Anti-tourism campaigners in Spain are warning that “this is just the beginning” and that more demonstrations will be held in the future.
Organisers of a protest in Palma, Majorca, on Sunday sent the warning as they aim to apply pressure on the Spanish and Balearic governments to bring in stricter measures.
Margalida Ramis of the environmentalist group GOB, a key part of the Less Tourism More Life campaign group, said: “The truth is that we no longer need to campaign to raise people’s awareness, but rather to take immediate and long-term measures.
“We have zero confidence in the roundtable for the pact as we can already see in which way it is heading.”
She added that government measures to ease pressure on holiday hotspots in Spain “will be very far from what we are proposing.”
Ms Ramis also dismissed the idea that the increase in anti-tourism protests has detered people from visiting Spain.
She continued: “Many people are already stopping coming when they see how saturated the island is. It is not we who are destroying tourism, it is they themselves.”
In 2023, the Balearic Islands, which include Mallorca, saw a record 17.8 million tourists arrive for a vacation.
British expat Andrew McVey recently spoke to some locals about how they feel about the number of tourists coming to Majorca.
One said: “We need it [tourism]. I work at the reception, I love guests. I love England too. And we are very happy that they are coming here […] the tourists, we are living off them. We have to take care of them!”
However, earlier this year huge protests were held in Palma with 10,000 people taking to the streets, showing that frustration is still palpable on the island.
