People enjoy the sunny weather on a terrace bar on Magaluf beach, on the Balearic island of Mallorca, Spain. Reuters
Europe is implementing an array of anti-tourist rules intended to reduce mass tourism in holiday hotspots.
Spain’s Balearic Islands are the most recent, with tougher laws against party boats and public drinking.
This is part of modifications to a 2020 decree that addressed “excess tourism.”
Sant Antoni in Ibiza, Playa de Palma, and Magaluf in Majorca are among the well-known destinations where the government claims the law will be toughened, according to the BBC.
Here’s all we know about it.
New rules for ‘responsible tourism’
Approved on 10 May, the new law sees a “total ban of the sale of alcohol between 9.30 pm and 8 am” in shops in places with high levels of tourism, as per The Sun.
It also bans drinking in the streets in key tourist areas on the islands of Ibiza and Mallorca, with an exception for terraces and other licensed areas.
The rule will be implemented in areas of Ibiza that are most impacted by the large number of tourists, including Llucmajor, Palma, Calvia (Magalluf), and Sant Antoni.
Violators will be subject to fines between €500 (Rs 45,000) and €1,500 (Rs 1,35,025).
The new law would count the penalties imposed on foreign nationals and send the results to the relevant embassies, as per BBC.
As per the decree, party boats that serve alcohol on board will not be allowed to be anywhere near the specified regions within a nautical mile (1.852 kilometres).
Passengers will not be allowed to board or depart in the affected locations.
Tourists chill and take drinks in terrace bars in Paguera beach in Calvia on the Spanish island of Mallorca following Berlin’s lifted quarantine requirement for travellers returning from the Balearic Islands. Reuters
The rule will be in place at least until 31 December 2027, The Sun reported.
The government changed its 2020 decree against “excess tourism” to refer to “responsible tourism,” even though the new regulations are intended to further curb disruptive behaviour.
The update notes that “tourism represents more than 45 per cent of the community’s GDP,” acknowledging that the original statement ran contradictory to the islands’ primary sector.
A sustainable tourist tax of 16 million euros, or around $17.2 million, will be used by the newly amended Responsible Tourism Decree to support projects that promote responsible tourism in the impacted areas.
Curbing anti-social behaviour
Over the years, the Canary Islands have served as popular gathering places for youthful tourists and worldwide celebrities.
According to statistics from the local chamber of commerce, 13.9 million tourists visited the islands in 2023 — a 13 per cent increase from the previous year. That is roughly six times the 2.2 million people who live on the islands.
Although the islands are also a well-liked travel destination for Spaniards living on the mainland, their largest tourist markets are the UK and Germany.
According to CNN, initial media reports of “uncivil behaviour in specific tourist areas” of Mallorca and Ibiza, largely linked to alcohol consumption, prompted the introduction of the original 22-article decree in 2020.
The actions had tarnished the reputation of the locations and created a nightlife environment that made the sites less appealing to locals.
“Year after year news has appeared related to uncivil behaviour by young tourists that has caused deep concern among the rest of the citizens, in the hotel sector and in the administrative involved,” the decree said, noting that serious injuries and deaths have occurred.
The decree specified rules for lodging, marketing and sale of alcoholic beverages, penalties, and other ways to stop disruptive or harmful behaviour.
According to Luis Pomar, a press representative for the Balearic Islands Tourism Council, the 2020 regulation has proven effective in reducing antisocial behaviour, as reported by the BBC. He added that he hoped the law would no longer be needed “in three to four years, if we instil in people how to behave”.
According to him, the commission on “the Promotion of Civility in Tourist Zones” would be expanded to include members from the UK and Germany, whose visitors are most frequently linked to issues.
The regional government claimed to be the first in Europe to impose restrictions on the advertising and sale of alcohol in specific tourist areas when the 2020 law was introduced.
It stated that the new policies would “fight excesses” and “force a real change in those destinations’ tourism models.”
Protest against excessive tourism
The move from Majorca comes after thousands of people in Tenerife staged protests last month to call for restrictions on vacationers, as per The Sun.
In the capital of Santa Cruz, more than 15,000 people let out a deafening roar while waving the flags of the Canary Islands and blowing horns.
They blamed tourists for pricing them out of their homes and causing environmental damage as a result of tourist numbers leaping from 11.5 million annually to 16 million over the past decade.
People march during a mass demonstration against tourism which affects the local population with inaccessible housing among other things in Santa Cruz de Tenerife, Spain. AP
English-language messages were written on walls and seats within the resort, with phrases such as “My misery your paradise” and “Average salary in Canary Islands is 1,200 euros.”
The National Statistics Institute (INE) estimates that 34 per cent of Canary Islanders were at risk of poverty or social exclusion in 2023, which is the second-highest number in Spain after Andalusia.
The island’s capital, Santa Cruz de Tenerife, Chamber of Commerce stated on social media that it “believes in the need to reflect on the future” of the tourism industry.
However, considering that the tourism sector accounts for 40 per cent of jobs and 35 per cent of the archipelago’s GDP, it issued a warning against what it called “tourism-phobia.”
The Canary Islands’ regional president, Fernando Clavijo, highlighted the islands’ reliance on tourism and called it a “successful model.”
Nevertheless, he acknowledged that there was a chance to revisit that approach because of the demonstrations on 20 April.
Anti-tourist measures across Europe
In many popular destinations, overcrowding has emerged as the primary issue, and officials are working to find a solution that will satisfy both visitors and locals.
Authorities have tried to lessen the effect on tourists by imposing higher tourist taxes or by prohibiting the construction of new hotels, according to The Sun.
Venice started charging day-trippers €5 (Rs 450) to enter the ancient Italian centre earlier this year, making it the first city in the world to impose an entry fees for tourists.
It was followed by a neighbourhood in Barcelona that, in an attempt to discourage large numbers of visitors from taking the bus, removed a popular bus route from Apple and Google Maps.
As per the report, San Sebastián, in northern Spain set a 25-person cap for guided tours to prevent crowding, noise, congestion, and other problems. The construction of new hotels has already been outlawed by the city.
In Andalucia, the Spanish government has permitted restaurants to charge more for patrons who choose to sit in the shade.
Benidorm has put time limits in place since swimming in the sea between midnight and 7 am may cost as much as £1,000 (Rs 1,04,585), the report added.
Greece currently imposes a tourist tax in high season (March to October), with visitors expecting to pay between €1 (~Rs 90) and €4 (Rs 360) each night, depending on the reserved accommodation.
To encourage tourists to be considerate of others when travelling, Santiago de Compostela, Galicia, officials want to impose a tax.
With inputs from agencies
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Publish date : 2024-05-13 03:00:00
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