Majorca’s Palma City Council was forced to close three of its popular beaches on Thursday morning after a freak storm caused damage. Residents and tourists heading to the popular beaches at Cala Major, Can Pere Antoni and Platja de Palma have been barred from swimming in the sea.
According to the city council, Cala Major and Can Pere Antoni have been flying a red flag, which signals that swimming has been prohibited due to unsafe sea conditions like strong currents, large waves or other hazards. Ignoring a red flag, in several places, can result in a fine. Platja de Palma, meanwhile, remains open to the public but with an express prohibition on bathing. In addition, Ciutat Jardí is flying the yellow flag, which implies caution, but not an outright ban.
The closure comes after rains recorded earlier on Thursday.
The city council said in a statement that they hoped to open the beaches to swimming again as soon as possible.
The closure of beaches is, unfortunately for holidaymakers, a common occurrence. Last month, a popular beach in the Canary Islands was forced to close over a public health warning, with locals and tourists once again asked to stay out of the water. Playa Dorada on Lanzarote was forced to close after tests revealed microbiological contamination. A temporary ban was imposed after water samples came back positive for pollution and remained in place while more sampling was carried out.
While these beach bans have been implemented officially, tourists should also be aware that frustrated locals in some Spanish holiday hotspots have been known to put up fake warnings at popular beauty spots on occasion to keep the crowds away. Signs written in English at some of the island’s beaches warn of dangerous jellyfish and falling rocks or tell visitors that no swimming is allowed. Beneath the signs’ warnings, and also translated into Catalan, were messages telling those reading them that the problem isn’t rockfall, or stinging marine creatures but mass tourism.
In addition, overtourism protesters have recently been sending holidaymakers to some of the worst parts of the island on purpose. A Tiktok vlogger has warned that fed-up locals are inventing names of “hidden beaches” that do not exist, with some going to extreme lengths like labeling them on Google Maps. They are giving them names such as “Cala Son Banya” or “Cala Son Gotleu” before actually sending tourists to some Majorca’s worst areas.
A local woman said in an online video: “These are not beaches, they are dangerous places that you should avoid. If you want to avoid getting scammed, look up the location online before you go. If you find a lot of information, it’s a real beach. If not, avoid going.”