' during the protest as anti-tourist sentiment continues to spread in the Mediterranean One sign shows an outline of the island of Majorca accompanied with the words 'we want to live in our house' Some demonstrators held signs called for a different type of tourism on the Spanish island He also told TVE public television he believes tourist rental flats should require the approval of local residents' associations. 'It should be local property owners who set the rules of the game and decide whether or not certain formats are acceptable,' he said.
And Manuel de la Calle, an expert in the field of tourism and business, said imposing a tourist tax could be part of the solution. 'It is one of the possible solutions that could be put in place. It will not reduce the flow of tourism, but it will generate resources that can be driven into tourism management or other avenues to help the local population,' he told TVE.
The Melia Palma Bay Hotel was one of a number of buildings in Palma lit up with messages of support for the protest. A neon message on the front of the hotel said on the weekend: 'Let's put limits on tourism.' Spain Share or comment on this article: Mass anti-tourist protests face backlash in Majorca as locals produce 'we love you' stickers in support of holidaymakers and accuse activists of 'biting the hand that feeds us' after huge rally in Palma e-mail Add comment.
