THOUSANDS of migrants are living in squalid caravan parks just minutes away from a glamorous and popular British holiday hotspot.
In Palma, Majorca, there is an estimated 5,000 caravans, cars and even buses being used as homes with individuals, couples and families living in grim conditions right under the noses of tourists.
While Louis Vuitton, Hugo Boss and Mulberry flaunt the streets of Palma’s super-rich hub, just a ten-minute drive away, tucked in the town’s millionaire enclave, there is a far more troubling reality.
Locals claim shadowy “mafia-run” gangs are shaking down caravan owners for cash just to park up – with hotspots like Son Hugo at the centre of the alleged racket.
The Sun visited Palma’s overlooked caravan parks and found families of up to five living in the basic restricted spaces, parked up in areas swarmed by crime and drug use.
Residents living in vehicles in the area are said to regularly use the gym and shower facilities at the Son Hugo Municipal Swimming Pools, situated right beside the parking site.
Hairo Cococha, a 53-year-old Colombian man who we found living in his car, covered in filth and barefoot on the concrete ground said: “People do drugs and deal drugs here all the time. It can be dangerous if you come face-to-face with the wrong people.”
The Balearic Government statements is now drawing a direct line between surging migration pressure, security fears, and alleged organised smuggling networks.
They warn that already overstretched services are being pushed to the limit – especially in peak summer when tourists flood the islands.
Balearic President Marga Prohens issued a stark warning, saying Majorca could be on course to “become another Canary Islands” if migrant arrivals keep rising – raising alarm over mounting pressure on the region.
Hairo’s rustic four-by-four vehicle, tucked under several overgrown trees, is his home, where he has been living for five years.
A flatbed shopping trolley used as storage was placed directly beside him filled with clothes, food, cleaning and cooking essentials.
He told The Sun: “Here it is mostly migrants from Africa, Latin America and some other European countries.
“We’re here because the Spanish government has accepted it.”
As youngsters played with toys outside, a strong smell of cannabis drifted through the busy concrete car park making drug use and crime plainly evident.
Describing the parking lot, Hairo said: “When a place is packed, that’s when the most opportunities arrive to commit crimes and do bad business deals. We’re always cautious here.
Hairo claims he has seen people “murder their wives and children, and even kill themselves”.
He said: “It’s a terrifying thing we’re living with.”
An Israeli-French man who claimed he was an ex-mafia murderer joked he first migrated to Spain one year ago to “run away” from his eleven ex-wives and 14 sons.
The 73-year-old, who claimed he was part of a criminal network, said: “It’s a difficult life situation in Majorca. But I like this life.
“When I first moved here it was because there were a lot of complications at home, and my children were too expensive, so I escaped. When I arrived I realised it was impossible to buy a house, so I bought a caravan and I have been living like this for years.”
According to the Balearic Government, more than 5,000 migrants arrived on the islands by September 2025.
Joan, a market stall vendor from Palma said some residents, particularly older people, feel uncomfortable or intimidated by the sudden demographic changes.
“You see groups of young men and older people paying more attention to what’s happening around them,” the 63-year-old said.
In the same areas affected by large-scale migrant accommodation, some locals say they have been pushed into caravans as property prices soared beyond affordability.
But one Spaniard Juan Alou, who has been living in his £1,730 caravan for five years, said: “I like this life. It’s the best, not too many people, not too expensive. In Spain, if you breathe you have to pay.”
Juan, an original Majorcian, has a built-in shower and a full-sized fridge inside his caravan.
Like most others, Juan only pays 185 euros a year for insurance and uses solar panels to fire-up his motor home at zero costs.
The 57-year-old keeps himself entertained with a TV, a Playstation, his dog Oscar and his best friend, Ion Midroc, a Romanian migrant parked right next to Juan.
They cook together, eat together and spend every day together. “That’s all I need, I’m very happy,” Juan said.
The pair revealed there are also several Brits who reside in these caravan parks from time to time but “only for a vacations” and for no more than “three, four or five days”.
The dad-of-one was once an architect but suffered a severe back injury and was never able to work again.
When his wife died, it made it impossible for him to make ends meet, so he scraped together what little he had left of his hard earned cash and bought the caravan to start a new life.
“I thank god I’m not sleeping outside,” he told The Sun.
Residents living in these shanty towns where drug dealers prey on kids are asked by cops to move locations every ten days – and threatened with fines of up to £1,200.
This is when everyone packs up their belongings and moves to the next ramshackle caravan park just metres away from the last.
A new location, new scenery and new faces surround them – but life goes on unchanged just around the corner, where Brits sip sangria and Spanish wine.
Five minutes down the road, we entered another parking lot, home to at least 500 vans and vehicles and even a large bus.
One man, who some would say struck it lucky when it comes to space, is now living in a converted double-decker motor.
The former tourism aquarium excursion vehicle has been transformed into a two-storey home, complete with a built-in kitchen accessed by stairs, a bedroom and a large living area.
Neighbours living near some of the settlements have raised concerns about hygiene, waste, overcrowding and safety, while others say the residents are quiet people simply trying to survive.
Alejandro, a local taxi driver said: “Sometimes there’s rubbish everywhere and nobody clears it away.”
But he said most people are there because they simply want “a place to call home”.
People were seen blaring music in the unconventional neighbourhood – cooking on barbecues and dancing around under the blazing sun.
While residents appear content at first glance, many are simply making the best of grim conditions.
Speaking with Edwardo, 50, another Spanish national, he raged about his conditions saying: “I’ve been living in Spain for 36 years, I’m Spanish and I am a Spanish citizen.
“The truth is that overnight I found myself not being able to afford my rent and unable to access housing because it’s impossible here.
“I feel quite affected by all of this, and I hope that at some point, the housing issue will be resolved here in Palma Majorca and all over the world because it is a mess. All of this needs to be publicised, the world needs to see what’s happening.”
