Spanish islands curb 'selfie tourism' to tackle overcrowding
Canadians who fancy a side hustle as a travel influencer may want to avoid Spain's Balearic Islands now that they have declared war on 'selfie tourism.'
The Balearics, one of the country's major visitor destinations, are trying to curb the use of influencer marketing campaigns as the hospitality industry grapples with the effects of overtourism.
It comes after a cove in Mallorca — built to accommodate around 100 day-trippers — was besieged by 4,000 vacationers a day last summer, The Independent reported.
Drawn by its clear waters and golden sands, social media content creators resulted in 1,200 vehicles descending on Caló des Moro, the mayor of Mallorca's Santanyí, Maria Pons, said at a press conference last June.
Fed up with the influx, hundreds of activists descended on the normally tranquil cove to condemn the sunbathers with giant banners reading 'Ocupem les nostres platges' — 'We will occupy our beaches.'
Initially, social media campaigns were seen as a way of redirecting tourists away from oversubscribed beaches to quieter corners of the Balearics.
But it led to streams of selfie-seeking travel promoters descending on remote and protected parts of Ibiza, Mallorca and Menorca, the news outlet said.
A spokesman for the Balearic tourism department told the Guardian that selfie tourism 'had the completely opposite effect to what was intended and runs contrary to government policy on containing tourism.'
Local politicians have now removed all images of the cove from tourism board websites and have urged influencers, journalists and tour operators to stop promoting the location.
Last month, thousands of demonstrators called for authorities to limit the number of visitors in Spain's Canary Islands, which have also seen traffic congestion, stretched services and soaring housing costs as a result of overtourism.
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