Now Magaluf locals want to CLOSE the resort’s bars and nightclubs to stop boozy Brits coming to Mallorca
Fed-up locals are uniting in the battle against 'cheap tourism' as the island bids to ditch its Shagaluf image
BOOZY Brits are being urged to stay away from Mallorca because locals think the island will be better off without their business.
Local authorities have brought in a series of strict rules to curb antisocial behaviour, but residents say that is not enough and that the misbehaving tourists are destroying their way of life.
Business owners and residents say rowdy holidaymakers are bringing terror to the streets of the Spanish resort and some are even calling for popular nightclubs and bars to be shut down.
Drink-fuelled brawls and public sex sessions have plagued Magaluf and Palma over the past few years and fed-up locals say the clean-up and hospital costs for drunken Brits far outweighs the benefits of holidaymakers splashing their cash in bars and clubs.
Over the last few months, anti-Brit sentiment has been gathering pace and angry residents are uniting in the battle against "cheap tourism" as the island bids to ditch its Shagaluf image.
One such Mallorca business owner called Daniel Asin Perez has urged Brits who visit the island to act "stupidly" to steer clear.
Daniel, 28, told The Sun Online: "I certainly think Mallorca and other parts of Spain like Benidorm or Salou would be better off without them.
"The benefits for the club owners and hotels cannot make it up for the damage it causes to the locals."
Daniel continued: "Mallorcan hospitals are full over the weekends because of the many Brits that drunk too much last night or took drugs."
Daniel is not convinced that new fines for antisocial behaviour like urinating in the street will do enough to curb the issues either, calling instead for the bars on Magaluf's infamous Punta Ballena strip to shut.
Daniel, of Palma, who has worked in nightclubs in the UK and runs a clothing firm in Mallorca, added: "More police and emergency services are needed - urban furniture gets damaged, and the area gets devalued."
The fresh calls for boozty Brits to stay away comes after we revealed Spain's economy would take a battering if Brit tourists were to stop coming to the country.
UK holidaymakers are the largest contributor to the Spanish tourist sector, ploughing billions into the local economy - but locals have still had enough.
Jaime Morey, who rents out his villa in Magaluf, is among 15,000 fed-up locals to sign a petition against “anything goes, cheap tourism on the party island".
Jamie, who admits 95 per cent of Brit tourists don't cause any trouble, blames all inclusive resorts and cheap supermarket booze for fuelling many of the problems, as the party island bids to reinvent itself in the classy Calvia Beach area.
Hotels and two shopping malls are set to built in the area as part of plans to rebuild the island's image as a family friendly resort.
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Jaime, 29, said: "I love Mallorca and for that reason we do not want to destroy it, we want tourists with common sense who come and enjoy without destroying.".
He hopes that enforcing heavy fines and extra cops patrolling the streets will help stamp out boozy behaviour though.
Jaime added: "If you walk around Magaluf you can find really cheap alcohol in every supermarket, five euros for a one litre bottle of vodka - it is actually the first thing you see in a supermarket."
The Balearic Islands government is now set to roll out legislation limiting the number of tourist beds to 623,624 and have pledged to cut the figure to just 500,000 over the next few years.
And messages scrawled on walls in English in resorts like Palma and Magaluf have accused visitors of being "terrorists".
It comes as the number of badly behaved Brits sent packing from Magaluf hotels had doubled in a year.
Brit expat Tracy Annette believes the Spanish island as a whole benefits from well-behaved Brit holidaymakers.
But she says UK tourists intent on getting boozed-up and behaving badly are "destroying" Magaluf.
Tracy, who has lived in Mallorca for 15 years, said: "'It's pathetic. It's disgusting how they act.
"The place needs cleaning up but there's no way of stopping them.
"The young people who want to get drunk and have sex in the street, and goodness knows what else, they go to Magaluf and always will."
Last year a record 75 million holidaymakers visited Spain – including 17 million Brits.
Brit Sue Bourke who has lived in Mallorca for the past 25 years believes Brit holidaymakers are wrongly being targeted though.
She said: "I love the people here, but feel like they are blaming tourists for all their problems.
"We have had some very lean years with low tourism, but are now having a bumper year.
"Someone is making lots of money from tourists, but with this comes mess and extra problems."
Sue says authorities need to invest in more police patrols and street cleaning.
She added: "I live in a residential area - mostly Spanish - and the streets are filthy due to insufficient bin emptying.
"If the locals insist on making so-called 'cheap tourists' - that spend fortunes - unwelcome, then they will change destination.
"The authorities and locals will then be complaining about the loss of income."
