Restaurateurs in Majorca have slammed anti-tourism messages left around the island, claiming they are causing a fall in tourist footfall. The criticism comes as restaurant association president Juanmi Ferr says the messages are “scaring people away” as the island faces an underwhelming season.
Nightclub and shop owners are also struggling due to lower spending. Miguel Perez-Marsa of the nightlife association said, “The tourists we’re interested in are being driven away. They don’t feel welcome and are going to other destinations.”
Majorca has seen a fall in the number of people paying for excursions. Sales have gone down by 20% this summer, with Valldemossa, Palma, and Port Soller being the most impacted areas. Pedro Oliver, president of the College of Tour Guides, says that “the anti-tourism messages are resonating,” with the drop in sales affecting travellers from the UK, Germany, Italy, and Spain.
He added: “If you generate negative news, which has repercussions in other countries, tourists opt for other destinations when choosing their holidays. We are sending the message that we don’t want tourists and that everything is too crowded.”
Proguies Turistics, an excursions organisation, usually offers around thirty excursions per cruise. However, according to its president, Biel Rosale, the number has decreased to 12 or 14. He believes that the message that the island is overcrowded is damaging Majorca’s image and leading tourists to choose other destinations, reports Majorca Daily Bulletin.
He said: “Tourismphobia and the idea that tourists are not welcome are hurting us greatly.”
The boss also says that Majorca’s high prices and traffic jams are factors in the chaos that the island is experiencing.
The transport industry has also taken a blow as a result of the anti-tourism messages, with the federation’s president, Rafel Roig, saying that such messages cannot be sent as people will not go where they’re not wanted.
Coach operators and taxi drivers have seen a fall in their customer count, and according a taxi association its Brits who are the most upset by the protests and choosing to travel else where.
There are some who believe that the anti-tourism messages are not to blame, and rather, it is the result of holidaymakers’ lower budgets. Official tourism statistics for June and July are yet to be released, but data for May show that tourism fell by 1.6%.