Huge overtourism protest as Spain’s second most popular region calls for change

Sign up to Simon Calder’s free travel email for expert advice and money-saving discounts Get Simon Calder’s Travel email Get Simon Calder’s Travel email SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Carrying makeshift models of planes and cruise ships, protesters walked through the streets of the capital of Mallorca with posters reading ‘no to mass tourism’ and ‘stop private jets’. Pere Joan Femenia, of Menys Turisme, Mas Vida which organised Sunday’s protest in Mallorca, told Reuters protesters wanted less tourists on the island. “We want to cut mass tourism and to ban non-residents from buying houses which are just used for a few months a year or for speculation.” open image in gallery People take part in a demonstration to protest against overtourism and housing prices on the island of Mallorca in Palma de Mallorca on July 21, 2024 After Catalonia, the Balearic Islands was the second most popular region of Spain for tourists last year, attracting 14.4 million holidaymakers, the Spanish National Statistics Institute said. open image in gallery People hold a placard which reads as ‘Tourism yes, but not like this’ during a demonstration to protest against overtourism and housing prices on the island of Mallorca in Palma de Mallorca on July 21, 2024.