We represent various groups of residents in Mallorca who are deeply concerned about the overwhelming saturation our island is experiencing.
The recent statements made by local politicians and hoteliers, with great irresponsibility, deny this evident reality and promote the arrival of even more tourists from both international and national markets.
We are facing the worst summer in the history of Mallorca. All predictions indicate that in 2025, all historical records of visitors and overcrowding will be shattered once again, creating an emergency situation in a fragile environment that is already uninhabitable. Therefore, on behalf of the undersigned groups, we present a letter that we believe expresses the feelings of a large portion of the Mallorcan population, who are not being heard.
We ask that, if you deem it appropriate, you help spread this message so that the true situation of our island is known, appealing to the individual responsibility of visitors, since this responsibility is non-existent within our governors and the local tourist lobby, which is solely driven by economic interests.
Thank you very much for your attention and help.
Open letter to tourists
Dear tourists,
It is well known that Mallorca is an island recognised worldwide. Historically, we have been a welcoming land, strategically located in the Mediterranean Sea. Mallorca has a long tradition of tourism. We have made history when it comes to tourism. Until recently, this was a source of pride, but right now it has become our biggest problem.
In the 1970s, Mallorca was called the "island of calm." Obviously, we are talking about a not so distant past, where the coexistence between tourists and residents maintained a balance. These were other times, when tourists spent their vacations on Mallorca, a sector of the population worked for them, but there were also other productive sectors (industry, agriculture...). The residents lived in peace and harmony because everyone occupied their "place" in a fragile and wonderful environment.
Things have changed, and Mallorca has become a top tourist destination. The island has been exploited to unimaginable limits, leading to the collapse we are now suffering. The money generated by the tourism industry has attracted people from all over the world who trade with our island. The greed and avarice of hoteliers, politicians, real estate investors, and all kinds of "parasites" have brought us to an emergency situation.
There is no need to list the problems that we residents suffer from, they are well known: environmental and ecosystem deterioration, infrastructure issues, overwhelmed public services, transportation problems, loss of quality of life, gentrification, disproportionate increases in the cost of living, and a total lack of access to housing for the local population.
This had never happened before in Mallorca, and civil society has taken to the streets. We have mobilized to demand that our politicians regulate this situation and prevent a major disaster.
However, surprisingly, instead of listening and taking action to reverse this crisis, they deny reality and continue to promote tourism in established markets, such as the Berlin Fair, while also creating new ones.
Their only goal is to increase the number of visitors and generate more money for a minority, on an island that is already completely oversaturated.
Some figures to understand the magnitude of the problem, based on published data:
● If Mallorca were an independent state, it would be the second in absolute growth over the last 40 years, with an 84% population increase, only surpassed by India with 91%.
● In the last 25 years, while the number of tourists has increased by more than 30%, the Balearic Islands have plummeted in the European per capita income ranking, falling from position 48 to 148. (More tourism no longer generates wealth but poverty).
● Every year, for every island resident, we receive 15 tourists (meaning human pressure on our land is multiplied by 15).
● This is the third consecutive year of record-breaking visitor numbers in Mallorca. In 2024, Palma de Mallorca Airport handled over 33 million passengers, a 7% increase from 2023. In 2025, tourist numbers are expected to increase by 6%. Cruise ship tourism in the Port of Palma is also expected to rise, reaching 1.8 million passengers.
It is insulting that our politicians use the concept of “sustainable” every time they talk about tourism in Mallorca because nothing could be further from the truth.
If we look up “sustainable” in the dictionary, when applied to ecology or economics, it refers to something that can be maintained over a long period without depleting resources or causing serious damage to the environment. “Sustainability” consists of meeting present needs without compromising the needs of future generations, a development model that is compatible with environmental preservation, avoiding the degradation of the surroundings caused by human activity.
Well, what is being done to our land is exactly the opposite.
Politicians tell us they want to promote the deseasonalization of the tourism industry. This would mean reducing the number of tourists during peak season by spreading them throughout the year. However, what is actually happening is exactly the opposite: maintaining 100% occupancy during peak season while also filling Mallorca with tourists for the rest of the year.
Mallorca is not the paradise they are selling you. The local population is angry and no longer hospitable because the land we love it’s being destroyed and many of us have to leave the island because it is uninhabitable. Put yourselves in our place!
It is time to take a stand. Our leaders do not listen to us, so we, the residents, ask you: DO NOT COME. We do not need more tourists; in fact, you are the source of our problem.
Locals say:
ENOUGH. STAY HOME!
ORGANIZATIONS:
- SOS RESIDENTS
- MENYS TURISME MÉS VIDA
- GOB
- GADMA. GRUP AMICS DE LA TERRA DE MALLORCA
- ALTERNATIVA PER POLLENÇA
- BRUNZIT
- AMICS DE LA VALL DE COANEGRA
What do you think? Send us your views to jmoore@majorcadailybulletin.es
11 comments
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Morgan WilliamsI recognise your consistent disdain for some of the UK press (which I share) but this is being reported in every newspaper and media outlet and for good reason - it is news and anyone thinking of holidaying in Mallorca has a right to know. The British press are not saying ‘you are not welcome in Mallorca’, the Mallorquins are. Who wants to go somewhere on holiday where you are not welcome? The message from Mallorca is clear.
Marvin Le MartianOh, that's nothing new. When one of these protesters farts it's a huge fury and outrage story in all the British tabloids (and oddly, they seem to just copy-paste each others' hyperbole, maybe adding a bit of their own). I've said for a long time that the biggest promotor of this movement is the tabloids. And ironically, the anti-British stuff. The Germans are finally getting some of this now (previously it's been passed off as fringe and not newsworthy). But it's nowhere near as prominent in German media as it is in British media.
The UK red tops and broadsheets are all picking this up. No doubt the German press will follow, perhaps not so gleefully as the UK. Well done to the MDB for helping give these minority mouthoffs more oxygen than they deserve.
Mallorca and indeed Spain is a democracy - so you haven’t been ‘let down by your politicians’ - it’s just that you disagree with the elected politicians. You are a minority pressure group who are trying to circumvent the democratic process in the same way as ‘Just stop oil’ and ‘Extinction Rebellion’. Perhaps you should go the right way about it and set up a political party and when you are democratically elected you can apply your anti-tourism policies instead of deciding unilaterally write open letters to asking tourists to stay away.
Charles Dalrymple-ChumleyWell said!
A well written letter supported by statistics. @ CDC Once again you miss the point, the aim is reduction , not total cancellation of tourism. If you read it otherwise so be it but believer me not even " the man up there" could stop all tourists coming here. @MW I think you mistake poverty in the villages for leading a happy, balanced life similar to their generations beforehand. That life of burros in the fields, carts on the roads, sheep bells in the fields and if you were lucky listening to a shepherd playing the pan pipes in the evening. It was slower, it was less material but I don't remember seeing any less happiness, hearing constant complaints like nowadays. Maybe the weather but that is an eternal complaint, brought more now by the noticeably changing climate. When I got here aged 24 , outside Palma and specific tourist areas ( Arenal, Magaluf, Palmanova) it was still very much La Isla de la Calma . No one can blame people for buying a tractor and even a car ( Seat 600 and 850 very popular) but the quality of life scarcely changed. That is the biggest change and bringing back that slower more peaceful but still busy and worthwhile life is nigh on impossible.
Lewis BlackWhy do people have to boil everything down to a political party. The "other one". "They're" to blame... That kind of tribalist thinking is the very root of many of our problems today. The reality is that neither side of the political spectrum has a "solution'. That's why nobody's been able to "solve" it. I like simple stuff too. "What button do I press?". But few things in life are that simple. And it doesn't matter what side you're on... Nobody's going to be able to "fix it" by flipping a switch. But with a bit of fact based critical thinking and collaboration with all the stakeholders (including the local population) they might be able to find ways to improve things. Or just keep blaming it all on the other tribe and do nothing.
One has to imagine that the PSOE is working hard and stirring up trouble. These issues existed way before PP returned to the island and yet these campaigns have only now started to get more vocal. It would be nice if real residents (not imported PSOE activists) sat down and tried together to find common sense solutions with the PP. The biggest issue, in my mind, is the lack of affordable housing making living and working on the island more and more difficult. But their are huge advantages to Mallorcans tax wise in owning property even being able to have them transferred tax free to the family which of course also compounds the lack of inventory. The island needs affordable housing to be able just to service this increasing group of wealthier tourists. This type of tourist is what successive governments have pursued but they really had no plan how to accommodate them (increases in traffic/rental car volume for instance, increased service demands). Take the non resident activists out and let's sit down and find credible solutions like better mass transit and increased affordable housing (although I am sure there are many other practical ideas too)
"creating an emergency situation in a fragile environment that is already uninhabitable." "The island has been exploited to unimaginable limits, leading to the collapse we are now suffering." "environmental and ecosystem deterioration, infrastructure issues, overwhelmed public services, transportation problems, loss of quality of life, gentrification, disproportionate increases in the cost of living, and a total lack of access to housing for the local population." Well, I've lived here for decades, and although like everywhere, there has been a natural increase in the cost of living, but unfortunately average wages haven't kept up with that. It's clear that certain areas suffer these things at certain times of the year, but the generalisation is a bit much. It's far worse in other places in the world. Nonetheless, I still can't find much evidence of the first 2 quotes above.. what "collapse"? "Uninhabitable"? Really? It all sounds terribly hyperbolic. And really, those towns and villages that were previously sleeping peacefully, largely in poverty, with very little money or resources to invest in their own standards of living, are benefitting greatly from tourism. Aside from the visible increase in standards of living, one example is that now locals no longer have to drive to Palma, Inca or Manacor to find a supermarket or other shops that offer decent selection and competitive pricing. They have those things right around the corner.. Look, it's not tourism that's causing gentrification, increases in cost of living and lack of affordable housing, although it's an easy explanation.. you could completely ban tourism and those things still won't change - the problem won't be solved, and likely only get be worse. It's far more complicated than that, which might explain why politicians are having such difficulty addressing it. Once you look at the whole picture, I seriously doubt you csn come up with a simple "solution" so easily. But ok... Give it a try with your oversimplified idea. Yet... you should set your expectations appropriately. It's not going to make anything better. For anybody.
To stop so called extra tourist growth, just stop building new hotels to increase bed spaces. The island needs tourism, but sadly the bubble has to burst one day, if it has not already. I feel it is the greedy hotel owner chains that are a main problem, but not the whole problem.