SPANISH protesters held up a sightseeing bus in Palma de Majorca ahead of a major anti-tourism demonstration tomorrow.
The group said the popular Spanish island is overwhelmed by tourists and driven by profit over local needs.
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Campaigners from ‘Menys Turisme, Més Vida’ (Less Tourism, More Life) staged the protest in the Majorcan capital city of Palma.
They halted the bus, climbing onto it and unfurling a banner calling for an end to mass tourism.
In a video shared on social media, the group said it was “tired” of the current system and “ready to break the tourism status quo”.
It says urgent change is needed to put locals’ well-being ahead over the interests of the tourism industry.
The group calls on locals to join Sunday’s demo at 6pm in Plaza de España.
Thousands across the Balearic Islands – along with other parts of Spain – are expected to take part in protests tomorrow.
They are demanding better housing, fair jobs, environmental sustainability and quality public services.
It comes as Spain’s first major overtourism protests of the year kicked off in April after thousands of people across 40 cities took to the streets.
Majorca, one of the centres of the protests last year, hosted the first mass protests of the year.
Nearly 40 organisations from the Balearic Islands are believed to have marched in Palma.
The protest’s slogan was: “Let’s end the housing crisis“.
One anti-AirBnb campaign urged Majorcan locals to vandalise key boxes outside rentals by supergluing their locks.
Later, in May, thousands flooded the streets of the Canary Islands in Spain‘s third wave of protests of the year.
Demonstrations took place across the Spanish archipelago’s islands, including Tenerife, Lanzarote, Gran Canaria and Fuerteventura.
The march carried the slogan: “The Canary Islands are not for sale, they are loved and defended.”
Other banners read: “The Canary Islands have a limit and so does our patience” and “Enough is enough!”
Spain’s anti-mass tourism movement began gaining serious momentum in April 2024 – particularly in popular tourist destinations.
Locals have been demanding an end to the problems associated with mass tourism, including pollution, traffic chaos, the lack of affordable housing and low wages for tourism workers.
What is overtourism?
Overtourism refers to the phenomenon where a destination experiences a volume of tourists that exceeds its manageable capacity
The term is often used to describe the negative consequences of mass tourism, which includes overcrowding and environmental issues
As a result, popular destinations have become less enjoyable for both visitors and locals
Local communities, in particular, bear the brunt, facing rising costs and a depletion of resources
In response, national and local governments have started to implement measures to reduce overtourism
Some solutions include:
- Safeguarding historical and heritage sites
- Promoting off-peak travel
- Tourism caps and regulations
- Promoting lesser-known destinations
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