Holidays in Majorca 2012

Image Courtesy: http://www.destination360.com/europe/spain/balearic-islands

Tourism and the Balearic Islands

Tourism is one of the most important sectors for Mallorca´s economy. Within the
Mediterranean area no other region is as strongly determined by the tourist industry as the
Balearic Islands which Mallorca belongs to. 84% of their GNP is gained from the tertiary
sector1 that tourism vastly contributes to Their unemployment rate is the lowest and their
GNP the highest of all Spanish regions.

Unlike any other destination in Southern Europe Mallorca is connected with the term of mass
tourism.

But mass tourism did not only bring economic success to the island of Mallorca. Positive
consequences are on the contrary overshadowed by the serious negative effects of failed
regional planning and unlimited exploitation of natural resources.

In order to counteract these problems the Balearic government introduced policies which aim
at a reorganization of the touristic structures promoting the so-called “quality tourism”.
“Quality tourism” is supposed to relieve touristic centres and attract a clientele with a stronger
purchasing power.

In this paper I am going to first point out Mallorca´s touristic development and its
consequences for the environment by the example of Calvià, a region in the South-West of
Mallorca. Secondly, I will analyse the advantages and disadvantages of “quality tourism”, so
that thirdly, a profound jugement wether “quality tourism” offers a sustainable development
can be made.

2 The development of mass tourism on the Balearic Islands by the example of
Calvià, Mallorca

Calvià has become one of the most important touristic regions in the Balearic Islands. With
its centres of touristic attraction Palma Nova, Magalluf, Santa Ponca and Peguera and with a
number of about 1.6 million visitors annually3 (about 25% of all Mallorcan tourists4) it is now
the richest municipality of Spain.

The development of tourism in Calvià began with the first boom of international tourism in
Spain in the early sixties.

In 1959 the Spanish government took steps to assist the tourist industry by simplifying the
procedure of visiting the country. At that time Europe had begun to recover from World War II
and gained new economic power entailing a higher purchasing power and thus more money
to spend on holidays. As the Balearic Islands were now much cheaper than the rest of
Europe, they were a major destination within the touristic boom in the 1960´s.5 Based on the
model of “sun and beaches”6 Mallorca became a popular region of mass tourism with its
centres developing at the coastline.

Calvià is located at the south coast of the country possessing 57 kilometres of beaches and
cliffs which make it a perfectly suitable destination for mass tourism. Additionally, it is
situated in short distance of the airport of Palma, which makes it easily accessible. It has
developed an extensive infrastructure with five marines and various maritime promenades.7
Since the 1960´s Calvià´s wealth has resulted from these centres that attract ¼ of all
Mallorquian tourists.

But in the euphory of the touristic boom regional planning and the organization of building
hotels and touristic leisure facilities in an environmentally friendly way was left out
completely. The model of tourism development in Mallorca has been “based on short-term
interest, unlimited building out of tune with local conditions, and an unsustainable exploitation
of exceptional natural resources”.

Article Courtesy:
http://www.muenster.org/kantgym/download/molz04.pdf