Palma Beach is a brand name created by a group of businesspeople who are committed to enhancing the quality of Playa de Palma. Reflecting on this season, however, the CEO, Juan Miguel Ferrer, says that "it has possibly been one of the worst years in terms of drunken tourism, leaving a lamentable image".
Complaints about this, he explains, were lodged in mid-June, following which "the situation did not improve at all". "The problems have remained to the fore." They recognise that the Balearic tourism ministry has been working on tourism of excess, "but the abandonment by Palma town hall has been total". This has led to a high crime rate, drug dealing and "a blatant sense of insecurity".
They stress "the great work that has been done this year by the local police" but add that there are insufficient means to be able to eradicate problems, such as "mega-botellóns with thousands of people".
The group argues that there should be a ten-year plan to change the tourism model. Investment in infrastructure and control is needed, while antisocial and criminal behaviour can only come about through a change in laws and firmness in their application. There is a call for the elimination of obsolete one, two and three-star hotels. while there are otherwise "a thousand issues remaining after five years of doing absolutely nothing in Playa de Palma".