SHAMELESS MAJORCA: How Britons were lured to save the island – and now they want to BAN US

But now the Balearic islands are biting the hand that fed them and want to ban the very people that made their economy flourish. 

Majorca (Mallorca), Ibiza and Menorca have become synonymous with sunshine breaks, but this year’s summer holidays have been marred by a series of anti-tourism protests on the Balearic Islands and the government has announced it is doubling the tourist tax.

Almost 10 million holidaymakers come to Majorca each year and bring billions into the economy.

Many locals think the beaches, roads and parking lots are saturated by holidaymakers and are demanding action from government officials.

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Tourism saved the Majorcan economy

And two out of three people living in the Balearic islands of Majorca, Menorca and Ibiza believe numbers of British tourists should be capped, according to a new survey.

Although the idyllic island was popular with wealthy European holidaymakers in the early 20th century, tourism and package deals to the largest Balearic island didn’t kick off until after the Spanish Civil War.

The 1940s in Spain were known as the ‘years of hunger’ as the Franco dictatorship almost bankrupted the nation. 

But spotting an opportunity to prosper, Spain found its economic saviour in tourism and Majorca launched its first package deals for Britons in 1952. 

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Majorcans have had enough of British tourists

And in a stroke of crude public relations to boost the country’s dismal international reputation, the Franco dictatorship relaxed many of its repressive rules on the fledgling holiday industry.

Majorca spearheaded tourism in the 60s and 70s and the island flourished with new money from holidaymakers seeking sun and sangria.

The industry’s expansion was ruthless and high-rise buildings appeared along the coast to cater for the new wave of tourism. 

Tourism is the sector which has recovered the greatest numbers of jobs since the crisis

Rafael Gallego


The paradise island suffered heavily from the decline in holidaymakers after the financial crisis, but tourism activity has increased in the archipelago, and now levels are above those that had existed before the economic downturn. 

More than 12 million tourists a year visit the Mediterranean island group. 

Britons are the second biggest group behind the 3.2 million Germans. They have even established their own enclaves. 

To the east, in Magaluf and Palma Nova, are the British, while to the west, at Arenal, the Germans.

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Tourists spent £13m in the Balearic islands last year

And with the rise of low cost airlines, such as Ryanair and EasyJet, cheap and cheerful holidays to Majorca are more easily available than ever. Nearly a third of the flights arriving at Palma’s vast airport terminal today are on the so-called low-cost carriers.

Access to the island is unprecedented, Air Berlin has even made Palma a hub and new types of holidays, such as cycling, walking, yachting, cultural tours and golf are being touted.

But this economic boom from tourism has come back to bite Majorcans, as now they are unhappy with the amount of tourists that come to visit. 

British holidaymakers have faced waves of attacks at hands of tourist-hating anarchists across Spain.

This summer four hooded activists from a radical group called Arran attacked a tourist bus in Barcelona, slashing tyres and spraying slogans across it.

Others have thrown eggs at hotels, and in Palma, Majorca’s capital city, locals set off smoke flares outside a seafront restaurant.

Rafael Gallego, chair of the Spanish Association of Travel Agents (Feaav) has slammed the protestors and defended the tourist industry, saying: “It is the sector which has recovered the greatest numbers of jobs since the crisis.”

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Some anti tourist protests even turned violent

These protests could spell the end of an era as as holidaymakers prepare to abandon the island after a backlash from locals.

Regular visitors have vowed to take their cash elsewhere after they say they were made to feel unwelcome and even intimidated.

Figures show tourists spent 14.5million Euros (£13million) while visiting the islands last year – but crucial job creation and its effects on other industries is responsible for 80 percent of the region’s economy, so the furious locals’ demands could turn into a nightmare for the islands.