Dear Editor,
I go to Mallorca regularly on holiday, this year is 3 visits in May, July and October, the question I am asked most about my visits "have you had any problems with protesters" my answer is No not yet. My point is that the first thought or question should be how lovely or what resort, Mallorca is getting bad publicity right across Europe regarding these protests and sooner or later the local economy will feel the pain. This is not a problem brought about by tourists, it is a problem that can only be resolved in Mallorca by the authorities, if this problem is not addressed and somebody gets hurt or even worse the Island will get even more bad publicity.
There is sympathy for Mallorca residents but the problem can only be solved in Spain and Mallorca. The Spanish political system should step in and address the problem and deal with it before the tourist goes elsewhere and where they are welcomed with open arms, a bad name can come in the blink of an eye but a good name takes years and years and can be lost in seconds.
If the can keeps getting kicked down the road by the system, sooner or later locals will probably have housing but a very poor economy. Mallorca is a beautiful place. My message to the politicians is look after your locals as well as making yourself very rich off the tourists.
Good luck
Joe
Dear Editor,
Reading your piece on price of 3 beers I nearly died of shock the other day. I had some work to do near Plaza de las Columnas/Pere Garau and I was meeting a client there and as always I am punctual so I decided to take a coffee there and I had noticed a smart new bar had opened actually on the Plaza, bear in mind this is only Plaza de las Columnas not the Borne. I ordered 1 cafe con leche and it was nothing special and I asked for my bill. It was 4.30€, yes four euros 30 in Plaza de las Columnas. I would have even complained paying that in Plaza Juan Carlos. When complaining the waiter just shrugged his shoulders. I know he is only the waiter and doesn't set the prices but that is out of order.
Michael Everett
Dear Editor
Your enjoyable Bulletin has devoted 4 pages before page12 to anti-tourism which is becoming a problem if not always obvious an undercurrent. Not necessarily Spielberg pictured in the last edition but the Americans are moving over here eg Ellen De Generes lives in the English Cotswolds country side etc.
The government as UK will be slow with affordable housing. Locals can utilise a room for AIR BNB which has maybe exacerbated the problem. The ‘haves and have nots’ as in UK is becoming wider no moreso underlined by the demonstrators seeing the hat trick of super yachts on your front page at Port Portals. I'm not anti-tourism, I'm not anti-supercars or superyachts but I do feel for locals who are unable to get affordable housing and should have the things we all treasure. They wouldn’t be demonstrating if they didn’t feel strongly here and elsewhere would they? Life has plenty to do doesn’t it?
Mallorca is an island which takes some beating not an island which is and doesn’t need to see a beating! Until next time September.
Kind regards
Brian Linford, Pontefract
5 comments
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tranq tranquerI always believe if you ask a question or make a compliant,then you should put yourself in a position to offer a solution. If you dont, you leave yourself open to a simple answer, and that is, what would you do ?
What a shame, I thought for a brief moment the article heralded a return of the " Letters to the Editor " column. Comments on specific articles are fine but not a place to air unrelated views.
sibementoSympathise entirely regarding unacceptable behaviour - it needs harder edged policing. Zero tolerance. Sending the message that all the social flotsam isn’t welcome is better than beating up on tourists out for a quiet drink in a respectable bar. But the money you refer to ending up in ‘the pockets of hoteliers’ only does so once tax is deducted. A proportion of that tax ends up funding services and infrastructure on the island. The proportion of course can be debated. I cannot see any solution to this other than to put an absolute cap on visitor numbers, AND have the island receive some sort of ‘bonus’ revenue to address the stress between tourism and locals which does not occur so aggressively on the mainland. It would limit the tourist population and provide a route for investment into e.g. affordable housing - thus addressing the “islanders’ experience”and also the longer run housing issue. This doesn’t prejudice any particular sector and doesn’t skew the results like suggestions to ban private lets (which probably deliver more tax per traveller than a cheap hotel). It’s headline numbers that need controlling. Like absolute caps on rental cars in peak season. But the local population has a role in this - you just cannot expect to continuously grow the population when you know it has a challenge of space and employment - hard message though it is, if you cannot afford to have a family, think twice before concluding your decision is now everyone else’s problem.
Regarding the local economy. Locals and residents know that Mallorca's economy is not 100% reliable on tourism. They want to see less reliance on tourism within the economy as, whilst it brings in €'s, it is not an absolute for everyone — not everyone works within that economy and they want the island to be known for more than summer vacations. They want to live affordably within the town and city districts. Of course, being the capital, Palma is more costly but for those who live here they also want to dine at affordable restaurants, take a coffee for 2€, enjoy the highlights of their own culture, and live safely and peacefully in the place they call home. Irresponsible tourists do not have this degree of respect, they are noisy, messy, and diabolical in their behaviour. Locals and residents want an increase in responsible tourism and if that comes at a cost in a reduction in the number of visitors and less money in the pockets of hoteliers then let it be so. There is no rampant anti-tourism agenda, we simply want better tourism for a better island.
On the first comment, its media driven. Which to be honest, has not been hrlped by the MDB. Second comment, everything cost more nowadays, yet wages remain well below where they are expected to be. Hold the government accountable for ridiculous taxing but wasting billions on Catalan bribes or forgien aid to north Africa. On the third comment, if hotel spaces were limited, flights cut back and tourist curtailed, the work force , seasonal, would be less on the island. You can see on the roads, its not tourist but workers who contribute to high volume at certain times of the year, starting in April. Less workers, more residents housing. This profit driven maddness by hotels and aviation sector must stop. But hey, expand the airport blame the tourist.