This is the first draft of my article for my unit 3 double page spread.
Do you want to find out how many people visit Magaluf on a hot
summers night? Or the top 5 holiday destinations? Then you’re in the right
place… All you need to do is carry on reading.
Magaluf, Kavos, Malia, Bulgaria; the list goes on. These are just
a few places that thousands of teenagers escape to every year for their first
holiday abroad. It’s estimated that around 60 million Brits escape the wet
weather and exchange it for a week or two of sun.
In places like Magaluf, Bulgaria and Zante the biggest thing that
draws in you teenagers is the free bars, isn’t it? Many teenagers may think it
is to soon to be serious, but I think it’s never too soon to be serious. I
think teenagers need to be aware of the risks when taking their first holiday
abroad and to be prepared. A lot of teenage holidays are drunk infused and some
of them don’t know the dangers of the excessive drinking and the amount they
intake while on a week long holiday.
In popular holiday destination Magaluf, on an average summer weekend there are
over 200,000 people on the main stretch which means that more Ambulance staff
have to be employed to deal with drug and alcohol related incidents involving
teenagers on their holidays abroad. There are even cases now where girls are
ringing for help as rape and sexual abuse in these holiday destinations is on
an incline. They are picking drunk, vulnerable girls in which there are between
15-20 cases a year, and to think it could be you…
The amount of alcohol teenagers drink while they’re on holiday is
said to be in some cases over 10x the Spanish limit which makes people a lot
more vulnerable. Teenagers are then targeted by ‘prostitutes’ who are really
thieves and something to think about if you’re going on a teenage holiday or
thing about going on one, as these ‘prostitutes’ target drunk teenagers as
they’re less aware of what’s happening around them. There is no law for this in
Magaluf so the only way to prevent it is to have patrolling police, but having
to prioritize is something they have to take into accord.
Drunken fights are just one thing the police have to deal with,
and then there’s the drug intake and weapons. The police, on an average summer’s
night in Magaluf have 6 cars patrolling the area and each of them can deal with
up to 40 calls.
Another hot destination would have to be Bulgaria, with Sunny
Beach been one of the fastest growing places, it looks like it’s going to start
taking over popular teenage destinations Kavos and Magaluf. Sunny Beach in
Bulgaria has actually made tabloid headlines for the amount of binge drinking
as their main contenders are 18-30 year olds.
Bulgaria is one of the hottest destinations for their cheap
alcohol… No surprise there. It’s also a place where drugs are easy to get hold
of. Amphetamine, a drug which over in the UK has killed over 100 people in the
past 2 years can be bought in places like Bulgaria over the counter.
Bar crawls are one of the most popular things to do while on your
first teenage holiday. It is estimated that in Bulgaria over 400 people pay £6
to join in one of the ever so popular bar crawls where they receive free drinks
from each bar they go to. Each bar you stay at for around an hour where you are
encouraged to drink as much as possible. Even if people don’t join the bar
crawl, they can pick up drinks from local bars for as little as £1.20 which
encourages teenagers to drink more when they go on holiday. A lot of the shop
owners and locals have described it to be really hard living around people who
get so drunk. Just imagine if this was your town, where you lived, would you be
happy with the noise, violence and the way these people are treat because of
young teenagers breaking rules just because they’re on holiday?
Zante, popular holiday destination is where thousands of teenagers
go for the cheap alcohol and booze cruises, where teenagers don’t think about
the consequences. Do you know the dangers of jumping off a boat while you are
drunk? This is something I don’t think teenagers take serious because they
don’t realize the risks with one of them been drowning as a result of the
amount of alcohol they have consumed. Booze cruises are popular as they are
easy to ‘blag free drinks’ and they include a lot of drinking games. Because of
the drunken states that people on these types of holidays end up in it means
they can be taken advantage of, some games include boys sleeping with the
ugliest girl they can find. On holiday the reps aren’t as caring as you think.
Reps are meant to be someone who makes sure everyone is okay, where as they
would prefer to get drunk themselves and drink excessive amounts, then peer
pressure their guests to drinking more by doing special offers such as ‘buy one
shot get another 2 free’.
I think that teens need to be aware of the hot topic ‘teenage
holidays’ and really think if getting drunk every night and making themselves
vulnerable is an option to them. Safety is always something that has to come
first, but while under the influence of alcohol it’s probably the last thing on
any teenagers mind. 60-70% of people who went on holiday ended up in hospital
due to drunken attacks and fights. Just remember, safety is key.
