Majorca tourism protests backfire as Balearic Island faces wave of non-Spanish immigration
It comes as residents in Majorca and other Spanish holiday hubs beloved by British holidaymakers have staged demonstrations against overtourism and its impact on housing and living costs.
Majorca is being hit by a fresh wave of non-Spanish immigration, new figures show, in a blow to protestors on the islands railing against overtourism.
National Statistics Institute figures for the first six months of 2024 suggest Majorca's population grew by 4,424 with just 75 of these new residents born in Spain. 98.3 percent were from overseas, the highest percentage in the Balearics Islands. In Ibiza it was 97.6 percent, Formentera 71.4 percent and Menorca 55 percent.
It comes as residents in Majorca and other Spanish holiday hubs beloved by British holidaymakers have staged demonstrations against overtourism and its impact on housing and living costs.
A fierce campaign has been launched by locals to demand immediate limits to end overtourism, with a new protest expected to take place on the island on Sunday.
Majorcan campaigners organise march against tourism
The Majorca Beach Tour Group calling on supporters to "occupy our beaches" at the peak of the holiday season for British tourists. The planned protest coincides with the day Gatwick Airport predicted would be the busiest for passengers headed for Spain.
Organisers said they want the upcoming march to be a "turning point, a statement, and the start of actions and mobilisation on the four islands, not only in Majorca, which will extend beyond the summer."
They warned the disruptions would continue until the local government takes action to curb tourist access to the islands. The group demanded immediate measures to address the housing emergency, with accomodation becoming increasingly unaffordable for residents in tourist hubs.
Majorca is cutting the number of tourist beds by 18,000 in a bid to address local concerns, with officials saying coexistence between visitors and residents is "at risk" due to the congestion.
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The Balearic Islands are also upping curbs on street drinking and with further restrictions for party boats to discourage rowdy behaviour and noise.
The newly released figures also indicate the population the Balearics, an archipelago Britons flock to in the summer months, is growing due to immigration rather than new births; with 28 percent of the islands' population being foreign, the highest percentage in the country.
As of July 1st, the population of the Balearics was 1,238,812, up by 6,312 from the beginning of January. Should the sixth-month growth be repeated in the second half of this year, the annual population will be lower than in the two previous years in which it was around 22,000 each time.
As of July 1, Mallorca's population was 962,479 and is moving gradually closer to one million. Meanwhile, the populations of Ibiza, Menorca and Formentera were 162,776, 101,885 and 11,672 respectively.
