Thousands of locals filled the streets of Mallorca on Sunday as part of a nationwide protest against ‘over tourism’.
Brits enjoying their holidays in Palma de Mallorca were taken by surprise when scores of fed-up residents began banging their drums and chanting slogans as they marched right beside their restaurant tables.
The demonstration began at Plaza de España, in the heart of the tourist city, shortly after 6pm.
Activists claimed more than 30,000 people turned out for the protest.
Footage taken by the Spanish Eye shows how placards held up by marchers read: ‘Mallorca is not for sale’ and ‘Mallorca is not your cash cow… go home.’
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Others read: ‘Tourists go home… refugees welcome’, ‘enough is enough’ and ‘your vacations, our anxiety.’
Children taking part in the protest were seen carrying water pistols, with plans to spray holidaymakers as they passed on by.
Large groups of protesters were heard chanting ‘tourists go home’ as they made their way through the city.
Local resident Oriol, 40, told the Spanish Eye: ‘I’m protesting because I don’t want 80% of my money to go on rent.
‘I don’t want to be forced to speak only English or German in my apartment block.
‘I don’t want my friends to have to go to the mainland when they have children just to be able to afford a dignified life, a lot of us are fed up.’
Alex, 32, has a masters degree and a well-paying job.
He told this paper: ‘I’m here because I cannot afford to buy my own place, I’m having to live with my parents because the rent is also too much.
‘There are also far too many people coming to the island for holiday, our resources cannot cope, there needs to be a limit.’
The demonstrations took place in major destinations including Barcelona, Mallorca, Ibiza, Menorca, San Sebastian, Granada, Tenerife and Malaga.
Other European destinations involved in the action included Venice in Italy and Lisbon in Portugal.
The action is designed to ‘call attention to the social and environmental costs of overtourism.’
The protests were organised by the Southern Europe Network Against Touristification (SET), and are supported by local activist groups.
Many locals living in tourist hotspots in Spain believe the industry’s model has become too excessive.
They say the numbers of visitors continue to increase year by year, creating an increasing demand on local resources.
They also complain that the overwhelming amount of tourist activity is causing environmental pollution, particularly in Tenerife, where natural landscapes are not being properly protected by local authorities, while a surge in pleasure boats and sewage waste are polluting the marine environment, they claim.
More importantly, the explosion of Airbnb-style properties has seen property prices surge over the past five to 10 years.
In holiday hotspots, landlords are choosing to rent to tourists instead of selling or renting to local families.
This is stripping housing supply and making the available stock far more expensive and out of reach for a growing number of locals.
