Holiday warning as hotspot Mallorca plans to hit Brit cruise tourists with Venice-style BAN to lower visitor numbers
BRITS have been issued a holiday warning as Mallorca prepares to hit cruise tourists with a Venice-style ban.
It comes as part of an initiative to limit visitor numbers on the Spanish island following concerns of tourism saturation.
Brits are now facing an awkward dilemma if they are planning on heading to the holiday hotspot in the Balearics this summer.
The Committee on Tourism, Trade, Employment, Culture and Sport has reportedly approved an initiative to reintroduce a cap on cruise ships to Palma, the island’s capital.
The proposal calls on the Balearic Government to reach an agreement with the cruise lines and shipping agents, the Majorca Daily Bulletin reports.
The approval of the Balearic Islands Port Authority (APB) and Palma City Council will also be required in order to renew the agreement on limiting arrival of cruise ships in the port of Palma.
The Balearic Government had previously reached an agreement with the shipping companies to regulate the arrival of cruise ships in Palma in May 2022.
It saw ship arrivals staggered to a maximum of three per day, of which only one of them could have a capacity of more than 5,000 passengers.
It came two years after Mallorca’s government called for a ban on all cruise ships in a measure aimed at “protecting our main sector and achieving a more sustainable tourism”.
Now, however, the reintroduction of a cap on cruise ships to Mallorca is looking likely.
Earlier this year in Madrid, a group of politicians expressed their interest in the possibility of promoting a stricter regulatory framework regarding the activity of cruise ships.
Despite the alleged restrictions implemented in May 2022, there has been increase in the number of cruise ships arriving in the Balearics over the past few years, the Majorca Daily Bulletin add.
Politicians are now keen to implement a new set of rules on cruise ships in terms of taxation, the environment or the use of less polluting fuels to lower those numbers once more.
That’s despite previous uproar over the decision within the past six months.
In October, eight business organisations called on the Balearic government to scrap the curb on cruise ships after an 18 percent fall in passengers, a separate report from the Majorca Daily Bulletin revealed.
“Don’t demonise cruise ship passengers, it is family tourism with a high spending power,” they said in a statement.
Palma is one of the top cruise ship ports in the Mediterranean, attracting in excess of 2.5 million passengers per year, including some of the biggest cruise ships in the world.
If a fresh ban were to be implemented, however, then it would swiftly follow the one placed on Venice in 2021.
Italian authorities approved a ban on cruise ships entering the historic city in response to a request from UN cultural body Unesco three years ago.
Critics argued that the ships caused pollution and eroded the foundations of the city, which already suffers from regular flooding.
Large ships were forced to dock at the city’s industrial port until a permanent solution was found.
Anti-tourist measures sweeping hotspots
IT isn't just Mallorca where anti-tourist measures are being implemented across Europe.
Many top holiday destinations across the continent are taking action to prevent unwanted travellers from taking over their towns and cities.
Locals feel they can no longer live in the iconic destinations because they have become overcrowded, unsafe and uncomfortable.
In April, thousands of people took to the streets in Tenerife to demand restrictions on holidaymakers after telling Brits to “go home”.
The anti-tourist hordes filled a square in the capital brandishing banners including some that read “You enjoy we suffer” in English.
Protests also took place at the same time on other popular Canary islands including Lanzarote and Gran Canaria.
The marches were organised under the slogan “The Canary Islands have a limit.”
Anti-tourist graffiti has now been popping up in Majorca, saying “Tourist Go Home”.
Hotel bosses in Benidorm have even admitted they are “very worried” by the anger growing amongst island residents but branded holiday homes in Spain a “virus”.