[Source: Reuters]

Thousands of anti-tourism activists protested in Spain’s Palma de Mallorca on Sunday in the latest demonstration against a key industry for the Iberian nation.

Carrying makeshift models of planes and cruise ships, protesters walked through the streets of the capital of Mallorca with posters reading ‘no to mass tourism’ and ‘stop private jets’.

Anti-tourism activists have staged a series of protests this year in Barcelona, and other popular holiday destinations like Palma de Mallorca, Malaga and the Canary Islands, saying visitors drive up housing costs and lead to residents being unable to afford to live in city centers.

About 10,000 protesters took part in the Mallorca demonstration on Sunday, police said.

Some tourists supported the march while others appeared uncomfortable.

After Catalonia, the Balearic Islands was the second most popular region of Spain for tourists last year, attracting 14.4 million holidaymakers, the Spanish National Statistics Institute said.

Tourism generates 45% of the Balearic Islands’ gross domestic product, according to data from Exceltur, an industry organization.

In the first quarter of this year, 16.1 million people visited Spain, an increase of 18% compared with the same period last year.

Visitors spent 109 billion euros ($118.56 billion) in Spain last year, versus 63.5 billion euros in France.