Thousands of demonstrators gather in Mallorca to protest against 'excessive tourism' which has inflated property prices, driven up the cost of living and created traffic chaos

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Thousands of demonstrators took to the thoroughfare successful Mallorca this evening to protestation against 'excessive tourism' which they blasted for overwhelming the fashionable vacation island.

Protesters carrying banners with anti-tourism slogans and banging drums gathered astatine the Plaza de España successful the centre of the superior Palma de Mallorca.

Police officers equipped with batons and wearing stab impervious vests surveilled the country arsenic the objection from riot-protected constabulary vans began astatine 7pm section time.

Police closed the city's main roadworthy arsenic the protesters marched astir the aged town. Onlookers applauded from the pavements arsenic the demonstrators chanted for 'help'.

People from each walks of beingness gathered to telephone for limits connected the fig of visitors which they impeach of ruining the lives of locals by inflating spot prices, causing postulation jams and driving up the cost of living.

Thousands of protestors took to the thoroughfare successful Mallorca to show against the interaction that 'excessive tourism' has had connected the vacation land (file photo)

Demonstrators signifier a protestation against tourer overcrowding successful Ibiza connected Friday

Among the marchers are teachers, edifice workers, businessmen and retired radical who person told however the immense fig of visitors person ruined the erstwhile idyllic Spanish sun-spot, with 1 household forced to permission the land owed to the spiralling outgo of property.

The Spaniards are calling for less vacation flights, a clampdown connected cruise ships and the slashing successful the fig of rental cars disposable nether the slogan; 'Mallorca is not for sale!'

It is the latest anti-tourism protestation crossed Spanish territories, following demonstrations successful the Canary Islands, Barcelona and neighbouring Ibiza.

Mother-of-three Patri Vecina told MailOnline: 'We person lived successful the aforesaid rented location for 10 years. But successful December the proprietor told america that helium was selling the spot to foreigners and that we had to determination out.

'I enactment successful the edifice manufacture and my hubby is simply a builder. We

cannot spend the inflated terms of spot successful Mallorca truthful we were ne'er capable to bargain our ain home.

'Now we cannot spend to unrecorded successful Mallorca anymore we are moving to Asturias successful the northbound of Spain.

'It was our imagination to bring up our children successful Mallorca but that cannot happen.'

Patri and her hubby were initially paying £500 per period (Euro 500) for the agrarian three-bedroom location successful the centre of the island. This accrued to £690 per period (Euro 750) earlier their landlord enactment the location up for sale.

The state location connected the outskirts of the municipality of Sencelles is present for merchantability for £383,000 (Euro 450,000).

Property prices successful Mallorca person much than doubled successful the past 10 years, making the Balearic Islands the 2nd astir costly portion successful Spain aft Madrid.

In 2014 a emblematic 80 quadrate metre location outgo an mean of £126,000 (Euros 147,000) but this has gone up 208 per cent to an mean £263,000 (Euros 308,000), according to Spanish spot website Fotocasa. Where arsenic the nationalist summation crossed the full of Spain was 29 per cent during the aforesaid period.

The spike successful the spot prices has been fuelled by overseas investors, galore of whom person turned household homes successful tourer rental accommodation, section campaigners claim.

Laura Lau, of El Banc de temps Sencelles unit radical that coordinated the demonstration, told MailOnline: 'Houses and apartments that were household homes person been bought by overseas investors who rent them retired to tourists and permission thing for section people. This is wherefore spot prices successful Mallorca person reached unaffordable levels.

'We request to marque radical alert of the occupation of lodging successful Mallorca which already affects america all.

'Every time determination is idiosyncratic looking for caller lodging due to the fact that their rent has gone up oregon they are kicked retired of their location due to the fact that it has been enactment up for merchantability to foreigners.

'Many of them are present leaving Mallorca due to the fact that erstwhile they enactment and gain Euro 1,500 per period it is not capable to spend a home.

'We are successful a lodging emergency. The authorities needs to modulate the terms of housing.

'There is nary aboriginal for Mallorca if the land is solely for the payment of spot speculators.'

The mean wage successful Mallorca is astir is astir £1,277 (Euro 1,500) per period oregon £15,324 per year, though the island's minimum wage is conscionable £965 (Euro 1,134) per period oregon £11,580 per year.

Teacher Marga Gari told however her children volition ne'er beryllium capable to spend to bargain their ain homes due to the fact that of the spiralling outgo of living.

Marga, 50, told MailOnline: 'Quite simply determination are excessively galore tourists. My children volition ne'er beryllium capable to bargain their ain homes due to the fact that foreigners person pushed to terms of spot up.

'Everything is much costly than it should beryllium due to the fact that of tourists – nutrient successful the market, apparel successful stores, everything.

'You tin hardly locomotion down the streets present successful Palma due to the fact that of the fig of visitors.

'We bash not blasted the foreigners; we blasted the authorities for letting things get this bad.

'There needs to beryllium limits; limits connected the fig of planes, a bounds of 1 cruise vessel per time and a bounds connected the fig of rental cars.'

Protestors successful Ibiza clasp up posters including 1 speechmaking 'my lawyer lives successful a rented car' during a rally against tourism connected Friday

Ms Gari claims galore items successful Palma's historical Mercat de l'Olivar cardinal nutrient marketplace are present beyond the scope of section people.

Her workfellow Marta Cano, 40, told however she had to determination location owed to the spiralling outgo of accommodation successful the islands superior Palma.

She told MailOnline: 'The land is truthful crowded now, successful the summertime it's unbearable.

'I tin nary longer spend to unrecorded successful the centre [of Palma] due to the fact that tourists person pushed up the prices.

'There are postulation jams and the time, and the beaches are truthful crowded.

'There are radical walking astir the municipality with nary shirts on. This is not the situation that I privation my two-year-old girl to turn up in.

'In the summertime we permission the island. I cannot basal it. We spell to the northbound of Spain wherever determination are little people, wherever it much relaxed. '

Businessman Marc Rey told however helium is forced unrecorded with his parents due to the fact that of the outgo of property.

Marc, 25, a fiscal advisor told MailOnline: 'I person a bully occupation and I americium paid good but I cannot spend to bargain my ain place. So I inactive unrecorded with my parents.

'I person thing against foreigners but determination needs to beryllium a equilibrium betwixt the needs of the section radical and the visitors who travel here.'

Retired banker Pedro Torres claimed tourists were not solely to blasted for the land being overwhelmed.

He said: 'In the past 10 years immoderate 200,000 radical person moved to Mallorca. They are not each tourists, they are radical from the mainland and South America. But unneurotic they make a large accent connected our infrastructure.'

Nurse Catalina Estelrick added: 'We indispensable bounds the fig of tourists coming to Mallorca. We are being overwhelmed. There are simply excessively galore people.'

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