Sunbed operators have forced bathers off one of Europe's most beautiful 'free' beaches. Photo / Tripadvisor
Sunbed operators have forced bathers off one of Europe's most beautiful 'free' beaches. Photo / Tripadvisor
One of the most popular, free public beaches in the Mediterranean has been overrun by rogue deckchair vendors. An expose by The Times of Malta revealed tourists being muscled out of the coves and refusing to move to let tourists pass without paying for a recliner.
The Blue Lagoon, between the islands of Comino and Cominotto in Malta, is famed for its clear water, caves and hidden coves.
It was recently highlighted as one of The Telegraph's top beaches for summer, largely due to Malta's lack of quarantine requirements.
Once a poster for the Maltese tourism board, it is now unrecognisable, buried beneath umbrellas and sunbeds. Even those arriving on the first ferry to the island are not able to secure space.
On Monday The Times of Malta published a video of vendors and deckchair employees preventing swimmers from finding space on the public beach. The video has been seen over 4 million times.
The Blue Lagoon on Camino has been used to promote Malta to the world. Photo / Unsplash, Mike Nahlii
It shows tourists trying to move along the beach, only to be blocked by barricades of parasols and recliners.
"If you hire a deckchair, you can move the umbrella," an employee can be heard saying. Maltese viewers condemned the scam, saying the beach hogging has ruined the attraction. "There is no fairness, there is no consideration."
The video has gained plenty of comments from tourists who have experienced problems on Camino.
"I had to move some empty deckchairs slightly just to be able to pass through," said a visitor, after which an operator " quickly ran over and started yelling at us that unless we hire from him we shouldn't touch the deckchairs."
The deckchair companies which tourists accused of blocking their access to the public beach pay concessions to the Maltese government.
However, when questioned by local media, the tourism ministry and tourism watchdog would not say how many operators were operating on Camino, they were not forthcoming. A statement to The Times said only "no permits for sunbed operators have been issued this year".
Authorities on Camino would not address questions of whether the deckchair vendors were breaking access laws or acting unfairly. Instead they issued a statement saying: "The aforementioned island is not made up only of the Blue Lagoon, but incorporates other natural attractions that, as a government, we will continue conserving and investing in, while promoting the niche of eco-tourism."
The Malta Independent revealed that there were close to 460 deckchairs at any one time, double the number permitted in the Maltese Tourism Association tender document.
Each of these chairs is charged at 10 euros ($17) a day - or up to $21 for those closer to the water.
For hire: Tourists are furious to be charged to access the free public beach. Photo / Tripadvisor
One tourist posted photos to Tripadvisor saying "Sure the water's beautiful, but there's no more than 5cm between each bather." He was concerned over the lack of distancing measures and rubbish left behind. "It's all been ruined," he said.
Malta's Tourism Ministry was recently accused by Friends of the Earth of corruption and abuse of public land.
Previously the Blue Lagoon had come before the Maltese parliament for illegal roading works, to improve access to the site.
The ombudsman and the commissioner for environment and planning said that roading to the lagoon had been illegal and without proper environmental consideration. The Times of Malta reported that no action was taken, and the resurfacing works continued.
