A Gold Cage. From Mass Tourism to a Safe Haven

Abstract

[eng] Tourism development in the Balearic Islands underlines intense regional and local debate. The archipelago's strong specialization in tourism, in what is essentially a tourism monoculture, has led to tensions and converging political interests in its territorial protection. As a result, spatial and tourism planning regulations have been developed to safeguard the Balearics' natural spaces and to limit building development, tourist beds, extensions to infrastructure and the commodification of housing as holiday rentals. The hypothesis posed in this paper is that Balearic tourism is moving from a mass tourism model to a gentrified safe haven for investors and for the affluent. Based on a case study of the archipelago, a presentation is given of the geographical characteristics and socioenvironmental conflicts that might explain how calls for the islands' protection have been instrumental in bringing about processes of social segregation. The paper concludes by considering the challenges to be faced and possible alternative opportunities.