Do they have a point? Locals from Palma de Mallorca have taken to the streets to protest overtourism. They join a mounting anti-tourist tide enraged by high rents and bad behaviour.
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Anti-tourism protests sweep Europe
Do they have a point? Locals from Palma de Mallorca have taken to the streets to protest overtourism. They join a mounting anti-tourist tide enraged by high rents and bad behaviour.
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Last Sunday, thousands of MallorcansPeople from the Spanish island of Mallorca. marched through the streets of PalmaPalma de Mallorca is the capital city of the Spanish island of Mallorca. to protest overtourism. Tourists claim they were sprayed with water.
This is just the latest battle in a growing fight between locals and tourists in Spain.
Protesters have stormed through central BarcelonaA city in Spain's Catalonia region, known for its architecture and art. and campaigned against clothed tourists on a nudist beach.1
But it is not just in Spain. Amsterdam has run adverts warning drunk tourists they will be arrested. Lisbon has stopped new short-term rentals. And Venice has introduced a tourist tax and limited group numbers.
There are several reasons for local anger. Tourists make cities more expensive to live in. "Every day I'm looking and every day the rent is higher", says Sonia, a Mallorcan.
They can bring bad behaviour. And there is a climate cost: tourism is responsible for 8% of worldwide CO2 emissionsWhen a gas is let off from something, like a car, it is an emission. Carbon dioxide, or CO2, is a greenhouse gas that contributes to global warming..
Tourism is nothing new, but for centuries it was reserved for the very rich. Mass tourism was pioneered by the VictorianThe era when Queen Victoria was on the British throne, from 1837 to 1901. Thomas Cook.2
More recently, low-cost flights have made it easy for a huge number of people. Social media and word-of-mouth has helped to concentrate tourist interest in a select list of places.
Mallorca, for instance, has a population of 920,000 but receives about 14 million foreign visitors a year.3 Tourism is responsible for 45% of the Balearic IslandsAn archipelago of islands in the Mediterranean Sea off Spain. Mallorca is the largest island.' GDPShort for Gross Domestic Product, the measure of all the goods and services produced inside a country.. Visitors spent €109bn (£92bn) in Spain last year.4
For the tourist, it can open the mind to art and food. And it can introduce you to new cultures and languages.
One can be a responsible tourist. Stay away from hotspots. Eat and shop locally. Spend time in a place and get to know it, rather than treating it as a backdrop for a TikTok video.
Do they have a point?
Yes: Imagine walking down your local street to find only people you do not know, none of whom speak your language, having fun while you study or work. What could be more annoying?
No: Is it a crime to want to see the world? Most tourists behave well. Cities do not belong to their residents. Everyone is a tourist sometimes. A world without tourism would be a small-minded one.
Or... Tourism can be damaging. But it is not just the tourist's fault. Cities and countries should plan to match tourism, building new housing and transport to ease the lives of locals and visitors alike.
FOR YOUR SUMMER READING CHALLENGE CLUE GO TO STEP SIX IN THE SIX STEPS TO DISCOVERY BELOW.
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Keywords
Mallorcans - People from the Spanish island of Mallorca.
Palma - Palma de Mallorca is the capital city of the Spanish island of Mallorca.
Barcelona - A city in Spain's Catalonia region, known for its architecture and art.
CO2 emissions - When a gas is let off from something, like a car, it is an emission. Carbon dioxide, or CO2, is a greenhouse gas that contributes to global warming.
Victorian - The era when Queen Victoria was on the British throne, from 1837 to 1901.
Balearic Islands - An archipelago of islands in the Mediterranean Sea off Spain. Mallorca is the largest island.
GDP - Short for Gross Domestic Product, the measure of all the goods and services produced inside a country.
Anti-tourism protests sweep Europe
Hostile: Marchers have teamed up with Extinction Rebellion campaigners to block airports and squirt tourists with water pistols, according to latest news reports. Glossary
Mallorcans - People from the Spanish island of Mallorca.
Palma - Palma de Mallorca is the capital city of the Spanish island of Mallorca.
Barcelona - A city in Spain's Catalonia region, known for its architecture and art.
CO2 emissions - When a gas is let off from something, like a car, it is an emission. Carbon dioxide, or CO2, is a greenhouse gas that contributes to global warming.
Victorian - The era when Queen Victoria was on the British throne, from 1837 to 1901.
Balearic Islands - An archipelago of islands in the Mediterranean Sea off Spain. Mallorca is the largest island.
GDP - Short for Gross Domestic Product, the measure of all the goods and services produced inside a country.