Jason MoorePalma30/07/2018 00:00
TW

I attended an official function this week at a hotel on the island and during the speeches someone shouted from outside the hotel perimeter "tourists go home". I must admit that I doubt many of the guests attending the event actually heard anything but it is clear that there is now a slight backlash against tourism on the island. So-called booze tourism is in the spotlight with a growing number of people questioning whether the island needs this type of holidaymaker. Fewer tourists with a greater spending power is what people want in order to ease overcrowding and to make Majorca a "better" place.

This is an opinion I have heard so many times but to be perfectly honest it is simply not viable. Fewer tourists mean fewer jobs and less money. If Majorca welcomed a fifth of the tourists it receives at the moment, yes it would be a quieter place but it wouldn't be so rich. The Balearic government is rather sitting on the fence but it is  also looking at ways to take the industry up-market. But if it isn't broken, don't fix it. Majorca, at the moment, is able to attract all types of tourists and the local economy is certainly benefitting. If the island does want fewer tourists, then the local authorities have to have a plan.

This year we are receiving fewer tourists and I can see many people demanding that the local government works to ensure that there are more tourists visiting our shores. Majorca has had it very good for the last five years but other, competing destinations have recovered and as a direct result there are fewer tourists. This year it is more a question of "tourists stay at home" than "go home".