In many of Mallorca's municipalities, the number of tourists in summer outstrips the number of residents. Given the sizes of population in many of the municipalities, this shouldn't come as a great surprise. But the tourist numbers have been increasing and have placed added strains on certain town halls' abilities to cope.
An extreme case is that of Escorca, quite large in terms of land but tiny when it comes to population. It is the smallest of Mallorca's municipalities, the most recent population figure being 203. According to Spain's National Statistics Institute (INE), which conducted a survey of tourist numbers using phone data in August last year, there were 14,013 foreign tourists in Escorca. (Spanish tourists were not included in the survey.)
The mayor, Antoni Solivellas, believes the number was much higher. "Although they don't stay overnight because we don't have much tourist accommodation, they come at certain times of the day to Sa Calobra, Cala Tuent, Lluc, etc." In August, he reckons there are between 2,000 and 3,000 tourists per day.
Solivellas points out that measures to deal with the numbers were introduced some years ago. In 2017, for instance, a reservation system was introduced for coaches parking in Sa Calobra. Initially, there was a maximum of 35 per day. Now there are 30. Although he acknowledges that some residents may feel overwhelmed by tourism, he says the town hall is taking all relevant measures to alleviate this as much as possible.
Sant Llorenç is a different case. Parts of Cala Millor and S'Illot are in Sant Llorenç. There is also Sa Coma. It has a population of 9,331. The INE survey counted 90,456 foreign tourists last August. As is the case in plenty of other municipalities, water supplies are of major concern. The mayor, Jaume Soler, says there are ongoing investments in updating and modernising the water network. The Sa Coma treatment plant has been to the fore in Mallorca in the reuse of water for public green areas.
Estellencs is another tiny place, the second smallest municipality in population terms - 374. In August 2024 there were 2,926 foreign tourists. The mayor, Bernat Isern, points out that there are numerous second homes in Estellencs, while there are only three hotels and nine holiday rental properties. His municipality is one of those in the Tramuntana region to have experienced significant issues with water supplies. "In spring and summer, we have to apply a series of measures, mainly restrictions on the water supply, as consumption skyrockets."
Of other municipalities, Muro and Santanyi had six times as many foreign tourists as residents last August, Deya five, and Alcudia, Calvia and Capdepera four.