With Mallorca and the Balearic Islands in general receiving a large number of visitors, which has a significant impact on the natural environment and the quality of life of the inhabitants, they have recently taken matters into their own hands and the local council has announced the restriction of its participation in international tourism fairs.
In particular, the Council of Mallorca is to reduce the number of international tourism fairs in which it will participate next year to just 11, representing a 68% reduction compared to 2019.
The president of the Council of Mallorca, Llorenç Galmés, said during the debate on the general policy that “Mallorca does not have a demand problem and does not need to participate in fairs to seek more tourists. Obviously we will continue to participate in the most important fairs, but we will not promote traditional sun and beach tourism”.
“These are far-reaching measures, which have never been implemented before, to address the main challenge facing our society, which requires immediate solutions”, said the president, who boasted that he had “done more in one year than the left-wing coalition did in eight”.
For her part, the president of the Balearic Islands government, Marga Prohens, called for a constructive debate on over-tourism on the islands and ensuring the well-being of residents. She was speaking at the first Civil Society Conference on Tourism. “Together, in partnership and with a shared belief that bold measures are needed, we can successfully manage this debate,” she said.
Ms Prohens hopes that the meeting will produce data, studies and proposals “to be followed up in order to achieve a social and political pact for the sustainability of the islands.
She said that it is “necessary to take into account and listen to the citizens”, which is why she insisted on analysing the social unrest that has increased in recent years due to the saturation of tourism in the region.
She stressed that citizens and organisations will soon be able to submit their proposals through the dedicated website. Meanwhile, she regretted the fact that many times laws have been passed in the Balearic Islands without data and information, which, in her opinion, cannot be repeated, and called for responsibility and a clear vision so that a constructive debate on the management and mitigation of tourism flows can emerge from this conference.
