Majorca is pleading with Britons to come back to the UK after anti-tourism protests backfired, damaging businesses on the island.
The once-popular tourist hotspot of Magaluf has been practically deserted by British holidaymakers, and bar owners have suffered a year-on-year loss of up to 40 per cent.
Locals said that anti-partying laws, rising hotel prices and anti-tourism protests have pushed Britons seeking a break to look elsewhere, according to the Daily Mail.
Magaluf previously attracted tens of thousands of young tourists during the late 2000s and 2010s.
Businesses fear now that with its prime is over and Europeans are "not spending the same", which could result in bars being forced to shut down.
One party rep described being shocked when seeing four Italians sharing one tequila shot and a bar manager saying the French "don't spend a cent".
Workers have accused the local authority of working with the "powerful hotel lobby" to bring about the death of bars on the party strip.
They claim this is part of the authority's plans to rebrand the town as more family-friendly.
LATEST DEVELOPMENTS
- Anti-tourist locals fume as British owned cruise ship carrying over 6,000 passengers docks in Spanish city
- 'It's not us in the protests!' Spanish restaurateurs fume as Britons abandon popular hotspots amid anti-tourist demonstrations
- Anti-tourism protesters in Majorca WANTED by police for graffiti inciting hatred
Large areas of Magaluf have been deserted due to tourism protests
| GETTYManuel Pozueco, manager of British bar Linekers, told the Daily Mail: "The hotels are connected to the politicians, and their plan is to destroy the businesses outside the hotels.
"Under the recent laws, we can't do happy hours or give away free shots, we can't do any drink deals, as they see it as promoting excessive alcohol consumption, and of course, this turns away traditional customers like the Britons."
A serious issue of contention is the so-called "Red Zone," an area of land bounded by the town hall in 2020 to try to halt "excessive tourism".
Businesses within this zone have far stricter rules to follow or face fines or closure.
This include bans on pub crawls, happy hours, organised party boats and noise restrictions.
Last June, it was reduced by 90 per cent and now only affects the strip and nearby streets.
Calvia Town Hall, run by the conservative Partido Popular and right-wing Vox parties, called the move a "responsible tourism and quality improvement" measure.
For the bar owners, it feels discriminatory.
Magaluf, in its heyday, used to welcome thousands of young tourists
| PAMr Pozueco said: "If we are caught serving drunk people, we can be fined thousands, but the new laws only apply to small businesses.
"We pretty much cannot have music either, a speaker from the supermarket is louder than what we're allowed in here.
"Who wants to go to a bar where you can hardly hear the music? The same goes for watching a football match."
Mr Pozueco said the noise level cannot exceed around 60 to 70 decibels, equivalent to a vacuum.
He continued: "I have friends in the town hall who have actually told me they don't want the bars anymore, they want coffee shops and clothes stores. They want to destroy the Magaluf we've known for decades.
"And now look, there are no British tourists this year, everyone is going to Benidorm or Torrevieja."