- Cala Major managers charge up to £60 a day for the use of the facilities
- Locals are furious with the move and say the price is being imposed on them.
- Tensions between tourists and locals flared over the weekend
Beachgoers were left shocked after a Mallorca beach revealed it was charging tourists up to £60 a day to use beach facilities.
Cala Major, a public beach in Palma on the island of Mallorca, charges up to €70 (£60) per day to use premium facilities, including luxury sun loungers and parasols.
A normal set of two sun loungers and an umbrella would cost a tourist €25.50, or just under £22, for a whole day.
Lawyer Toni Bennàssar, who shared an image of the signs displaying the exorbitant prices in Cala Major, said the move would put regular Mallorcans out of business.
‘(Palma City Council) has guaranteed that Mallorcans occupy the beaches for as little time as possible, so that they remain unoccupied for foreigners who can pay these prices,’ he wrote in X.
Cala Major, a public beach in Palma on the island of Mallorca, charges up to €70 (£59) per day to use premium facilities
A tourist enjoys time on the beach in Magaluf
Last month, Palma’s ruling political party, the Popular Party, was criticized for expanding the right of private companies to monopolize public beach space (File image)
Last month, Palma’s ruling political party, the Popular Party, was criticized for extending the right of private companies to monopolize public beach space until at least April 2025.
Neus Truyol, spokesperson for the Més per Palma party, explained to local media that Cala Major ‘has been affected by the massive placement of sunbeds and umbrellas, leaving no room for the fundamental right to enjoy the beach without paying.’
And he added: ‘We demand that the PP inspect the occupation of sunbeds and umbrellas in Cala Major.
“We cannot subject the entire beach to the private tourist business.”
Tensions between locals and tourists flared over the weekend, when thousands of anti-tourism protesters paraded through the streets of Mallorca, heckling and heckling foreign visitors in the first of many mass demonstrations planned by angry activist groups.
An estimated 15,000 locals joined the protest that passed through the capital, Palma, and headed to Weyler Square, where tourists came out en masse for dinner and drinks.
Protesters hold a banner that says “Mallorca is not for sale” during a demonstration to protest against the massification of tourism and housing prices.
Protesters holding banners with anti-tourism slogans and drumming gathered in the center of the capital, Palma.
An estimated 15,000 locals joined the protest that passed through the capital, Palma, and headed to Plaza Weyler, where tourists came out for dinner and drinks.
Protesters shout at surprised tourists enjoying dinner and drinks in Palma
Protesters were heard chanting “Tourists are going home” as they passed through the central square on the 20-minute route from a nearby park, carrying banners emblazoned with the message: “Save Mallorca, guiris ruinix”, which in Catalan means “let’s save Mallorca.” , foreigners out’.
The colloquial expression ‘Guiri’ is used to describe people such as British tourists famous for their partying and excessive drinking, usually in a slightly offensive way.
Another sign said in Catalan: “Wherever you look, they are all guiris.”
The protest in Palma was organized by Banc del Temps, a group from the town of Sencelles, in the interior of Mallorca, and which is outraged by the difficulties locals face in obtaining housing on the island due to the higher prices owners can earn for vacation rentals.
After the protest on Saturday, the spokesperson for the Banc del Temps, Javier Barbero, issued a chilling warning.
‘This is just the beginning of things. If no action is taken, we will continue to take to the streets until we see action.”
