There are more concerns being expressed about the behaviour of tourists in Playa de Palma during the coming season. Hoteliers are worried that there will be more uncivil behaviour than ever before, noting that last weekend there were incidents of booze tourism which are normally a summer phenomenon rather than one in the winter.
There was a large number of German tourists in Playa de Palma last weekend. They had come for a "fiesta" that the hoteliers and police knew nothing about. While the number of visitors gave certain hotels 100% occupancy, any good news this represented was nullified by the problems caused.
The Riu Bravo Hotel was particularly badly affected. A fire sprinkler was broken and this resulted in ten rooms being flooded by seventeen tonnes of water. There was considerable damage as a result. The hotel's director, Patricia Caldentey, says that she was called at three in the morning and was confronted by guests who were demanding compensation for damage to their belongings.
The police were alerted, and there was a rapid response from the National Police and the local force. Such speed, it has been noted, is not always the case. The hoteliers believe that if there were a greater permanent police presence, rather than one just a response, this would prove a deterrent. In addition to hopefully stopping tourists, for example, defecating in the streets, it would also help against illegal street selling and the type of prostitution that is just a disguise for robbery with violence. On this latter issue, the hoteliers observe that there are already prostitutes, who would not normally appear at this time of the year.
The tourists who went to Playa de Palma last weekend weren't young people. They were aged between forty and sixty. The hoteliers say that some were so drunk when they arrived that they couldn't check in.