Credits: BBC News
In Santa Pola, Alicante, the beaches are packed as tourists flock to Majorca this summer. If you manage to secure a spot on the sand, you’ll witness two unstoppable forces. First, the timeless tide of the Balearic Sea, methodically erasing sandcastles. Second, a modern tsunami of tourism consuming everything in its path.
Every inch of beach is occupied, and finding a parking space feels like striking gold. Leave your sunbed too long, and your belongings might be moved to make room for the next eager sunbather. The island is alive with the sounds of commerce, as contactless payment machines beep continuously in hotels, restaurants, and bars, all powered by record numbers of visitors.
While tourism brings colossal wealth to Majorca, not everyone benefits. Sonia Ruiz, a 31-year-old mother of one, illustrates the darker side of this economic boom. We meet her in a park near the shore in Palma, where her four-year-old son Luca plays without a care. Sonia, however, faces a grim reality. Her landlord has asked her to leave, and finding a new place is impossible.
“Every day I’m looking, and every day the rent is higher,” Sonia says. “I even stop people in the street and ask if they have something because the day is approaching when I will have to leave the apartment, and I just see me and my son homeless because there is absolutely nothing.”
Despite earning 2,400 euros a month with her separated partner, Sonia cannot afford the skyrocketing rents. “They ask you for deposits of several months. Some have even told me that they don’t want children, they don’t want animals. And so many people are looking,” she explains.
Sonia’s struggle highlights the growing tension between the economic benefits of tourism and the adverse effects on local residents’ quality of life. While Majorca thrives on the influx of tourists, its residents face increasing challenges, particularly in securing affordable housing.