People living in Mallorca revealed their true feelings towards tourists after a wave of “go home” protests sweeping the destination.
The anti-tourism sentiment has been hitting headlines in recent months, with a number of demonstrations across mainland Spain and the Balearic Islands.
Now as rental prices surge due to properties being snapped up for tourist accommodations, locals have been storming the streets with banners and graffitiing walls with the “tourists go home” slogan.
British expat Andrew McVey, now living in Mallorca, recently set out to gauge public opinion on these developments, conducting street interviews for a video on his YouTube channel ‘Loving Life Mallorca’.
Marga, who works at a hotel reception, told him: “We need it [tourism]. I work at the reception, I love guests. I love England too. And we are very happy that they are coming here […] the tourists, we are living off them. We have to take care of them!”
Alex and Eric, both students from Mallorca’s capital Palma, told him they “like” tourists coming to the island. They also said they have found work in the tourism industry.
Andrew also looked to gauge the sentiments of holidaymakers regarding their sense of security, and chatted with Paul and Rita from Belfast. Paul shared: “We heard about it [the protests] from the press and were a wee bit worried before we came, but when we came here we found Palma to be grand. No problem. And at the resort, no problems there. There’s not an issue.”
Vlad and Cleo, from Romania, explained they had visited Barcelona at the start of the summer, and had a very different experience there compared to in Mallorca. Vlad said: “It was a bit harsh there. It was like, ‘Get out of here’, but people here are welcoming.”
Alec, visiting Palma from New York, was asked: “Do you feel welcome?” He told Andrew: “Absolutely. Not one instance have we felt unwelcome. Everyone has been very hospitable and very kind.”