british tourist dies in barcelona

Tourist plunges to his death from Barcelona bridge after being 'attacked by muggers'

A 25-year-old Canadian tourist fell to his death from the bridge on a peripheral road near Barcelona after police believe he was targeted by a group of five youths trying to mug him

• 07:05, 16 Mar 2023
• Updated 08:28, 16 Mar 2023

A tourist has died after plunging from a bridge in Barcelona during an incident believed to be linked to an attempted mugging.

The Canadian man, 25, was rushed to hospital with serious head injuries after falling from the bridge on a coastal ring road near the Spanish city.

It's believed he had been targeted by a group of around five youths who tried to mug him .

Initial reports were that the man had been thrown from the bridge near the exit on the Ronda Litoral, although it's now thought he may have jumped off in an escape bid and devastatingly misjudged the 20ft drop.

The tourist, who Spanish authorities have yet to name publicly, tragically died in hospital from his injuries.

Two friends who were with him, whose nationalities have not been given, and a taxi driver who subsequently gave a statement to police, are said to have told investigators a group of five youngsters tried to mug them.

The incident that led to the unnamed tourist’s death occurred around 6am on Wednesday morning by exit 23 of the 12-mile coastal ring road.

He and his friends are said to have been confronted outside a McDonald’s restaurant near the spot where he was found unconscious, on the road by the bridge below a wall separating the ring road and the exit.

Medics stabilised him at the scene before rushing him “critically injured” to the city’s Hospital del Mar where he died several hours later.

The group of tourists are believed to have been travelled to Barcelona to do some sightseeing before watching this Sunday’s league match between Barcelona and Real Madrid in the Catalan capital.

A spokesman for the Mossos d’Esquadra regional police, who are probing the incident in the neighbourhood of Poblenou, part of the district of Santi Marti, said: “Officers from the Investigative Unit of the Santi Marti police station are investigating an incident that took place yesterday morning/on Wednesday morning in the district of Santi Marti.

“We were alerted about a fight and a person who had plunged from a bridge over the Ronda Litoral.

“The incident took place about 6am. The man was transferred to hospital in a serious condition. He died several hours later.”

He added: “Investigators are working on gathering as much evidence as possible. The possibility this could be an accidental death has not been ruled out.”

The tourist’s death follows several high-profile violent muggings in Barcelona involving foreign including British holidaymakers.

Last September a UK tourist was stabbed in the city while trying to fight off thieves who had snatched his bag.

He was overheard shouting: “Where’s my s**t, where’s my necklace, where the f**k is it” as he was filmed wrestling with one of the criminals.

Another Brit filming the drama on his mobile phone yelled to one of the assailants: “You’re on camera bro, you want to give it back mate.”

The thief managed to get away after appearing to put a blade to his victim’s face and making off with a stolen bum bag.

Three accomplices sprinted away after him following the incident, said to have started when the four men approached the Brit and snatched a necklace off him in a beautiful city centre square called Plaza Sant Josep Oriol.

The four suspects were all arrested shortly afterwards in the same area.

Last June a wealthy American had his designer watch stolen during a violent mugging outside the five-star Mercer Hotel in Barcelona.

Many of the street thefts and robberies are carried out by gangs of repeat offenders, although local press say only six out of every 100 cases involve the use of force or violence.

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A British tourist is killed after being run over by a tram in Barcelona

A British tourist has died after being run over by a tram in Barcelona. The Emergency Services were alerted just after 11pm on Wednesday night, informing them that a pedestrian had been hit and needed emergency medical assistance.

City hall sources confirmed late yesterday afternoon that the victim was a 57-year-old Scottish man, confirming earlier local reports about his age and nationality.

The incident occurred near the Diagonal Mar shopping centre in Barcelona, which is also close to the Parc del Forum where the Pet Shop Boys performed on the opening night of the Primavera Sound 2023 music festival on Wednesday.

People attending the concert had been leaving around the time the unnamed man was knocked down and killed. It was not initially clear whether he had been among the concert-goers, although the tram operators subsequently told local press he had been heading in the opposite direction to that in which the people leaving the festival area were heading.

A police investigation is underway and the company operating the tram service has handed over video footage from the tram to assist investigators. TRAM Barcelona said in a tweet earlier today: “TRAM would like to send its condolences to the family and friends of the man who died in last night's tragic accident.”

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Brit tourist, 23, falls to his death from historic sea wall cannon in Spanish holiday resort after night out

• Felix Allen
• Published : 9:38 ET, Jun 7 2022
• Updated : 13:21 ET, Jun 7 2022

A BRITISH tourist plunged to his death after climbing on a cannon in Spain in the early hours of this morning, police said.

The holidaymaker, 23, is said to have scaled the historic gun pointing out to sea after a night out in Sitges, near Barcelona .

Horrified pals reportedly watched as he lost his balance, fell on coastal rocks below and ended up in the sea just after 3am.

Emergency services including a medical helicopter were dispatched but they could not save him.

Police said the dead Briton was with two other people at the time, reports La Vanguardia .

The Mossos d'Esquadra police said: "Everything seems to indicate this was an accidental death."

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The Briton and his two friends had reportedly spent a few days on holiday in Sitges, a popular beach resort and nightlife spot 25 miles from the Catalan capital.

An FCDO spokesman said: “We are supporting the family of a British National who died in Spain and are in contact with the local authorities.”

The cannon stands next to San Bartolome y Santa Tecla church on a lookout called the Baluard - the gateway to the old town.

It is a replica of an original 18th-century gun, which had to be removed after 200 years because of the corrosive effect of sea spray.

It is the only one remaining of six coastal batteries that once protected the town.

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In April 1797, the guns were fired in a battle with two British frigates trying to capture merchant ships anchored off the coast.

After four hours of cannon fire, the British ships withdrew defeated.

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British tourist dies after being hit by tram in Barcelona

A British man has died after being hit by a tram in Barcelona.

The accident happened around 11pm on Wednesday, near the Diagonal Mar shopping mall on Diagonal Avenue.

The avenue is close to the Parc del Forum where the opening night of the Primavera Sound 2023 music festival was being held.

At the time of the accident, people had been leaving the festival.

It’s not known if the victim, a 57-year-old man Scottish man who has not yet been named, had been at the concert.

TRAM Barcelona said in a tweet: “TRAM would like to send its condolences to the family and friends of the man who died in last night’s tragedy.” 

An FCDO spokesperson said: “We are supporting the family of a man who died in Spain and are in touch with local authorities.” 

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British tourist, 61, dies on Jet2 plane as it's about to take-off in Spain

• The man lost consciousness and was pronounced dead on the aircraft

A British holidaymaker has died on a plane which was about to leave for the UK from a Costa airport.

The man is said to have fallen ill as the plane prepared for take-off. Police sources confirmed the dead man was a British 61-year-old. 

The pilot put the plane's departure on hold and radioed for medical assistance.

The unnamed passenger reportedly lost consciousness and was pronounced dead on the aircraft after emergency responders were unable to save him.

The tragedy occurred on a Jet2 plane at Reus airport on Spain 's Costa Dorada, around 65 miles south of Barcelona, bound for East Midlands Airport.

The incident led to a long delay, with the aircraft leaving nearly seven hours after its scheduled 11.10am departure on Friday.

The plane reached its destination airport just before 6pm local time.

A post-mortem is already thought to have taken place, although the results have not been made public, as is normal in Spain where they will be sent directly to an investigating judge in charge of a routine inquiry into the man's death.

One local report linked it to possible heart failure. It was not immediately clear this morning if the dead man was travelling alone or was with family or friends.

One police source said: 'He died on board the plane while it was still parked but preparing to taxi to the runway for take-off.'

Another said: 'In cases like these, a judge has to authorise the removal of the body and it will have stayed where it was until the judge or judicial officials reached the plane to sign that authorisation after an inspection of the scene.

'I can't comment on this particular case but normal procedure would be for the other passengers to disembark again until the body had been removed and the plane was ready for take-off.

'I imagine that's what happened here and that would have been behind the delay.'

The source added: 'It's not been treated by police at this stage as a suspicious death and this man appeared to have had existing health problems.

'But it will be up to the judge to determine the cause of death and the post-mortem results will obviously be able to shed proper light on what occurred.

'A court in Reus has been placed in charge of that probe.'

A spokesman for Jet2 said this morning: 'Flight LS684 from Reus to East Midlands airport returned to stand on Friday October 6, due to a customer requiring medical attention.

'Regrettably, we can confirm that the customer sadly passed away. Our thoughts are with the customer's family and friends at this very difficult time.'

Last month shocked passengers discovered a 73-year-old woman they thought was sleeping next to them on a BA flight from London had actually died.

The woman had boarded the BA flight 348 from Heathrow to the French city's airport on September 21.

Reports at the time said she was believed to have suffered a heart attack in the air.

Paramedics and firefighters were called to the plane after passengers began lining up to disembark and realised something was wrong, but there was nothing they could do to revive her.

In April a Jet2 passenger died on board a flight from Tenerife to Manchester which was forced to make an emergency landing in Newquay.

Local reports at the time said the woman died after falling ill and being led to the toilet 'in distress'. 

In September 2019, a 67-year-old woman died after arriving at Reus airport. 

She was assisted by a German nurse who was on holiday but died at the scene after paramedics arrived and made an unsuccessful attempt to save her using a defibrillator when she went into cardiac arrest. 

Local reports said she fell ill on her way to the airport and died while waiting to be flown home on a rescue flight organised after Thomas Cook went into administration. 

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British tourist, 23, plunges to his death on coastal rocks after slipping off historic cannon in Spanish seaside resort

• The man, not named by police, climbed on the cannon after night out in the town
• But he apparently lost his balance and fell to his death on the coastal rocks below
• Emergency services rushed to the scene, but they were unable to save the man
• The cannon jets out over a historical defensive wall, with a long drop below
• Two other people are reported to have died in similar circumstances 

By Chris Jewers and Natalia Penza In Spain For Mailonline

Published: 11:26 EDT, 7 June 2022 | Updated: 12:45 EDT, 7 June 2022

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A British tourist plunged to his death in the early hours of this morning after losing his balance while scaling a cannon at a historic Spanish site.

The 23-year-old holidaymaker, not named by police, had climbed on the huge cannon pointing out to sea after a night out in the town of Sitges near Barcelona.

But the young man apparently lost his balance and fell to his death on coastal rocks below while he was being watched by his horrified friends.

The police, who were informed of the tragedy at around 3am on Tuesday, confirmed the victim was British, and was with two other people at the time of the accident.

The emergency services arrived on the scene and attempted to resuscitate the tourist, and a helicopter was sent to the scene.

However, he died of his severe injuries before he could be taken to hospital.

A British tourist plunged to his death in the early hours of this morning after losing his balance while scaling a cannon (pictured) at a historic Spanish site

The 23-year-old holidaymaker, not named by police in Sitges near Barcelona, had climbed on the huge cannon (pictured bottom-right) pointing out to sea after a night out in the town

The Mossos d'Esquadra (Catalan police), who are investigating the incident, said: 'Everything seems to indicate this was an accidental death.' Local authorities are said to have put the accident down to 'reckless imprudence,'  La Vanguardia reported .

A spokesman for the police force said: 'A 23-year-old British holidaymaker died in the early hours of Tuesday morning in an incident that is being treated at this stage as an accident. 

'He appears to have fallen from a replica cannon in front of a church by the sea overlooking rocks which are there to protect the sea wall and landed on the rocks as he fell,' adding he was pulled from the water by a passer-by and a friend.

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'He was pronounced dead at the scene. A routine investigation is underway but there is nothing pointing to the death being the result of a crime and it is being treated as a tragic accident at this stage.' 

A police source added: 'It will be up to the autopsy to determine if the dead man had been drinking or had consumed drugs before this occurred. 'This is not something police would comment on at the moment.' 

Further details have not yet been released.

The young man apparently lost his balance and fell to his death on coastal rocks below while he was being watched by his horrified friends

The emergency services arrived on the scene and attempted to resuscitate the tourist, and a helicopter was sent to the scene. However, he died of his severe injuries before he could be taken to hospital

According to Spain in English - an English-language Spanish news website - the 23-year-old is the third reported person to have died falling from the same cannon.

The website said an Italian man died falling from the cannon ten years ago, and before that, another British man died under the same circumstances.

Pictures of the cannon show it jetting out over the edge of a historic defensive wall, with a steep drop onto a cliff face, which meets the ocean below. 

The cannon the man was said to be climbing on is an authentic replica of the original 18th-century gun, one of six that once protected the town.

The original stood next to the San Bartolome y Santa Tecla Church for 200 years before it was removed for restoration works.

The site serves as a gateway to the old town.

On 27th April 1797, the cannons were used in a battle with two English frigates trying to capture merchant ships anchored off the coast of Sitges.

After four hours of cannon fire, the English ships withdrew defeated.

The cannon the man was said to be climbing on is an authentic replica of the original 18th-century gun, one of six that once protected the town (pictured in an aerial photo)

The tragedy is the latest in a series which have resulted in the death of British holidaymakers and expats since the resumption of international travel following the easing of the Covid crisis.

On Sunday six-year-old Corey Aughey from north Belfast died in hospital after falling into the swimming pool of the hotel where he was staying with his family in the Majorcan resort of Sa Coma near the Love Island villa.

And last month a British toddler drowned in a swimming pool accident on the Costa Blanca. Freddie Joseph Briggs died in the pool at his parents' home in the village of Aigues near Benidorm on May 25. Local council to declared three days of mourning.

Tributes were paid to the 19-month-old boy at his funeral service at a church in Belfast where he was christened before he was buried at a nearby cemetery.

The child's father Marc Briggs, known to friends as Briggsy and thought to be from Mansfield, Notts, and Belfast-born mum Jane Mohan had moved to the Costa Blanca shortly before the tragedy.

Expat Ingrid Dale, 67, originally from Dereham in Norfolk, died after being stung by a wasp in a Costa Blanca restaurant on May 9.

She is said to have gone into anaphylactic shock in front of pals at the bar in the coastal town of Moraira half an hour north of Benidorm.

She died in an ambulance outside the Hill Top Sports Bar & Grill after going into cardiac arrest before she could be taken to hospital.

Later the same day a British man drowned in a nearby river which had claimed the lives of three other people in the past month as he tried to save his dog.

Former Royal Navy sailor Paul Lebihan, originally from Gateshead, died after getting into difficulties in the river at a beauty spot a short drive from the Costa Blanca resort of Benidorm.

• Un joven turista británico fallece en Sitges tras caer al mar desde un cañón
• 23-year-old British tourist dies after falling off cannon near Sitges church - Sitges in English

Share or comment on this article: British tourist, 23, plunges to his death on coastal rocks in Spanish seaside resort 

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• Sitges News

23-year-old British tourist dies after falling off cannon near Sitges church

A 23-year-old British tourist died in the early hours of Tuesday morning, after accidently falling off the cannon on the ‘Baluard’ near the church in Sitges (Catalonia), and onto the rocks below.

The tragedy occurred at around 3am, with the local police receiving an alert at 3.12am. They immediately rushed to the scene, along with an ambulance of the Medical Emergency Service (SEM). When they arrived, they were able to recover the body, with the help of the young man’s companions.

The group of friends is on holiday in the town, and the British Consulate in nearby Barcelona has been notified. This is the third fatal accident that has occurred surrounding the cannon in Sitges. Nearly 10 years ago an Italian man lost his life after falling from it, and prior to that another British man had also died following a fall.

The cannon is positioned next to the San Bartolome y Santa Tecla church in Sitges, on a lookout known as the ‘Baluard’ – as a gateway to the old town.

The cannon is a replica of an original 18th-century armament, that was removed after 200 years due to the corrosive effect of sea spray. The cannon is the only one remaining of six coastal batteries that once protected the town.

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Woman stabbed to death by phone thieves and bouncer knifed trying to save her in Barcelona cocktail bar popular with Brits

• Gerard Couzens
• Published : 12:04, 4 Sep 2019
• Updated : 13:32, 4 Sep 2019

A WOMAN has been stabbed to death in Barcelona after thieves reportedly tried to steal her mobile phone.

The woman, who has not been named, was pronounced dead shortly after being admitted to hospital with a knife wound to her chest.

A doorman who helped her recover the phone was also stabbed in the stomach at a nightspot in a popular tourist area.

The incident took place at cocktail bar Smar in Barcelona’s Olympic Port, which is popular with British tourists who flock to the area’s bars and clubs.

DOUBLE STABBING

The double stabbing happened around 3am this morning.

Police officers confirmed they are hunting two men and no arrests have yet been made.

A spokesman for the regional Mossos d’Esquadra said: “The alarm was raised around 3am.

“The call received was that two people had been stabbed inside a nightspot in the Olympic Port.

“It appears the attack happened just after the suspects tried to steal something from the female victim.

“The people who were stabbed are a man and a woman. They were both taken to hospital but the woman, a 26-year-old Spaniard, died a few hours later.

“We are not giving out details of the other victim, but in principle his life is not in danger.

“We are trying to identify the suspects as part of an ongoing investigation but no arrests have yet been made.”

STRING OF SIMILAR CRIMES

The area where the crime happened is extremely popular with British tourists.

During the day they head to the area to eat in restaurants and at night its bars and night-clubs.

As well as being one of the leading leisure and tourist spots in the city with its wide selection of shops, clubs and restaurants, it is also the gateway to its best beaches.

In July a Chinese man died after a fight in the Olympic Port.

Footage released by a police union showed a gang of Russians scrapping with two Chinese friends they had previously had an argument with in a disco. One died hours later in hospital.

The incident is understood to have happened outside a nightclub named locally as Zich.

BARCELONA'S 'CRIMEWAVE'

The death was described at the time as the fifth homicide in a month in Barcelona , which has come under the spotlight in recent weeks because of its crimewave.

Thirteen people are understood to have been the victims of “violent deaths” since the start of the year in Barcelona.

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Last week a man was left seriously injured after being kicked in the head by a suspected thief on nearby La Barceloneta beach.

Shocked onlookers filmed the two men fighting each other by the shoreline, including the moment one left the other unconscious after a brutal fight.

Police confirmed they had arrested a 21-year-old Moroccan at the scene who was thought to have got into a tussle with his victim after he was caught trying to take his mobile phone.

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Horrifying moment British tourist is 'stabbed' while fighting off gang who snatched his bag in Barcelona

2 September 2022, 18:31

By Sophie Barnett

This is the horrifying moment a British tourist was 'stabbed' while trying to fight a gang who had stolen his bag in Barcelona.

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The British man had his bag snatched while he was having a drink in the heart of Barcelona's Gothic Quarter, in Placa Sant Josep Orio, at around 8pm on Thursday.

After noticing his belongings had been pinched he chased down the men, tackling one of the thieves and managing to restrain him.

Shocking footage of the brawl shows the two men wrestling over the stolen bag, with onlookers watching in horror as the fight escalated in the street.

The thief then took an object, believed to be a knife, from his pocket, before attacking the victim in the side.

The Brit only released the thug when he realised he had been wounded, and the attacker quickly fled the scene.

Read more: Russia says it won't restart key gas pipeline to Europe tomorrow as planned 'because of oil leak'

Apuñalan y roban a un turista a plena luz del día Los cuatro han sido detenidos 📹 El Raval, Barcelona pic.twitter.com/28OYKxqlrZ — SocialDrive (@SocialDrive_es) September 2, 2022

Another passer-by bravely attempts to stop the men from running away, before they manage to escape once again.

Four people have been arrested in connection with the incident and the man was treated in hospital for non-life threatening injuries, reports the MailOnline.

In the video, which was posted on Twitter, someone can be heard speaking in English, saying "give it back bruv" and "you're on camera mate".

The British tourist can be heard saying "where's my s**t" as he tries to wrestle the thief for his bag.

"Where's my necklaces bro?" the Brit says, as the thief appears to be surrounded by a group.

The Catalonian capital records over 200 robberies every day, with gangs targeting the flocks of tourists who visit the city.

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British tourist stabbed in Barcelona trying to fight off bag-snatching thieves

A British tourist in Barcelona has been stabbed after trying to fight off thieves who snatched his bag in a horrifying ordeal caught on camera.

The man, who need hospital treatment, can be seen wrestling with another man in a video posted online of the incident on Thursday evening in the streets of the Spanish city.

He can be overheard shouting: “Where’s my s*** where’s my necklace, where the f*** is it.”

Another Brit filming on his mobile phone yells to one of the men: “You’re on camera bro, you want to give it back mate.”

The alleged thief managed to get away after appearing to put a blade to his victim’s face and running off with a stolen sling bag. Three others sprinted away after him.

It’s understood the four men approached the British tourist and snatched a necklace off him in Plaza Sant Josep Oriol.

The four suspects were all arrested shortly afterwards in the same area.

A spokesman for the regional Mossos d’Esquadra police said: “Four men have been arrested following a robbery in Plaza Sant Josep Oriol, yesterday evening around 8pm.

“Our officers made two of the arrests and the other two arrests were carried out by the Guardia Urbana who are employed by City Hall.

“I can confirm the victim was taken to hospital with stab wounds but his injuries were not serious.

“His stolen belongings were recovered when the men were arrested. They are in custody and will now go before a judge.”

The incident happened around two and a half hours before another man was arrested in a nearby square in the same neighbourhood of Raval over a separate stabbing.

At roughly 4am on Friday two men who had stabbed a third during a row were also held in the Barcelona neighbourhood of Sagrada Familia. In June a wealthy American tourist had his designer watch mugged outside his hotel in Barcelona.

Last month a thief was filmed stealing on a Barcelona beach - as a holidaymaker interviewed on Spanish TV raved about the city’s great food and beautiful weather.

The crook appeared in the background as the tourist replied: “I love Barcelona” after the reporter asked him what he thought about the Catalan capital for a live broadcast.

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The interview continued uninterrupted as the criminal bent down to pick up a rucksack left unattended under a pair of trousers and walked away while the passionate foreigner continued: “The beach is very beautiful, the water is clean and cold.”

Seconds later the bewildered owner of the rucksack that had been taken came into shot, shouting: “Someone’s stolen my stuff, did anyone see him?” and nearly bumped into the camera crew as he walked around yelling: “My bag”.

The footage, broadcast on Spanish state-owned channel TVE at popular Barcelona city beach Sant Miquel, went viral as police revealed they had tracked down and identified the suspect.

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A Summer Rite in Spain: Coping With the British Tourist Invasion

On the front lines of a low-cost resort, Spanish residents complain that U.K. visitors drink too much and don’t spend enough.

By David Segal

Reporting from Magaluf in Mallorca, Spain

A fit and ruddy 19-year-old with blond hair and a sheepish smile, James Henderson is tanning on a beach in Magaluf, a town on the Spanish island Mallorca that has long been the destination of choice for young Britons in search of a boozy holiday in the sun. Asked to recount the revelry of the day before, he grins like a man who has just completed a decathlon and is pretty psyched about his performance.

There was a few hours of “pre-drinking,” as he put it, at his hotel, then on to Punta Ballena, a crammed and gritty strip of pubs, tattoo parlors and lap dance emporiums that bursts with action until dawn every summer day. By the time he and his vacation buddy headed to bed, at 3 a.m., they had each knocked back roughly 20 drinks over the course of 15 hours.

“I had a bit of a strange taste in my mouth this morning,” Mr. Henderson said, proudly describing the minimal aftereffects of this marathon, “but nothing too bad.”

Every summer, Magaluf crawls with young British people in search of a bacchanalia, and they find one in what is essentially a slab of the United Kingdom set in the Mediterranean, except seedier than anything in the dingiest corners of London. There are also G-rated home comforts, like kebab shops, Yorkshire pudding and pubs, all at strikingly affordable prices.

The annual swarm is both a financial boon and a curse. The Britons here are not the hooligans who occasionally get blanket bans from foreign cities hosting U.K. soccer teams for fear of violent clashes. All of the fun in Magaluf gets posted to Instagram, which means it tends to be more photogenic than destructive.

But young British travelers are notorious for drinking a lot and spending little, and local reaction to the hard partying herd in Magaluf is split between come hithers (from hotel and bar owners) and go yons (from residents).

It’s a source of continuing tension, not just here but on other islands and in the country’s most beloved cities, including Barcelona and Madrid. Tourism accounts for more than 10 percent of Spain’s annual gross domestic product, the European Commission reports, and the United Kingdom provides the largest chunk of that windfall. More than 18 million British people visited Spain in 2019, about one-quarter of the total population, according to U.K. government statistics .

Spanish officials have already predicted that 2023 will break records .

“We don’t have factories here,” said Pepe Carbonell, an owner of Bondi Beach, a bar and restaurant in Magaluf. “We live off tourists, and the only bad customers are the ones who don’t come to Mallorca.”

Many tipple in moderation and spend plenty. But places like Magaluf are hotbeds of what is known here as the “tourism of excess.” The most notorious section of all is Punta Ballena, which has generated tales of hedonism for more than a generation.

Sexual assault is sadly common. There have also been fights and plenty of what is known as “balconying,” the practice of leaping from a balcony onto another balcony or into a swimming pool. (It’s popular enough that the U.K. Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office published a warning against it .) Public nudity is so prevalent on this strip that signs here state, “Wear no clothes on the street, penalty 400 euros.”

“There are residents who live here, work here, take their kids to school here, and they have to see drunk people all the time, drugs, prostitution,” said Margalida Ramis, campaigner for GOB, a conservation nonprofit. “Living in this reality is like living in hell if you want a normal life.”

Typically, officials here broach the topic of low-end British tourism diplomatically, aware that tastes change and that if young people abandon places like Magaluf, the economic consequences will be severe. The future looks precarious. Like much of continental Europe, Spain has been sweltering in record heat this summer, and U.K. tabloids have suggested that tourists are choosing more temperate climates, even if they offer a fraction of the excitement.

“Costa Del Dull,” read a mid-August headline in The Daily Star, a London-based newspaper, riffing on the name of a southern coastal area of Spain, above a photograph of Hercule Poirot, the fictional Belgian detective. “Tourists swap traditional holiday favorites for boring Belgium to beat global warming crisis.”

Some Spanish politicians are too annoyed by the putative boorish behavior of the British tourists to exercise restraint.

“We have areas of our islands that are clearly marked by the tourism of excess,” Iago Negueruela, counselor of tourism of the Balearic government, which includes Mallorca, told elDiario.es, a Spanish digital newspaper. “That is what does not have to come back, and we will do everything possible so that it does not.”

Such sentiments led to a decree, passed by the regional government in January 2022, to curtail shenanigans in what were officially labeled red zones on three islands, including Mallorca. Party boats — a cruise with a D.J. for a fixed price and an open bar — were banned. So were bikini-clad women dancing in the windows of bars. Two-for-one drink specials were prohibited, too.

The goal was to increase the amount of luxury tourism, and some pricier hotels have popped up at safe distances from Punta Ballena. But if Magaluf is any indication, once a place is renowned for low-end getaways, the label is hard to shed. Plenty of vendors still cater to the bargain hunters. Mr. Henderson, for instance, bought a round-trip flight and three nights at a hotel for about $600, a price that included three meals, with three drinks at both lunch and dinner.

“And a shuttle to the airport is 10 pounds,” Mr. Henderson’s friend, Toby Euston, 18, said. “That’s why people come here. It’s cheap, and there’s nice weather.”

Deals on alcohol remain ubiquitous on the strip. On a recent Tuesday, around 1 a.m., the pavement was chockablock with tourists and what are known here as “reps.” These are bar employees whose job is to stand in the middle of the street and rope in passers-by.

It gives the place the feeling of a noisy, roiling bazaar where the only commodity for sale is liquor. A typical pitch: a triple shot and two more shots for seven euros. Every bar has a variation of this budget beverage offer. And music. A bunch of bars offer “silent disco,” where people listen and dance to music while wearing headphones.

The entire scene is familiar to Daniel Briggs, an ethnographer from Northumbria University in England, who spent four summers studying young British people in Magaluf for research underwritten by the Foreign Office, the arm of the U.K. government that safeguards citizens abroad. He saw plenty of fights and more than a few accidents that led to hospitalizations.

To him, the question of why British youngsters overindulge in Magaluf isn’t a mystery. They are generally taking their first vacation without parents, and that creates a sense that everyone is off the leash. And drinking has been central to British culture for centuries. Businesses here understand that, Professor Briggs said. Magaluf is carefully designed to exploit its core demographic.

“Bar owners know they’ve got a group of people who are young and ready to drink, and they’ve presented all sorts of options for them that encourages the worst behavior,” he said. “Obviously, this is a business.”

Many Britons here know that their reputation for unhinged behavior precedes them. Few seem to mind.

“I think British people don’t really care,” said Bella Fisher, a 21-year-old from Britain, who was walking near the beach with a friend. “They have, like, no standards. Like, they don’t really care about anything.”

But aren’t British people renowned for their reserve?

“Until you get to Magaluf,” she said.

In other countries, officials have explicitly tried to wave away British tourists. Amsterdam, for instance, started an online campaign in March that showed public-service ads to anyone searching the internet for terms like “pub crawl Amsterdam.”

“Coming to Amsterdam for a messy night?” read text in one video showing a man being arrested. “Stay away.”

In Spain, anger about the British is more likely to come from residents than government officials. There’s a derogatory word for visitors from Britain — guiri . It’s a shorthand for any British person behaving in what is regarded as a stereotypically British way — namely, drinking too much, fighting, ignoring social norms like stopping at traffic lights, and spending very little money.

Occasionally, the anger bubbles into something closer to rage. “Tourists go home,” someone spray painted not long ago on a hotel in Mallorca. In some cities, posters that ooze sarcasm have been put up that encourage balconying. One uses an image of a stick figure tripping off a balcony; underneath is text ticking through the benefits of this hazardous activity.

“Prevents gentrification,” the poster reads, “reduces the risk of heart disease, is LOTS of fun.”

Some club and bar owners in Magaluf detect an anti-British bias in laws designed to curtail the tourism of excess. Gerard Pietro, owner of Capitol Bar — which features a large pink neon sign that reads “Please don’t do coke in the bathroom” — says Magaluf should embrace its image and the people drawn to it.

“If I could get 50 customers a night who only bought Dom Pérignon, I’d be the happiest owner in the world, but that is not what happens here,” he said. “We have young people, and they have the right to party.”

During a recent daytime walk through the strip, Professor Briggs said the place looked pretty much the same as when he last spent a summer here, in 2019. He walked past a fish-and-chips spot called the Chippy, and pubs with distinctly British names, like the Red Lion. He stopped briefly at a bar, the Dirty Dog, after spotting a young man seated in a chair and apparently passed out on the patio. A couple of friends hovered nearby, not especially concerned.

“Is he all right?” asked Professor Briggs.

“He’s fine,” a friend said.

“How long you guys staying for?” Professor Briggs asked.

“Forever,” came the reply.

José Bautista contributed reporting.

David Segal is a Business section reporter based in London. More about David Segal

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Brit tourist, 35, dies after falling from hotel balcony at Ibiza party resort

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A Brit has died after falling from the balcony of a hotel in the Spanish island of Ibiza.

Police are investigating the incident, which happened in the resort of San Antonio that is famous for its party scene.

The circumstances around the man’s death remain unclear for now, but the alarm was raised just after 3.15am today.

Sources cited in local reports said the victim had been on a second-floor balcony when he went over the edge.

According to the first 999 call that came, he was found lying on the floor below an apartment block near to a British supermarket and a short walk from the seafront.

A spokesperson for a regional government-run emergency response coordination centre said: ‘The initial reports were that a man was lying unconscious in the street.

‘He was already dead by the time the first ambulance arrived and there was nothing they could do to save him.’

Earlier today, the force confirmed in a statement the tourist was aged 35 and from the UK.

A spokesperson for the Civil Guard said: ‘I can confirm a 35-year-old British man died in San Antonio.

‘The circumstances surrounding this incident remain under investigation.’

This is the latest such incident in the resort after the death of John McKenna last month.

The 22-year-old was killed after falling from the balcony of a three-star hotel in San Antonio.

This is a developing news story, more to follow soon… Check back shortly for further updates.

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Jaipur, Apr 30 (PTI) A 61-year-old British tourist, who was admitted to the government hospital in Pushkar following a complaint of vomiting and diarrhoea, died during treatment, police said on Tuesday.

Philip John had reached Pushkar in Ajmer district on April 21 with a friend, they said.

On Monday evening, John was admitted to the government hospital in Pushkar from where he was referred to Jawaharlal Nehru Hospital in Ajmer, Station Officer Rakesh Yadav said.

He died during treatment the same day, Yadav said, adding that the British Embassy has been informed about John’s death.

His family members have also been informed, the police said.

They added that the body is kept at the hospital’s mortuary and a postmortem will be conducted after the family members of the deceased reach Pushkar.

Station officer Yadav said that according to John’s friend, the deceased also suffered from asthma-related problems. PTI AG BHJ

This report is auto-generated from PTI news service. ThePrint holds no responsibility for its content.

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